AREQUIPA, Peru – The second criminal chamber of the Popular Provincial Court of Matanzas tried five Cubans for crimes related to the theft and slaughter of livestock with sentences ranging up to 10 years in prison.
A report of state media Giron reports that the crime occurred on the night of June 8, 2022 in the Matanzas municipality of Los Arabos and included violence towards a guard.
According to the reconstruction of the events shared by the official newspaper, defendants A, B and C, two of them brothers, along with other people not exactly identified, headed on horseback towards the vicinity of the Jorge farm, in Los Arabos.
“They all carried lamps and flashlights, bags, machetes, knives, masks to cover their faces and long weapons,” the report states.
There they cut the wires of the fence that delimited the perimeter of the corraleta, and advanced in a group towards the little house that sheltered the guardian. After an altercation with the worker that resulted in a shot in his left leg, the thieves stole six animals (mares, foals and a sorrel) valued together at 110,000 pesos.
“The group moved to areas of the El Salvador farm, in Occitania, and once there, the three accused and the unidentified people killed the six horses on the Jorge farm and two others whose origin and owners could not be determined.” , point Giron.
From that place the criminals packed the meat in bags, and two of the defendants contacted by telephone with two other defendants D and E, who collected the merchandise and transported it in rented cars.
According to the police investigation, about six bags of meat were sold in Havana and about 745 pounds were sold by another of the accused, at a price of 140 pesos per pound.
After the capture of those involved, the court determined court A as the author of the crimes of robbery with violence or intimidation of people, illegal slaughter of livestock and sale of their meat, and illegal possession of weapons or explosives. As a joint and sole sanction, 10 years of temporary deprivation of liberty was imposed.
Court B was considered the author of the crimes of robbery with violence or intimidation of people, and of illegal slaughter of livestock and sale of their meat; being sentenced to eight years of temporary deprivation of liberty.
For his part, C was declared the author of the crimes of robbery with violence or intimidation of people, and of illegal slaughter of livestock and sale of their meat; for a joint and single sanction of nine years of temporary deprivation of liberty.
The defendants D and E, as perpetrators of a crime of illegal slaughter of large livestock and sale of their meat in the form of transportation, were also sentenced to four years of deprivation of liberty, subsidized by correctional work without internment for each one.
Likewise, the accessory sanctions of confiscation of occupied property, deprivation of public rights and prohibition on leaving the national territory were imposed on all. Regarding civil liability, it was established that defendants A, B and C must repair the material damage caused to the injured parties, payable through the Compensation Fund of the Ministry of Justice.
Crimes associated with livestock in 2024
The Ministry of the Interior (MININT) of the Cuban regime carried out more than 6,000 confrontation and prevention actions between January and December 2024 against crimes linked to the theft and illegal slaughter of livestock on the Island.
Manuel Valdés, head of the Confrontation Body of the Technical Directorate of Investigations (DTI) of the MININT, assured in the official propaganda program “We make Cuba” that the actions include the cutting of 902 investigative processes.
Likewise, the manager noted the neutralization of 9,005 individuals related to these crimes, 52% with criminal measures, which represents more than 4,500 people prosecuted. Last month alone, some 26 organized groups involved in theft and sacrifice were arrested.
According to the colonel, the provinces with the greatest presence of these violations are Guantánamo, Santiago de Cuba, Las Tunas, Camagüey, Holguín, Villa Clara, Cienfuegos and Matanzas. In this regard, he highlighted that in these territories the authorities act “with more rigor” and there are 55 municipalities affected.
For her part, Mayra Cruz Legón, legal director of the Ministry of Agriculturereferred to the exercise of control of the use and ownership of land and livestock that began on March 1, and with which it was intended to control around 80,000 livestock owners.
To date, 94% of the producers have been reviewed and irregularities have been discovered in 90% of them.
The official pointed out that the main deficiencies detected during the exercise have been deceased livestock owners, outside the country, sanctioned or its location unknown. Other irregularities include animals not being declared at birth, not registered in the livestock registry and without identification; shortages and illegal sales.
Cruz Legón also highlighted that in some municipalities the Police have reported cattle grazing without security, poor condition of the perimeter fencing, animals that sleep outside the pens at night, and little popular and state surveillance for their protection.
However, critics point out that it is the regime’s agricultural policies that have led to the deterioration of livestock farming on the Island. State interference in the management of livestock farmers limits their autonomy, and without the necessary resources, they must take care of their cattle in precarious conditions, often risking their lives due to the aggressiveness of those who steal the livestock.
