US Justice Department working to indict former Cuban president Raul Castro

By Hannah Rabinowitz, Evan Perez, CNN

(CNN) — The US Justice Department is working to secure criminal charges against former Cuban president Raul Castro, according to sources familiar with the matter.

The scope of the investigation is unclear. But federal prosecutors have examined a number of possible charges including some related to the Cuban military’s 1996 downing of two planes belonging to the Cuban-American exile organization Brothers to the Rescue.

Four men — three of them American citizens — were killed in the attack.

If approved by a grand jury, an indictment could be announced as soon as next week.

In recent months, prosecutors in the US Attorney’s Office for Florida’s southern district, have worked on building a criminal case against Cuban leaders, according to a person briefed not the discussions. US Attorney Jason Reding Quiñones initiated the push, though some career prosecutors in the Miami office raised concerns about whether there was sufficient evidence to bring a case, the person said.

Castro, the 94-year-old brother of longtime Cuban ruler Fidel Castro, was a main target on that list, sources say.

CBS was first to report the Justice Department’s effort to indict him.

“There’s absolutely no public information around any indictment that’s been leaked or discussed on various news outlets, and I assure you, and I assure the American people, that if and when there’s a time to talk about about that, we will, obviously,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Fox News Friday.

Cuban-American Republican lawmakers have pushed the Justice Department to bring charges. In a February letter to then-Attorney General Pam Bondi, lawmakers including Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart urged the Justice Department to prosecute Castro, citing evidence including reports from that era that there is a recording of radio traffic that include the Cuban MiG pilots that indicate Castro, then Cuba’s defense minister, ordered the shoot-down of the planes in international airspace.

The potential US criminal charges come amid rising tensions between the Cold War-era foes. The US has accused Cuba of posing an “extraordinary threat” by allying with hostile states and hosting foreign military and intelligence assets, a claim Cuba denies.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe traveled to Cuba on Thursday to meet with government officials as the tension between the Cold War-era foes grows.

Though the contours of the conversation have not yet been publicly discussed, Havana said that its officials stressed that Cuba “does not constitute a threat to the national security of the US” and that there are no “legitimate reasons” to include it on the US’ list of State Sponsors of Terrorism, as it has been under the Trump administration.

The effort to bring charges also comes in tandem with the Trump administration’s escalating a decades-long economic embargo against Cuba. Despite international calls to lift the penalties, the US stepped up pressure over the past year.

In early January, the US cut off Cuba’s main oil supplier, Venezuela, after capturing its president in a military raid and forcing its government to halt shipments. The US then threatened to levy tariffs on other countries should they supply oil to the island. The blockade has brought Cuba’s economy to its knees, with the Caribbean nation experiencing its worst era of economic uncertainty in decades and the United Nations warning of a potential humanitarian “collapse.”

In February, President Donald Trump said that Cuba was in a “big deal of trouble,” but was “talking” with the US, suggesting that a “friendly takeover” may be on the way.

“We could very well end up having a friendly takeover of Cuba. After many, many years,” Trump told reporters in Washington. “We’ve had a lot of years of dealing with Cuba. I’ve been hearing about Cuba since I’m a little boy.”

Trump has since reiterated his willingness to “help” Cuba, saying on social media this week that “we are going to talk!!!”

CNN’s Paula Reid and Casey Gannon contributed to this report. This story was updated to include additional information.

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