Madrid/Solar panels from a funeral home, beams for photovoltaic installations, mattresses from a university and up to 70 liters of diesel from a polyclinic: these are some of the examples of what was stolen this week from state institutions in Guantánamo, and which the provincial authorities put on the table in their daily control meeting, as reported this Friday Guantanamo Radio.
Among the stolen objects, the solar panels from the Jamaica funeral home, in the municipality of Manuel Tames, draw attention, which affected the sensitive funeral processes in the town. Also delicate is the theft of dielectric oil, which leaves thousands of families without electricity and still continues to increasedespite the high sentences.
According to Radio Guantánamo, the thieves also took “a considerable amount” of mattresses from the University of Medical Sciences, in addition to the beams that would be used to set up a photovoltaic system at the Texa telepoint, in the provincial capital, at the intersection of Los Maceo and Aguilera streets.
Among the aforementioned events is also the disappearance of 70 liters of diesel from the Capitán Asdrúbal López polyclinic, in the south of the provincial capital. The leaders also acknowledged thefts of fuel, perimeter fences and equipment in photovoltaic parks. Since May 2025, a ruling by the Supreme People’s Court allows you to judge as sabotage, with penalties of seven to 15 years in prison, the theft of parts and components intended for the electrical system.
Among the stolen objects, the solar panels from the Jamaica funeral home, in the municipality of Manuel Tames, draw attention.
The authorities also mentioned that the illegal slaughter of large livestock continues, a practice that is repeated for decades in the Guantanamo camps – and throughout the island –: in September, 13 people were arrested due to violent attacks on peasant farms in several municipalities, with the theft of cattle, horses and pigs. A month earlier, two brothers were arrested for stealing products from the pregnancy basket module at the La Beba Shopping Center.
The official broadcaster attributed this week’s events to “carelessness”, lack of foresight and protection, and “irresponsibility”; and called to “eradicate the determining causes of such excesses.” However, the responsibilities are attributed, fundamentally, to the carelessness of custodians, administrators and on-call workers. While avoiding alluding to the scarcity and deterioration of living conditions.
The political and government authorities of the province demanded “to strengthen surveillance and replace what was stolen.” That the matter is repeated in these meetings and is recognized by the official press shows how difficult it is to protect resources destined for basic services, in the midst of the worst crisis that has hit the Island since 1959.
Thefts of solar equipment are not new in the Guantanamo province. Does a few daysthe Police recovered nearly fifty panels from the Santa Teresa 4 park, found during a search of a home and with detainees who included workers linked to the center itself. According to the report, the equipment was stolen to be sold on the informal market, and the case is being processed as alleged “sabotage.”
In another case, two people were arrested for the alleged theft of ten panels intended for irrigation by a farmer from Niceto Pérez; With the help of neighbors, nine were recovered. In June, the arrest of eight young people had already been reported for taking solar lamps from public lighting in the province.
