Cuba announces fifth death after shootout with Florida-tagged speedboat | Gun violence news

The government in Havana claims that the 10 people on the speedboat planned to unleash terrorism in Cuba.

A fifth person has died as a result of a deadly shootout involving a Florida-flagged speedboat that opened fire on soldiers off the island nation’s northern coast, the Cuban government has announced.

Roberto Alvarez Avila died on March 4 as a result of his injuries, the island’s interior ministry said in a statement late Thursday.

It added that the rest of the injured detainees “will continue to receive specialized medical care according to their health condition”.

On February 26, Cuban authorities encountered a speedboat carrying 10 Cuban soldiers and opened fire on the soldiers as the vessel approached the island.

The passengers were armed Cubans living in the United States who were trying to infiltrate the island and “unleash terror,” he said. Cuba said its soldiers killed four and wounded six.

“The statements made by the detainees, along with a series of investigative procedures, strengthen the evidence against them,” Cuba’s interior ministry said in a statement.

It added that “new elements are being obtained establishing the involvement of other persons based in the US”.

Earlier this week, Cuba said it had filed terrorism charges against six suspects aboard the speedboat. The government unveiled items it said were found on the boat, including a dozen high-powered weapons, more than 12,800 rounds of ammunition and 11 pistols.

Cuban officials provided few details about the shooting, but said the boat was located roughly 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) northeast of Cayo Falcones off the country’s northern coast.

He also provided the boat’s registration number, but the Associated Press news agency could not easily verify the details because boat registrations are not public in the state of Florida.

The shooting threatens to escalate tensions between US President Donald Trump and Cuban officials.

The island’s economy, which until recently was fueled by Venezuelan oil, is now in doubt after a US military operation kidnapped and ousted Venezuela’s former president, Nicolas Maduro.