Overview
- A Miami judge, Ariana Fajardo Orshan, signed the Florida arrest warrant on Oct. 16 that charges Raúl Castro with conspiracy to commit first‑degree murder based on a state probe into the 1996 shootdown.
- Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier publicly announced the warrant and held a press conference in Miami on Monday, Oct. 19 to explain the state’s case.
- State investigators say Cuban intelligence agents operating in Florida infiltrated Hermanos al Rescate and transmitted flight and surveillance information that helped Cuban military jets locate and shoot down two civilian planes on Feb. 24, 1996, killing four people.
- The state action is separate from a U.S. Department of Justice federal indictment announced on May 20, 2026; one accused officer was transferred to U.S. custody in June 2026 but Raúl Castro remains in Cuba so the Florida warrant has not been executed.
- The warrant revives long‑running demands for accountability among victims’ families and the Miami Cuban‑American community, draws official rejection from Cuba, and leaves future prosecution dependent on Castro coming into a jurisdiction that will surrender him to U.S. authorities.