Florida issues arrest warrant for Cuban leader Raul Castro
The announcement mirrors a federal indictment from May as the US steps up pressure on the Cuban government.
Florida's top prosecutor has issued an arrest warrant for former Cuban president Raul Castro on charges of murder, stemming from a 1996 incident that mirrors a recent federal indictment. At 95 years old, Raul Castro is wanted in connection with the shooting down of two civilian aircraft by Brothers to the Rescue, a group aiding Cuban refugees to Florida by sea.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier declared, "Raul Castro ordered the murder of four Floridians in cold blood, and Florida will never stop pursuing accountability for that communist conspiracy." The move follows the indictment by the US federal government in May, as President Trump's administration intensifies economic, political, and legal pressure on the Cuban regime.
US Attorney Jason A. Reding Quinones emphasized, "We're committed to pursuing every lawful, prosecutable avenue to bring accountability, including parallel federal and state prosecutions." The federal prosecutor expressed pride in standing alongside Florida in seeking justice for the four Americans killed in the Brothers to the Rescue shootdown, which occurred nearly three decades ago.
President Trump previously used the US indictment as justification for military action against Venezuela, a close ally of the Cuban government. Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel has dismissed the federal indictment against Raul Castro as lacking legal basis and as an attempt to justify aggression against Cuba.
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