A Belgian citizen who arrived in Cuba with a significant donation intended for a children's hospital was a victim of a robbery while traveling by car from Havana's José Martí International Airport.
Unknown individuals forced open the trunk of the vehicle and stole his backpack containing personal belongings, in a stretch of road where other travelers and drivers have reported similar incidents.
The incident occurred on Thursday, October 15, around 9:40 PM, according to Oliver De Armas reported on Facebook, a host in the tourism industry in El Vedado, who had gone to Terminal 3 to pick up the foreign visitor.
De Armas explained that both were traveling with a driver when they arrived at the road of the CUJAE, near the railway line and just a few meters from the exit to Boyeros Avenue. At that point, a pothole forced the driver to reduce speed.
That was when they heard a loud bang at the back of the vehicle.
“They assaulted us”, wrote De Armas, who recounted that the driver, with the engine still running, shouted “thieves” and exited the vehicle.
According to their testimony, the responsible parties used a tool similar to a crowbar to force open the trunk door and access the luggage.
"The grass was taller than me on both sides of the path," described the complainant, explaining the conditions of darkness and vegetation surrounding the area.
The occupants were unable to identify the assailants. When they checked the back of the car, they found a suitcase outside of the trunk, which they managed to recover before leaving the scene.
However, the criminals managed to take the personal backpack of the Belgian visitor. De Armas clarified that none of the occupants suffered physical injuries.
The informant did not specify the content or value of the stolen items. He also did not indicate that the thieves had managed to take the items from the donation intended for the children's hospital.
"Everything was very dark, with not a single police officer in sight," lamented the host, who stated they continued on to Boyeros, just a short distance from the incident location.
The woman had arrived in Havana with a significant donation for a children's hospital, a charitable initiative that was overshadowed by the theft that occurred shortly after she left the airport.
De Armas described her as a "goodwill ambassador," referring to her work in providing aid, although he did not specify the hospital that would benefit or detail the materials she was transporting.
“If we are alive, it’s a miracle,” the host expressed, worried about the potential consequences of the incident.
"I don't usually make comments like this, but the situation regarding assaults and theft is critical," he added.
The whistleblower clarified that he has traveled to various Latin American countries and is aware that this type of crime occurs in other nations, but emphasized that he had never experienced anything like this in Cuba.
"My post is a call to alert", he emphasized, hoping that the dissemination of the incident will help to implement safety measures.
The post generated numerous comments from people who claimed to know or have experienced similar thefts in the vicinity of the CUJAE railway line.
Several testimonies describe a nearly identical procedure: the criminals take advantage of vehicles slowing down to open the trunks and escape with the luggage into the vegetation.
One of the commentators reported that he was driving to the airport around three in the morning in a Peugeot 405 when unknown individuals managed to open his trunk. According to his account, he lost a hydraulic jack, a car starter, and several tools.
A woman reported that some friends who had arrived from Spain were also victims of a robbery while traveling in a taxi. As the taxi slowed down near the train tracks, the thieves opened the back doors of the vehicle, grabbed the briefcases, and vanished into the darkness.
Another commentator stated that her sister-in-law, who is from Canada, had a suitcase stolen from the trunk at the same spot, even while the car was in motion.
The accounts include incidents from previous years. A woman stated that her husband was robbed in that area in 2016 and that when they arrived at the restaurant El Conejito, they found others who had just experienced a similar event.
Another user described the case of a friend who traveled from the United States to visit his sick mother. According to what she said, he was stripped of his belongings and spent the night making statements at a police station. For the rest of his stay, he had to wear borrowed clothes.
There were also references to an incident that occurred in July of this year, around four in the morning. A person who identified himself as an airport taxi driver claimed that experienced drivers avoid passing through that area due to thefts and that many incidents do not get reported on social media.
A woman recalled even witnessing, about fifteen years ago in broad daylight, how several people riding BMX bicycles were taking suitcases out of a car and escaping along the railway.
Regarding the police presence, another driver stated that when passing by the location around one in the morning, he observed a patrol car and several officers using flashlights to illuminate the bushes.
Reports of thefts targeting travelers near CUJAE and Havana airport are not new. For years, incidents have been published that share similarities with the account provided by De Armas: poor lighting, vegetation that facilitates hiding, and vehicles forced to slow down.
One of the most recent incidents occurred last July, when a Cuban resident abroad reported the robbery suffered by her mother upon leaving the Havana airport, arriving from Germany.
According to that testimony, several criminals took advantage of a car stop in the Boyeros area to attempt to steal the luggage. When the driver and a passenger tried to recover the suitcase, the assailants allegedly shot at them with pellet guns.
In June 2023, private taxi driver Elvis Pablo Piñón Lora recounted how he managed to escape from a robbery attempt at the intersection of the traffic light at CUJAE and Boyeros Avenue.
The driver then explained that the individuals were hidden in the grass and took advantage of the moment when he had to slow down to try to climb onto the back of the vehicle. He managed to accelerate and avoid the attack.
Another incident was reported in February 2024, when unknown individuals threw stones at a taxi on the road from CUJAE to the airport, shattering its windshield. The attack did not result in injuries, but it endangered its occupants.
In July 2022, several drivers had warned about suitcase thefts on the roads near the airport, especially in Boyeros, CUJAE, and the Six Ways area.
The drivers described cases in which thieves managed to remove luggage from the trunk without the occupants immediately realizing what had happened.
The repeated reports of these allegations over the years raise questions about the safety conditions of one of the routes used by tourists, Cuban travelers residing abroad, and family members who come to pick up passengers at the country's main international airport.
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