Justice · Castro warrantRaul Castro arrest warrant: Florida adds conspiracy case over 1996 shootdownAired October 20, 2026 at 10:13 AM UTCWritten October 20, 2026 at 10:21 AM UTCRead the write-upThis storyExplore with HeyDexFollow via RSSTranscript · LOADING0:07Cuban military aircraft shot down two unarmed civilian planes, killing four men.0:1230 years later, Florida is pursuing former Cuban leader Raul Castro over those0:17deaths.0:17The 95-year-old already faces a federal prosecution.0:21The new state warrant gives Florida another route to seek accountability.0:24Can authorities turn that warrant into a court appearance?0:27Attorney General James Uthmeier announced the warrant at Florida International0:31University in Miami on October 19, 2026.0:34The Office of Statewide Prosecution and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement0:38obtained it.0:39Chief Judge Ariana Fajardo Orshan of Florida's 11th Judicial Circuit signed the0:43warrant.0:43The state accuses Castro of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.0:47Prosecutors allege he agreed to the killing of the people aboard the aircraft.0:51Officials haven't announced that he's been arrested.0:53His guilt would have to be decided in court.0:55Uthmeier went further in his public statement, accusing Castro of ordering the1:00killings.1:00He also accused Cuban spies of helping the military target civilian pilots.1:05Those accusations describe the prosecution's case against Castro.1:08and they still have to be proved.1:10Uthmeier said, Raul Castro ordered the murder of four Floridians in cold blood, and1:15Florida will never stop pursuing accountability for that communist conspiracy.1:19He said spies fed intelligence to Havana and helped put civilian pilots in the1:24crosshairs of Cuban MiGs.1:25Prosecutors allege Cuban spies transmitted flight information and monitored the1:29naval station in Key West.1:31They say those activities give Florida a basis to prosecute a conspiracy within the1:34state, even though Cuban military aircraft attacked the planes off Cuba.1:38The state is therefore seeking to connect preparations in Florida to the deaths1:42aboard the aircraft.1:43Prosecutors would have to prove Castro participated in the alleged agreement.1:47The warrant allows authorities to seek his arrest while that accusation awaits a1:50courtroom test.1:51The attack happened on February 24th, 1996.1:55Cuban military aircraft destroyed two unarmed civilian light planes associated with1:59brothers to the rescue.2:01Congressional findings describe the planes as defenseless and posing no threat to2:05Cuba's government, military, or people.2:07Carlos Costa, Pablo Morales, Mario de la Peña, and Armando Alejandri Jr.2:12died.2:12Three were U.S.2:13citizens and one was a legal resident.2:15Their deaths underlie both prosecutions, and the demand for accountability has2:18continued across three decades.2:20Miami-Dade Commissioner Natalie Millian Orbis applauded the warrant.2:24She said, The families of these four men have waited three decades for this day.2:29She also said, Miami has never forgotten them, Florida has not forgotten them, and2:33Raul Castro should never forget that we are coming.2:36Federal prosecutors had already charged Castro and five co-defendants over the same2:40shootdown.2:41The defendants named in that case include Lorenzo Alberto Perez-Perez and Emilio2:45Jose Palacio Blanco.2:47That prosecution is in the U.S.2:49District Court for the Southern District of Florida.2:51The federal indictment was filed April 23rd and entered on the docket April 29th.2:56It was publicly unsealed May 20th.2:59Florida announced its warrant October 19th.3:01That October date marks the public announcement of the state action.3:05Uthmeier warned that Castro could face arrest and extradition if he traveled to a3:09country with extradition agreements, including for medical treatment.3:12Extradition is the process of asking another country to surrender someone for3:16prosecution.3:17His warning depended on Castro traveling and another government acting.3:21Florida has added a state demand to bring Castro before a judge.3:24Executing it would require authorities to reach him and secure his surrender.3:28No formal extradition request or scheduled extradition proceeding has been3:32announced.The short
