2024-02-12 21:37:32
Mirtza Ocaña, the Cuban detained in Tampa with $100,000 between her clothes and luggage, charged between $1,000 and $2,500 for moving money between the United States and Cuba, according to the complaint, to which she had access. the New Herald. The judge handling the case ordered his release on probation, with an electronic device, after hearing his statement on Tuesday and ordered him to seek employment and “psychiatric” treatment, in addition to the delivery of his passport.
However, nothing is known at the moment about the origin of the funds. It is surprising, however, that a ‘mule’ could travel so often to Havana and take out enormous amounts of dollars without the Cuban authorities noticing, since controls are strict at the airport and the law prohibits exporting more than 5,000 dollars. outside the Island without authorization from the Central Bank.
The experts consulted by ‘el Nuevo Herald’ believe that the cash may be from private ‘MSMEs’, which need to send money outside the country to pay their suppliers abroad.
It is worth remembering the complaints of several spokespersons for the regime who have complained bitterly on many occasions that the US “blockade” supposedly prevented them from placing the dollars of their Central Bank in the international financial system and that this situation forced them to look for more expensive alternative routes.
The experts consulted by the New Herald They believe that cash can be one of the MSMEs private companies, who need to send money out of the country to pay their suppliers abroad, or money from home sales that individuals want to deposit in foreign bank accounts.
Ocaña, 38, is currently unemployed and does not speak English, but last September she created the company Ocana & Paradise, LLC. The publications she made about her on her social networks, announcing air and sea shipments of food and medicine to Cuba, show that she acted as a ‘mule’.
Last Sunday, Ocaña arrived at the Tampa International Airport from the Island when, in a supposedly routine search, $10,000 was found in three packages inside his suitcase, the maximum authorized without having to present a statement to the authorities.
Ocaña stated that he did not have any more cash, but in the body search that the customs agents carried out when they found the money, they revealed that he had 70,000 dollars stuffed in his clothes, which can lead to everything from seizure and an administrative fine to criminal charges for the smuggling crime, punishable by up to five years in prison in the United States.
The euro reaches 302 Cuban pesos this Friday and the dollar, about to touch the 300 barrier, holds at 298
The Cuban then admitted that she had traveled to the island at least two or three times a month since May 2023, up to a total of 45 flights, according to airport records. The document drawn up by the agents states that he was aware that he was committing an illegal activity and that “they paid him between $1,000 and $2,500 per trip.”
Neither the Tampa Public Defender’s Office nor the U.S. Attorney’s office in that area would comment to the press.
Meanwhile, in the informal currency market, the exchange rate continues unstoppable. According to the records of The touch, The euro reaches 302 Cuban pesos this Friday and the dollar, about to touch the 300 barrier, holds at 298, well above double the official exchange rate for the general population (120×1) and more than twelve times that established for companies (24×1).
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