Florida authorities have filed additional charges against former Cuban President Raúl Castro in connection with the 1996 shooting down of civilian aircraft operated by Miami-based exiles. The state-level indictment was announced Monday by Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, who accused Castro, 95, of orchestrating the infiltration of the exile group Brothers to the Rescue by Cuban intelligence agents and ordering the attack on their planes.
The Florida charges include conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and are largely based on a federal indictment issued in May, which named Castro in counts of murder and aircraft destruction. The case originates from an incident on February 24, 1996, when Cuban military jets fired missiles at three unarmed Cessna planes flying outside Cuban territorial waters. Two of the planes were shot down, resulting in the deaths of all four people aboard. The aircraft had departed from Opa-Locka Airport in Miami-Dade County and were reportedly traveling away from Cuba without receiving any warning, despite interaction with Cuban air traffic control.
At the time of the shootdown, Castro held the positions of Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces and First Vice President of Cuba. According to investigators, Cuban agents linked to the Directorate of Intelligence and operating as part of the so-called Wasp Network infiltrated Brothers to the Rescue and relayed flight information used to coordinate the attack.
Uthmeier acknowledged the practical challenges of bringing Castro to trial given his age and the likelihood that he will not voluntarily enter U.S. jurisdiction. However, the attorney general emphasized that the arrest warrant restricts Castro’s ability to travel internationally to countries with extradition treaties with the United States. “I’m not ignorant of the fact that Raúl Castro is an older man who’s probably not looking to march himself into Miami,” Uthmeier said. “I think others would get him before the court of law would, but at the end of the day, we stand ready to prosecute the case.”
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel condemned the indictments, calling them political maneuvers designed to justify what he described as U.S. military aggression against Cuba. He accused Washington of distorting facts surrounding the incident. Meanwhile, Jason Reding Quiñones, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, noted that the Florida charges build on the federal case and represent an important step in pursuing legal accountability.
Raúl Castro succeeded his brother Fidel Castro as president in 2006 and remained in power until 2018, when he handed the presidency to Díaz-Canel. Though he retired as head of the Cuban Communist Party in 2021, Castro is widely regarded as retaining significant influence over Cuba’s political affairs.
In recent months, U.S.-Cuba relations have been tense. Following the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, a key Cuban ally, the U.S. has imposed a blockade on Cuba, severely restricting fuel imports and contributing to energy shortages and economic hardship on the island. The Trump administration previously threatened military action against Cuba amid these heightened tensions.