Cuba’s communist regime said this Wednesday (25) that four crew members of a speedboat from Florida, USA, died after an exchange of fire with the Cuban Coast Guard in the island’s territorial waters. According to the Cuban Ministry of the Interior (Minint), the vessel, which was civilian, did not obey the order to stop and opened fire on the police unit, which returned fire.
Minint said in a statement that six other people on the boat were injured in the clash. The commander of the Cuban Coast Guard vessel, who was part of a patrol made up of five agents, was also injured. Authorities said all injured people were evacuated and received medical attention.
According to the Cuban regime’s version, the incident occurred on Wednesday morning, near the municipality of Corralillo. The boat, registered in the state of Florida (USA), was identified as being within Cuban territorial waters.
According to Minint, a Coast Guard unit approached to identify the vessel. According to the official report, the boat’s occupants opened fire on the Cuban agents, who retaliated. In the exchange of fire, the four crew members of the civilian vessel were shot and killed.
The ministry has not yet disclosed the identity of those killed nor stated what the vessel’s motivations were for entering Cuban waters.
The episode occurs amid a period of strong diplomatic tension between Havana and Washington. In recent months, the United States has imposed new economic pressures on the island, including measures related to the energy sector. Similar incidents have already been recorded in recent years, according to reports from Cuban authorities, involving speedboats from Florida intercepted on the north coast of the country.
Hours after the incident was released, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced the opening of an investigation into the case. Uthmeier stated that he ordered the state Attorney’s Office to work together with federal authorities and security forces to investigate what happened.
“I have ordered the State Attorney’s Office to work with our federal, state and law enforcement partners to begin an investigation. The Cuban government cannot be trusted, and we will do everything in our power to hold these communists accountable,” the prosecutor wrote.
