A Florida-based truck driver, fatally engaged in a standoff with Cuba’s coast guard, has been identified and publicly pictured for the first time. Michel Ortega Casanova, who hailed from Cuba, reportedly embarked on what his brother described as an “obsessive and diabolical quest” to liberate the island nation. This tragic quest ended in his death, leaving his family grappling with the aftermath.
Casanova was part of a group of ten Cuban nationals accused of commandeering a speedboat registered in Florida, loaded with an arsenal of weapons and ammunition, with the intent to infiltrate Cuba. Officials in Havana have reported these details as they investigate the incident.
His brother, Misael Ortega, expressed that Michel had become deeply consumed by the mission, to the extent that he and the three others who perished seemed oblivious to the potential repercussions of their actions. “My mother is devastated,” Misael revealed in a heartfelt conversation with the Associated Press, following the grim news of Michel’s demise.
Misael continued to reflect on the profound struggles faced by many Cubans, highlighting the family’s ignorance of the covert operation. Authorities in the Caribbean have labeled the incident an attempted infiltration with “terrorist ends,” casting a shadow over the motivations behind the ill-fated journey.
“My mother is devastated,” Misael told the Associated Press after his family learned of Casanova’s death.
Misael, who spoke about how Cubans had endured “great suffering,” said his family was in the dark about the operation, which Caribbean authorities defined as an attempt to infiltrate the country for “terrorist ends.”
The brother, however, said he could tell something was wrong when he failed to connect with his brother over the weekend.
“He always called me on Sundays. When I tried to contact him and he didn’t answer, I found it strange,” he told the US-based Marti Noticias.
Casanova had lived in the US for more than 20 years and leaves behind his mom, two sisters — one of whom still lives in Cuba — and a pregnant daughter.
Along with Casanova, Cuban officials identified Amijail Sánchez González and Leordan Enrique Cruz Gómez as suspects who were arrested aboard the vessel.
Both men were wanted by Cuban authorities “based on their involvement in the promotion, planning, organization, financing, support or commission of actions carried out in the national territory or in other countries, in connection with acts of terrorism,” officials said.
Both González and Gómez were identified as six of the people injured in the shootout with Cuban troops, with the others including Conrado Galindo Sariol, José Manuel Rodríguez Castelló, Cristian Ernesto Acosta Guevara, and Roberto Azcorra Consuegra.
Three other suspects who were arrested during the incident have yet to be publicly named.
Despite being named by the Cuban government as one of the people injured and arrested in the shoot out, Azcorra Consuegra denied any involvement as he called in from southern Florida, NBC Miami reported.
