Cuban regime threatens exiled journalists with extradition and prison sentences

The Cuban regime announced on Wednesday night new "advances" in the criminal investigation opened against the independent media El Toque, which it accuses of "cognitive warfare" and adhering to external agendas to "subvert the constitutional order."

The information, disclosed by the Cuban News Agency (ACN) and the pro-government program Razones de Cuba, identifies 18 executives and collaborators of the independent media outlet, all of whom reside outside the country, as allegedly responsible for crimes that have yet to be proven by the regime. The regime's communication apparatus also published the photographs and personal data of each of the accused, as a sign of threat.

The offensive against the independent press takes place in a context of serious economic deterioration on the island, with skyrocketing inflation and the collapse of the state exchange market. A few days before the deadline to implement a floating exchange rate, the regime has chosen to blame the media for the increase of the dollar and the euro in the Cuban informal market, a narrative that economists close to the government itself have labeled as "unsustainable" and "absurd."

Unsubstantiated accusations and warnings of international persecution

According to the report by Razones de Cuba, the alleged investigations conclude that El Toque acts as an "instrument of cognitive warfare," shares "soft coup" material and receives foreign support. No verifiable evidence has been presented to support such claims, something quite common in judicial processes in the Caribbean country.

The authorities added that the accused, located in the United States, Mexico and Spain, could be extradited if they travel to certain countries or face prison sentences if they return to Cuba, extending the pressure beyond the national territory.

However, these threats lack practical basis: in the case of those residing in Spain (more than half of those mentioned) the Spanish Constitution protects extradition only in compliance with treaties or laws, criteria that are not met in this case. Even so, the dictatorship uses this argument as a pressure mechanism.

This new wave of accusations match previous ones from State Security, where officials of the Ministry of the Interior had attributed to the same media outlet crimes such as "economic sabotage," "currency trafficking" and "tax evasion." Among them, Colonel Francisco Estrada Portales affirmed on public television that the platform imposes the informal foreign exchange rate, despite the fact that the state press acknowledges that such market exists precisely because the state has not established a legal exchange mechanism for almost two years.

Even voices from the state's official media apparatus, such as analyst Ariel Terrero, have described making a media outlet responsible for the dynamics of the informal market as "grotesque."

A case built since 2024

El Toque has claimed that this criminal case has been manufactured for more than a year. Its director, José Jasán Nieves, claims that fragments of statements broadcast on state-run television were obtained under "psychological torture" during prolonged interrogations at the State Security headquarters in Villa Marista. He adds that the alleged incriminating materials are public information on funding and legal projects for cultural and journalistic training.

The official campaign also included the televised disclosure of personal data (address and other details) of Nieves and his wife, journalist Elaine Díaz, which the media claimed was an act of doxxing and harassment. Others named by the authorities have also claimed political persecution and pressure from the regime.

The onslaught also coincides with secret judicial proceedings against former state officials accused of conspiracy and other high crimes, including former Economy Minister Alejandro Gil, who are being held responsible for the current crisis on the island.

Criminalization and resistance

With the 18 now identified, the Havana regime appears to be seeking to formalize the criminalization of the media and expand it internationally through threats of extradition.

El Toque reiterated that it will keep up its journalistic work. The outlet stresses that its informal market reference rate is calculated through a public algorithm, reviewed by independent specialists such as renowned economist Pavel Vidal, and that its methodology contrasts with the state's opacity over the country's macroeconomic data.

In the last decade, dozens of independent media sources, as well as journalists and their collaborators, have been accused of "counterrevolution" and "dissidence" by the Cuban leadership. Many of them have been prosecuted and imprisoned for exercising their right to free speech.