At least 30 people have been arrested in Havana for having been involved in the theft of more than 1,600 boxes of chicken, which is equivalent to about 133 tons, from chamber 414 of the COPMAR Food Marketing Company.
According to the official press, this was the result of an investigation that began after a temperature fluctuation was detected in the affected chamber during the night of the robbery. The managers carried out an inventory and confirmed that the considerable amount of chicken had disappeared.
For now, the investigation by the National Revolutionary Police (PNR) continues, and among those detained is the general director of COPMAR, who along with 10 other people was placed in provincial prison.
The situation reveals the existence of a complex network of corruption that includes employees and officials of the company.
According to Noticiero de Cuba, security cameras managed to capture the suspicious movement of several vehicles near the company, and the authorities discovered that the security seals were manipulated, suggesting an internal infiltration.
The state press indicated that several company employees have been detained so far, including shift leaders and custodians. These people appear to have been part of the chain of theft and illegal sale of chicken in the informal market of the Island.
Likewise, the Investigation was able to confirm that each box of stolen chicken was sold for 3,800 Cuban pesos (CUP) wholesale.
The authorities also carried out searches at the homes of the detainees, seizing several assets that were allegedly acquired illegally, such as household appliances and about three million pesos in cash.
The news outlet points out that what happened caused the company’s internal security measures to be questioned, so the Ministry of the Food Industry, under which the company operates, claimed to have taken measures to implement stricter security, focusing on the internal surveillance.
For its part, the Attorney General’s Office of the Republic, in charge of judicial files, promises that those involved will receive severe and exemplary sentences, due to the crime committed in the midst of the food crisis that is currently plaguing Cuba.
“Based on the results of the investigation, crimes of embezzlement, robbery with force, bribery, breach of the duty to preserve the assets of economic entities or receipt could preliminarily be classified,” declared Marta María González del Sol, prosecutor of the department of criminal proceedings of Havana.
According to the newscast, depending on the aggravating circumstances and the degree of participation of each person, maximum sentences of up to 20 years in prison can be expected.
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