U.S. officials say they are checking facts and citizenship after four people were killed.
HAVANA, CUBA — Cuba has identified people it says were involved in a deadly confrontation after a Florida-registered speedboat entered Cuban waters and gunfire erupted with Cuban border troops on Feb. 25, leaving four people dead and six others wounded and detained.
The Cuban Interior Ministry said the group came from the United States and tried to reach the island to carry out an armed infiltration. The incident, rare in recent years, has quickly raised tensions between Havana and Washington, with U.S. officials saying they will not rely only on Cuba’s public account and will work to confirm identities, including whether any of those killed or detained are U.S. citizens or lawful residents.
Cuban officials said the speedboat was detected the morning of Feb. 25 in Cuban territorial waters off the country’s north coast, near Cayo Falcones in Villa Clara province. The Interior Ministry said border guard forces moved in to identify the vessel and those aboard. Cuba said people on the boat opened fire first, injuring the commander of the Cuban patrol craft and triggering a gunfight at sea. The ministry said four people aboard the boat were killed in the exchange and six others were wounded, evacuated and placed under guard while receiving medical treatment.
In follow-up statements and reporting carried by Cuban state outlets, the government released names it said it obtained from people detained after the shooting. Cuba identified seven of the 10 people it said were on the boat, including Michel Ortega Casanova, whom Cuba said was among the dead. Cuba also named Cristian Ernesto Acosta Guevara, Conrado Galindo Sariol and José Manuel Rodríguez Castelló, along with Leordan Enrique Cruz Gómez and Amijail Sánchez González, whom officials described as wanted in Cuba in connection with terrorism-related allegations.
The identification list immediately added new uncertainty. Roberto Azcorra Consuegra, one of the men Cuba named, told NBC 6 South Florida that he was in the United States and not in Cuba, and said he was surprised to see his name included. He denied knowing of any plan to travel to Cuba. Asked whether he recognized other names on the list, he said he could not discuss that. Cuba has said three other people aboard the boat had not yet been identified, and it has not released the names of three of the dead.
Cuban officials described the group as heavily armed, saying they carried tactical gear and weapons that included rifles and homemade explosive devices. Cuba has said the boat was registered in Florida and approached to within about 1 mile of a channel near Falcones Cay before the border guard unit tried to make contact. The ministry said the detainees gave preliminary statements that the group intended to infiltrate Cuban territory for what officials called terrorist purposes. Cuba has not released full transcripts of those statements, and independent verification has been limited because the detainees are in Cuban custody.
The Interior Ministry also said a separate suspect was detained on land inside Cuba. Authorities identified that person as Duniel Hernández Santos and said he had arrived from the United States to help receive the people coming in by boat. Cuban officials said he had confessed, but details of any statement have not been made public. Cuba said the investigation would continue until the facts were fully clarified, while also framing the incident as part of a long-running pattern of hostile actions that Cuban leaders have blamed on anti-government exiles and armed groups operating from abroad.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the shooting was not a U.S. government operation and said no U.S. government personnel were involved. Rubio said U.S. authorities were gathering information to determine what happened and to verify identities and immigration status, calling it highly unusual to see a shootout at sea like the one described by Cuba. Florida officials also called for separate investigations. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said state prosecutors would open an inquiry with law enforcement partners, and U.S. Rep. Carlos Giménez of Florida urged a federal investigation, saying U.S. authorities must determine whether any victims were U.S. citizens or legal residents.
Beyond the question of who was on the boat, investigators in the United States may also look at the vessel itself. Cuban officials provided a Florida registration number for the boat, and U.S. records and reporting have pointed to a registered owner connected to South Florida. In Miami Lakes, reporters were present at a home linked to the registration when people who identified themselves as federal agents approached and spoke through a doorbell camera. No public charges have been announced in the United States related to the boat’s alleged voyage, and officials have not said whether the vessel was reported stolen, sold, or used without permission.
The confrontation landed in the middle of a broader period of strain between the two countries. Cuba’s leaders have pointed to decades of exile-led plots and attacks, while U.S. officials have criticized Cuba’s government and kept economic pressure in place. Cuba said the clash happened as it faces deep economic troubles and major shortages, with energy supply problems fueling widespread hardship. The political stakes rose quickly because the incident touched both security and migration issues, and because it involved a U.S.-registered boat and people Cuba said lived in the United States.
For now, key facts remain disputed or unconfirmed outside Cuba. Cuba has not publicly detailed the chain of events leading up to the first shots beyond saying its patrol approached and came under fire. U.S. officials have not released independent findings on what happened on the water or confirmed the identities Cuba announced. A major next milestone will be whether Cuba files formal charges against the detainees in court and whether U.S. authorities identify any suspects, victims, or supporting networks in Florida or elsewhere linked to the boat’s trip.
Author note: Last updated February 26, 2026.