U.S. weighs indictment of Cuba’s Raúl Castro

May 15, 2026

Summary

U.S. officials said prosecutors are moving toward a possible indictment of Raúl Castro over Cuba’s 1996 shootdown of exile group planes.

Why this matters

The case revisits a long-disputed Cold War-era confrontation that killed four people and remains politically significant in U.S.-Cuba relations. It also shows the Trump administration tying legal action to broader pressure on Cuba’s government.

The U.S. is taking steps toward indicting Raúl Castro, Cuba’s former president, in connection with the 1996 downing of planes operated by Brothers to the Rescue, according to U.S. officials familiar with the matter.

Any indictment would require grand jury approval.

The move came as the Trump administration increased pressure on Cuba. It threatened heavy tariffs on countries that export oil to Cuba, contributing to energy shortages as oil shipments were largely cut off. President Donald Trump also pressed for major reforms in Cuba and floated a “friendly takeover” of the country.

Pressure on Cuba increased in January after the U.S. military removed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from power and flew him to New York to face drug charges. Venezuela had been a key partner of Cuba.

Castro, 94, formally stepped down as leader of Cuba’s Communist Party in 2021, but remained widely viewed as influential. His grandson, Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, known as “Raulito,” was seen as a representative of the elder Castro and a key contact between the U.S. and Cuba.

Central Intelligence Agency Director John Ratcliffe met with the younger Castro on Thursday, after an earlier U.S. visit last month. Ratcliffe delivered Trump’s message that the U.S. is “prepared to seriously engage on economic and security issues, but only if Cuba makes fundamental changes,” a CIA official said. The official added that Cuba can “no longer be a safe haven for adversaries in the Western Hemisphere.”

Federal prosecutors in Miami launched a broader initiative several months ago targeting Cuban communist leaders, CBS News previously reported. The effort involved federal and local law enforcement, and the Treasury Department, and focused on alleged economic crimes, drugs, violent crimes, and immigration violations.

An Organization of American States report found the Brothers to the Rescue planes were shot down outside Cuban airspace and said Cuba violated international law by firing without warning and without evidence it was necessary. Cuban officials said the shootdown was justified because the group had violated Cuban airspace and sought sabotage.

At the time, Fidel Castro led Cuba, and Raúl Castro led the armed forces. Fidel Castro later told “CBS Evening News” anchor Dan Rather that the military acted on his “general orders” to stop planes from entering Cuban airspace.

Gerardo Hernandez was convicted in the U.S. of murder conspiracy in the case and sentenced to life in prison. He was returned to Cuba in a 2014 prisoner swap.

Florida officials also renewed attention to the case this year. The state attorney general said in March that he was reopening a closed state investigation, and Republican Sen. Rick Scott and other Florida lawmakers called on the Justice Department to charge Castro.

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