The speedboat carrying 10 armed Cubans from the U.S — now part of a widening investigation by both the U.S. and Cuban government — was reported stolen from a Big Pine Key dock by its owner who learned it was missing from the media, according to the Monroe Country Sheriff’s Office.
The events leading to the discovery of the stolen boat unfolded Wednesday when Monroe County Sheriff’s Office responded to Big Pine Key, where the boat’s owner, Angel Montera, reported his 24-foot vessel missing. According to the police report, the discovery was not made through a routine check of the dock, but rather through frantic messages from international media outlets.
"Angel stated... he got phone calls today from news media about a vessel that was taken to Cuba and involved in a shooting and people were reaching out to him," the MCSO deputy wrote in the report.
It was the Cuban government that first reported that a Florida-registered speedboat carrying 10 armed Cubans from the U.S. opened fire on soldiers off the island’s north coast. Four of the armed Cubans were killed by Cuban coast guard members, and six were injured in responding gunfire, according to Cuba’s government. One Cuban official also was injured.
The Cuban government said investigators found assault rifles, handguns, homemade explosives, bulletproof vests, telescopic sights and camouflage uniforms on the speedboat.
Montera confirmed the vessel identified in the news reports and by Cuban government officials was his by matching the Florida registration number.
Montera then told the deputy that a white 2026 Chevrolet truck parked at the scene belonged to Hector Cruz Correa, who performed tile work for him. Montera said he was doing construction work at the property in exchange for dockage space, but said Correa did not have permission to take the boat.
Four killed, six wounded
Cruz Correa, according to the Cuban government, was among the four killed. He lived in Homestead.
The others were Pavel Alling Peña, Michael Ortega Casanova and Ledián Padrón Guevara. The six wounded and arrested were Cristian Ernesto Acosta Guevara, Conrado Galindo Sariol, José Manuel Rodríguez Castelló, Leordan Enrique Cruz Gómez, Amijail Sánchez González and Roberto Álvarez Ávila. Casanova is a U.S. citizen who lived in Lakeland.
He said he believed Cruz Correa had taken the boat on a fishing trip and had unsuccessfully tried to contact him for days.
"Angel stated that he believed Hector took his boat to go fishing which he did not have permission to do nor has he ever had permission in the past,” Montera told the deputy.
The deputy employed an interpreter by telephone from the Department of Homeland Security to interview Montera, who did not speak English.
A neighbor told the deputy that she recalled seeing a man arrive in the white truck at about 6:30 p.m. Tuesday.
"She noticed a white pickup truck arrive on the property... a single male got out of the white truck and boarded the vessel," according to the police report. "She found it odd that there was someone taking the vessel out since the owner, Angel, is known by her... and he doesn’t usually go out this late."
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office — after learning of the unauthorized trip to Cuba and the shootout—then began working with investigators from the Department of Homeland Security to join the investigation.
Montera told investigators that Correa has family in Cuba, including two young daughters. He also noted that Correa had recently been preoccupied with repairing other large vessels.
Montera also said he wanted to bring formal charges for the theft.
