One of Three Suspects in Alleged Plot to Invade Cuba Is Freed on $100,000 Bail

A 68-year-old Huntington Park man suspected of planning to invade Cuba was released on bond Thursday, but bail was denied for two other alleged plotters despite the arrival of more than 100 supporters at the downtown federal courthouse.

Before allowing the release of well-known local anti-Castro activist Rene Cruz Sr. on a $100,000 bond, U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen J. Hillman had to move the proceeding to a larger courtroom to accommodate the crowd of local Cuban Americans. Hillman ordered Cruz’s son, Rene Cruz Jr., 47 and Rafael Garcia, 45, held until trial.

The men were arrested in December when FBI agents found assault rifles as well as invasion plans and other military equipment at Rene Cruz Sr.’s Huntington Park kitchen-supply business. Agents also learned that the men had bought a 60-foot shrimp boat in Mississippi capable of transporting up to 30 people to Cuba.

The three are charged with conspiracy and violating the Neutrality Act, which forbids violent action against nations with which the United States is at peace, and face a maximum of eight years in prison if convicted.

Cuban Americans throughout the United States have rallied behind the men. Nearly $500,000 in donations has been collected to pay for their legal costs, according to Fernando Marquet, a longtime friend of the elder Cruz.

Reactions to the arrests have bared the hatred for Cuban President Fidel Castro lingering among many Cuban Americans.

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), a Cuban American, condemned the Clinton administration for prosecuting “our compatriots that fight for Cuba’s freedom.” She accused the administration “and Castroist sympathizers working in key positions in the U.S. government” of “using maneuvers that protect the tyrant Castro.”

Among the crowd at the courthouse were a woman wearing a blouse designed as the Cuban flag and reporters and camera crews from three Spanish-language TV stations.

Lawyers for the Cruzes and Garcia argued that the men should be released on their own recognizance. They pointed out that none have criminal records and that their ties to the area, demonstrated by the number of people who came to the courthouse to show their support, made them unlikely to flee.

Joaquin Sosa, a member of the defense team representing the men, contended that the men would not leave the area because doing so would put them at risk of being assassinated by agents of Castro.

Assistant U.S. Atty. Dan Levin repeated his contention that co-conspirators in the invasion plot may remain at large.

Levin argued against the release of the men because of the severity of the crime. While he does not believe the suspects are “going to bomb a local bank or liquor store . . . their plan would have led to violence and death, quite likely for themselves,” the prosecutor said.

Although he allowed the release of Rene Cruz Sr., who is a diabetic and recently had prostate surgery that requires him to take daily medication, Judge Hillman said the release of the younger Cruz and Garcia could endanger the public.

The judge acknowledged “clearly overwhelming family and community support and probably not serious risk of flight,” but said that the men are accused of planning “a belligerent act in Cuba” and therefore “must be considered a danger for the community, whether the community is in this or another country.”