Federal Case Details Alleged Cuba-Mexico Smuggling Network
Original reporting: El Financiero
What happened
El Financiero reports that U.S. investigators connected Florida boat thefts to an alleged migrant-smuggling network operating through Cuba, Mexico and the United States.
Reporting and context
El Financiero reports that a federal investigation connected years of boat and marine-equipment thefts in southwest Florida to an alleged migrant-smuggling organization operating between Cuba, Mexico and the United States. The account draws on reporting by The New York Times and U.S. court records.
According to the report, U.S. prosecutors charged several Cuban nationals based in Mexico in 2020 and accused them of belonging to a group known as the Cuban Mafia of Quintana Roo. Prosecutors alleged that the organization stole boats in Florida and used them to move thousands of migrants from Cuba to Mexico and ultimately toward the United States.
Court records cited by the outlet allege that migrants who could not pay approximately $10,000 were held in Mexico and subjected to violence while relatives were pressured for money. The report says about 25 people died during crossings.
The investigation also described an alleged 2009 plot tied to a dispute involving Los Zetas. El Financiero reports that several defendants later pleaded guilty, while Raul Guillermo Rodriguez Castro, a grandson of former Cuban leader Raul Castro, has not been charged in the case.