The Cuban people do not deserve illicit demeanors against collective assets, especially in these complex times the country is experiencing.

Las Tunas, Cuba.– The First Criminal Chamber of the Las Tunas Provincial Popular Court held the oral, public, and exemplary trial, corresponding to case 237/2025, against five citizens for the crime of embezzlement at the Las Tunas Wholesale Food Company.

The defendants, who worked in the warehouse of base business unit 639, belonging to the aforementioned entity, misappropriated rice, sugar, chickpeas, and beans intended for the subsidized food basket and social consumption in the territory, and sold these products on the black market.

These actions affected more than 50,000 families and caused material damage to the Cuban state budget amounting to 623,088.68 pesos.

The evidence presented at trial demonstrated the responsibility of all the defendants for the crime of embezzlement, as defined in Article 297, paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Penal Code. They were sentenced to between 11 and 13 years of imprisonment.

Additional penalties included the deprivation of public rights, prohibition from practicing any profession, holding any office, or operating a trade, and a travel ban. They were also ordered to pay the corresponding civil damages.

The proceedings and the oral trial were conducted in accordance with the guarantees and due process enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic of Cuba and the Law of Criminal Procedure. Both those sanctioned and the Public Prosecutor's Office have the right to appeal the judicial body's ruling.