Would US seize an indicted Castro from Cuba? Miami reps say he ‘can leave now’
Miami’s Cuban-American members of Congress pointed Wednesday to the expected federal indictment against Raúl Castro for the shoot-down of two Brothers to the Rescue plans in 1996 as an ultimatum to the country’s former president: leave now, or expect capture or death.
“We are sending the message to the Castro family: it’s time for you to leave. It’s time for you to heed the signal from the White House and do not fall into the abyss,” Rep. María Elvira Salazar told reporters during a press conference in Washington.
She was standing in front of a poster with a photo of deposed Venezuelan ruler Nicolás Maduro with the label “CAPTURED,” a photo of the killed former Iranian leader Ali Khamenei marked “ELIMINATED” and a photo of Raúl Castro stamped “PENDING.”
“You have the option not to wind up where Maduro is. You can leave now,” she said.
The lawmakers — speaking ahead of an event at Miami’s Freedom tower in which the Department of Justice was expected to unseal charges against Castro — praised the indictment as justice for the killing of the pilots 30 years ago. “Justice delayed, but at least it’s justice,” Rep. Carlos Giménez said. They stood in front of four additional photos showing the four men killed in the shoot-down — Armando Alejandre, Jr., Carlos Costa, Mario de la Peña and Pablo Morales.
“These four individuals are screaming and yelling from their grave for justice. Their families are asking for justice,” Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart said.
He and the other Miami representatives, all Republicans, penned a letter to President Donald Trump in February requesting the charges against Castro. Nicole Malliotakis, a Cuban-American representative from New York, also signed the letter and joined them Wednesday in Washington.
They didn’t mince words about the stakes or timing of the indictment amid the escalating U.S. pressure against Cuba. Following the military operation to seize Maduro in Caracas and take him to New York to be prosecuted, they repeated statements from Trump that “Cuba is next.”
The indictment — 30 years after the alleged crimes — could mark the latest potential Department of Justice effort to coincide with U.S. military aims, after the U.S. used federal charges against Maduro as justification for a military raid to capture him.
The question now is whether the Trump administration would do the same to Castro, who turns 95 next month.
If Miami’s members of Congress have a say, the military will play an active role in ensuring Castro faces the charges. The South Florida lawmakers have played an outsize role in pressuring the U.S. to escalate sanctions and economic pressure on Cuba’s leaders.
In Venezuela, “It was a legal action, but it had to be guarded by U.S. military because Maduro was being surrounded by Cuban security,” Díaz-Balart said Wednesday. “Same is likely, obviously, in Cuba.”
The U.S. recognizes May 20 as Cuban Independence Day, marking the end of the U.S. occupation of Cuba in 1902.
“The indictment and removal of Maduro sent a clear message to his socialist allies in Havana,” the White House wrote in a message reflecting the anniversary. “This is our Hemisphere and those that destabilize it and threaten the United States will face consequences.”
Cuba’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, said on social media Monday that military aggression from the United States against Cuba “would trigger a bloodbath with incalculable consequences” and said the country has an “absolute and legitimate right to defend itself against a military onslaught.”
The U.S. remains in a drawn-out war with Iran after attacking and killing the country’s leader in February. But when asked about Cuba Tuesday, Trump insisted, “We’re going to get that solved, it’s not going to be hard for us to solve.”
This story was originally published May 20, 2026 at 11:43 AM.
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