Relatives of Luis Enrique Ramírez Samá, who narrowly escaped death after suffering severe injuries during a robbery at the market where he works as a security guard in La Güinera, Havana, have expressed outrage over the police's decision to release the alleged assailant. The family took to social media to criticize the "poor performance" of the police and the prosecution, who freed José Gabriel Acuña Igarza, also known as "El Panga," the man accused of stabbing Ramírez during a robbery at La Carpa market in the La Lomita neighborhood of Arroyo Naranjo.
Critics of the decision also questioned the authorities' reasoning that the suspect was released "due to lack of evidence" and protested the freedom of the alleged accomplice, known by the nickname "El Manco."
Family Demands Justice
On May 19, a violent robbery took place at the La Carpa market in the La Güinera neighborhood, where the administrator's motorcycle was stolen, and Ramírez was gravely injured, according to his niece, Jaimelys Lambert. She shared photos on Facebook showing the numerous and serious wounds inflicted on her uncle by the attacker. "We are calling out the poor work of the Police, the Investigation, and the Prosecutor's Office, as the perpetrator José Gabriel Acuña Igarza, alias El Panga, was set free and the witness, alias El Manco, is walking the streets. We demand justice so this crime does not remain unpunished," she stated.
Lambert revealed that due to his injuries, her uncle was "between life and death," requiring two surgeries, yet the perpetrator was released. She questioned how someone who stabbed her uncle, branding him a "repeated offender" and "societal scourge," could be free, while her uncle's son, Dayán de Jesús Ramírez Rondón, is imprisoned as a political detainee.
Outrage Over Crime and Injustice
"This isn't a game; the life of a good man was at risk, nearly taken by a shameless repeat offender, 'El Panga'... So I ask, is 'El Panga' not a danger to society?" Lambert vented in another post. "This is what we should focus on instead of cowardice, as a man's life was endangered while he was earnestly working for his living."
Her frustration was echoed by Idalmis Ramírez Samá, the victim's sister, who commented, "My brother was mortally wounded, and I can't understand how a killer can be out on the streets. I demand justice. Today it was my brother, but tomorrow it could be one of your relatives. Justice."
Other family members voiced their anger over what they consider the police's complicity with the criminals involved in this crime, possibly due to them being informants.
Crime Surge Amidst Ineffective Policing
While the assailant and his accomplice remain free, Ramírez's son, Dayán de Jesús, is serving a 10-year sentence for "sedition" after participating in the peaceful anti-government protest on July 12, 2021, in La Güinera. This assault on Ramírez is part of a growing crime wave in Cuba, with a significant rise in thefts, violent assaults, murders, and other offenses, highlighting the police's failure to curb crime and ensure safety in Cuban cities and towns.
On Tuesday, it was reported that the Holguín Provincial Court sentenced three Cubans to life imprisonment for the murder of a security guard at the Mayarí Economic Industrial Forestry Unit, who caught the criminals stealing state vehicle batteries. A fourth individual involved received a 30-year prison sentence.
In another incident last July, Efrén Ernesto Echemendía Carvajal, a 51-year-old security guard at a store in the Bahía neighborhood (Guiteras) in eastern Havana, was killed while on duty.