Federal indictment accuses Raúl Castro and others in downing of four U.S. citizens, official says
May 20, 2026 | Foreign Claims Settlement Commission, Department of Justice (DOJ), Executive, Federal
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An agency official announced that a federal grand jury in Miami returned an indictment charging additional crimes, including destruction of aircraft and individual counts of murder, and that the indictment was unsealed today after nearly 30 years.
The official said the families of the four Americans killed have waited for justice, and described the incident as the shooting down of Brothers to the Rescue civilian planes over international waters on Feb. 24. "They were unarmed civilians and we're flying humanitarian missions for the rescue and protection of people fleeing oppression," the agency official said, naming the victims as Carlos Costa, Armando Alejandre Jr., Mario de la Peña and Pablo Morales.
The statement alleged that "Raúl Castro [and] co‑defendants participated in a conspiracy that ended with Cuban military aircraft firing missiles at those civilian planes and killing four Americans," the official said, adding that "those are the allegations returned by a federal grand jury." The official said the grand jury returned the indictment in Miami on April 23, 2026 (as stated in the transcript) and that it was unsealed today.
The prepared remarks at the end of the transcript trailed off: "My message today is clear the United States and presidente Trump does not and wil" toward the close of the statement. The transcript does not record any response to the allegations in this excerpt, nor does it list the names or charges of other defendants beyond the reference to "co‑defendants." The government statement framed the claims as allegations returned by the grand jury; the article does not treat those allegations as proven.
Next steps were not specified in the excerpted remarks: the transcript-recorded statement did not note an arraignment date, a list of charged counts beyond the general descriptions, or any immediate law‑enforcement actions. The announcement provided names of the four victims and the grand jury allegation but did not include further prosecutorial detail in the available segment.
The official said the families of the four Americans killed have waited for justice, and described the incident as the shooting down of Brothers to the Rescue civilian planes over international waters on Feb. 24. "They were unarmed civilians and we're flying humanitarian missions for the rescue and protection of people fleeing oppression," the agency official said, naming the victims as Carlos Costa, Armando Alejandre Jr., Mario de la Peña and Pablo Morales.
The statement alleged that "Raúl Castro [and] co‑defendants participated in a conspiracy that ended with Cuban military aircraft firing missiles at those civilian planes and killing four Americans," the official said, adding that "those are the allegations returned by a federal grand jury." The official said the grand jury returned the indictment in Miami on April 23, 2026 (as stated in the transcript) and that it was unsealed today.
The prepared remarks at the end of the transcript trailed off: "My message today is clear the United States and presidente Trump does not and wil" toward the close of the statement. The transcript does not record any response to the allegations in this excerpt, nor does it list the names or charges of other defendants beyond the reference to "co‑defendants." The government statement framed the claims as allegations returned by the grand jury; the article does not treat those allegations as proven.
Next steps were not specified in the excerpted remarks: the transcript-recorded statement did not note an arraignment date, a list of charged counts beyond the general descriptions, or any immediate law‑enforcement actions. The announcement provided names of the four victims and the grand jury allegation but did not include further prosecutorial detail in the available segment.
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