The Provincial Prosecutor's Office of Artemisa is investigating as a presumed sabotage an incident that occurred at the Máximo Gómez Thermoelectric Power Plant in Mariel, where the cutting of electrical cables caused, according to the authorities, that Unit 8 ceased generation.
The official newspaper Trabajadores reported this Wednesday, citing the provincial Prosecutor's Office, that the incident occurred on September 2, around 1:00 AM.
According to the version from the Prosecutor's Office, two individuals not associated with the power plant gained access through the facility's water supply channel and cut energized cables connecting Unit 8 with the fuel supply house.
The authorities assert that 135 meters of cable from 19 lines were cut and stolen, an action that caused the abrupt and unplanned shutdown of the unit.
The Prosecutor's Office stated that the prompt actions of the workers and management at the plant prevented more significant consequences for the National Electric System (SEN).
The investigation was handed over to the Unit for Crimes against State Security and was recorded as Preliminary Phase File 36 of 2026.
According to the source, the process includes the alleged crimes of sabotage and failure to preserve property in economic entities.
Until now, the Prosecutor's Office links four individuals to the investigation and according to the source, the two alleged direct perpetrators are under precautionary measures of provisional detention.
Additionally, two other workers who were performing security duties are being investigated for allegedly failing to detect what happened and remain out on bail, according to the information released.
The authorities also reported that 67 meters of electrical cable were seized and that specialists determined they belonged to the affected line at the thermoelectric plant.
The processing as alleged sabotage aligns with the judicial policy that the Cuban regime has been applying to events that impact components of the electrical infrastructure.
The qualification is based on the , approved in May 2025, which allows for the prosecution of theft, alteration, or damage to components of the National Electric System and other infrastructures deemed critical as sabotage.
At the beginning of September, following an attempt to steal dielectric oil at a substation in Santiago de Cuba, the Electric Company explicitly stated that the case would be treated as sabotage due to its impact on a system facility.
One of the most recent processes concluded in Holguín, where a 19-year-old was sentenced to eight years in prison for continued sabotage and another accused received 10 years, after the prosecution held them responsible for thefts of dielectric oil that left over 4,000 customers without electricity for more than 24 hours.
The magnitude of the phenomenon was revealed this month when the authorities themselves acknowledged more than 460 criminal investigations for crimes against the electrical system between 2025 and the first half of 2026, including sabotage, damage, robbery with force, theft, and possession of stolen goods.
More than 300 complaints were specifically related to the theft of dielectric oil.
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