The US grand jury in Florida has indicted former Cuban leader Raúl Castro and five others in connection with the Cuban military’s fatal downing of two planes nearly three decades ago, the Justice Department announced on Wednesday (local time).
The criminal charges against the 94-year-old Castro, brother of the late Fidel Castro and widely seen as one of Havana’s most influential and powerful figures, mark an escalation in US President Donald Trump’s administration pressure campaign against the Cuban government. Castro served as Havana’s president from 2008 to 2018, and as the top official of the country’s Communist Party from 2011 to 2021, CBS News reported.
The development comes days after CBS News reported that the Trump administration was moving to indict Castro. The plan came as the US increased pressure on the Cuban government. The Trump administration has threatened steep tariffs on any country exporting oil to Cuba, contributing to energy shortages as oil shipments have been largely cut off. President Donald Trump has pushed for major reforms in Cuba and has floated the idea of a “friendly takeover” of the country.
According to a document from the DOJ, Castro has been charged with Lorenzo Alberto Perez‑Perez of Las Tunas, Emilio José Palacio Blanco, José Fidel Gual Barzaga, Raul Simanca Cardenas, and Luis Raul Gonzalez‑Pardo Rodriguez. The six men have been charged with their alleged roles in the February 24, 1996, shoot‑down of two unarmed US civilian aircraft operated by Brothers to the Rescue (BTTR), also known as Hermanos al Rescate, over international waters.
Allegations against Castro
According to the allegations, over three decades ago, three BTTR aircraft flew from South Florida toward Cuba. Cuban military fighter jets under the chain of command overseen by Raúl Castro fired air‑to‑air missiles at two unarmed civilian Cessna aircraft, destroying them without warning while they were flying outside Cuban territory, killing four US nationals, including three US citizens: Carlos Costa, Armando Alejandre Jr., Mario de la Peña, and Pablo Morales.
The indictment alleged that, in the weeks before the attack, Cuban military pilots conducted training exercises designed to locate and intercept slow‑moving civilian aircraft. On the day of the incident, three BTTR planes departed from Opa‑locka Airport for a planned humanitarian flight south of the 24th parallel. Two of the aircraft, tail numbers N2456S and N5485S, were allegedly targeted and shot down in international airspace, resulting in the deaths of all four victims.
According to the DOJ release, if convicted, Casto and the others accused will face a maximum penalty of death or life imprisonment on the murder and conspiracy to kill US nationals counts. Castro Ruz and Perez-Perez face up to five years in prison for each of the destruction of aircraft counts. The statutory maximum penalties are prescribed by Congress and provided here for informational purposes only, as the sentencing of any defendant will be determined by a judge.
However, it remains unclear if the 94-year-old will ever stand trial since Havana does not extradite people to Washington.
What is BTTR?
BTTR was a Miami-based organization that conducted humanitarian flight operations across the Florida Straits to search for Cuban migrants in distress. As alleged, beginning in the early 1990s, Cuban intelligence agents infiltrated the organization and relayed detailed information about its flight operations back to the Cuban government. These reports were allegedly used by military leadership in planning the February 24, 1996, operation.
