Judges of the Courtroom of Crimes against State Security of the People’s Provincial Court of Havana passed sentences of between 17 and 24 years of imprisonment to four men allegedly involved in the intentional derailment of the train that covers the Mariel-Havana-Cárdenas route.
On December 24, the oral and public trial corresponding to case number four of 2020 was held, for the crimes of sabotage and other acts against State Security, in which Miguel Ángel Rodríguez, Yoandris Ortiz, Raidel Sánchez, Joaquín Camejo and Lázaro Yerson appeared as defendants, according to a note from that judicial institution, the Agencia Cubana de Noticias news agency reported.
https://twitter.com/tribunahabana/status/1367490108803448842?s=21
According to the source, it was shown that Rodríguez, through Yasser Izquierdo, contacted Luis Mario Vela, both Cubans residing in the United States, and that the latter promised him the sum of 1,000 USD for the derailment of one of the trains circulating on the Mariel-Artemisa-Havana railroad, and record a video of the events.
Miguel Ángel Rodríguez reported his plans to the rest of the defendants who, with the exception of Yoandris Ortiz, agreed to participate.
The information released by the court indicates that on May 25, 2019, after 10:00 p.m., “the accused appeared at kilometer 14,750 of the aforementioned railway line, and, while Ortiz Meriño watched from a nearby place, his cronies in the misdeed detached and separated one of the rails, causing, a few hours later, the derailment of freight train 1223, with locomotive No. 312031, which was heading from the Mariel Container Terminal to the municipality of Cárdenas.”
The authorities estimated that, in addition to the damage caused to the railroad, this action caused material damages worth 400,000 pesos in national currency.
According to the source, on July 19 of the same year, Vela traveled to Cuba and gave Rodríguez 500 CUC, since he did not comply with the delivery of the filming of the event.
Gobierno cubano denuncia terrorismo desde EEUU en medio de tensiones internas
The trial court considered that the foregoing facts comprise the crimes of sabotage, provided for in Articles 140.1 a) and 105 c) and ch) of the Penal Code, and of other acts against the State Security, stipulated in Article 128 of this legal regulation.
The judges in the case applied “sentences of between 17 and 24 years of imprisonment” for the crime of sabotage to four of the accused, and three years to Yoandris Ortiz for his involvement in the events.
“In all cases, accessory sanctions were imposed, consisting of the prohibition of public rights and immigration restrictions, referring to the issuance of passports and departure from the national territory,” the note adds.
