A nighttime operation by the authorities in Las Tunas resulted in the seizure of 29 motorcycles and mopeds accused of participating in illegal races at various locations throughout the city, as reported on Tuesday by the Facebook page Claridad Tunera, a profile linked to the Ministry of the Interior in that eastern province.
The action focused particularly on the city's ring road, where traffic agents intercepted drivers overnight and moved the vehicles to a municipal impound lot.
According to the official publication, the operation was not spontaneous; it was a response to reports that citizens who followed that same page had previously submitted, pointing out the locations where clandestine competitions and other violations were taking place.
"In a previous post related to accidents, several followers of this page reached out to us to report places where illegal races were being held on public roads, as well as other misconducts that violate Law 109," Claridad Tunera explained in their post.
This pattern—where the page itself receives complaints and "processes" them before the authorities—is a common strategy for legitimizing police control through social media, replicated in several Cuban provinces.
The operation on Tuesday is not an isolated event in Las Tunas. In August 2026, the Provincial Traffic Directorate had already launched a similar offensive against motorcyclists that included the impoundment of vehicles for periods ranging from one day to six months, with a fee of 500 Cuban pesos per day in the impound lot.
On that occasion, the provincial chief of Traffic, José Enrique Collazo González, warned that failure to pay by the specified date would result in automatic confiscation the following day, a measure that generated criticism among the people of Tunas due to the cost and the difficulties in obtaining driver's licenses.
The offenses pursued in these operations—illegal races, driving without a helmet or license, modified exhausts, transporting three people on a motorcycle—constitute violations of the , known as Law 109, which prohibits competitions on public roads without police authorization and empowers authorities to seize or confiscate the vehicles involved.
The phenomenon of illegal motorcycle racing has spread throughout the island. Similar operations have been reported in Guantánamo in October 2026, as well as in Pinar del Río, Baracoa, and Villa Clara during 2025.
The road safety context in Cuba is serious: during 2025, there were 7,538 traffic accidents, resulting in 750 fatalities and 6,718 injuries, with motorcycles and mopeds involved in over half of the incidents. In the first quarter of 2026, 74% of accidents involved motorcycles, mopeds, or pedestrians.
Claridad Tunera concluded its publication with an openly laudatory tone toward law enforcement: "Justice will be enforced with the rigor of the law. Congratulations to the authorities for addressing the concerns of the people and this page. Excellent outcome."
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