A judge in southern Florida signed a state arrest warrant against the former Cuban leader Raúl Castro for his involvement in the downing, which occurred in 1996, of two humanitarian aircraft.
The warrant was signed by Chief Judge Ariana Fajardo Orshan, of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit Court of Florida.
The Florida Attorney General, James Uthmeier, announced during a press conference held on October 19 at Florida International University that Castro has been charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.
On May 20, the United States had already filed a formal indictment against Castro for his alleged involvement in the downing, in 1996, of two aircraft operated by the exile group “Brothers to the Rescue,” based in Miami.
That indictment charged Castro and five others, including Lorenzo Alberto Pérez-Pérez, Emilio José Palacio Blanco, José Fidel Gual Barzaga, Raúl Simanca Cárdenas and Luis Raúl González-Pardo Rodríguez, with several counts: four counts of murder, two counts of destruction of aircraft and one count of conspiracy to murder U.S. citizens.
Castro, who is now 95 years old, was Cuba’s Minister of Defense at the time of the downing. The other five defendants were pilots allegedly involved in the operation.
