Nectzary Morales Gálvez –whose second surname the authorities had initially given as Vázquez– is in provisional prison after being charged
14ymedio, Madrid, September 25, 2025 — The Public Prosecutor reported on Wednesday the identity of the alleged murderer of Leonel Mesa Rodríguez, a police captain who was found dead last Friday “with six stab wounds and a gunshot wound to the head” in Caibarién, Villa Clara: Nectzary Morales Vázquez, who is currently in pre-trial detention after being formally charged.
“Preliminary inquiries are being carried out for the provision of evidence and the completion of the investigations,” said the Public Prosecutor’s Office in a statement, adding that the Public Prosecutor, working “with respect for the rights and guarantees enshrined in the Constitution and laws, will bring public criminal proceedings before the Court for his trial.”
The statement says that a “request for sanctions corresponding to the gravity of the facts and the circumstances in which they occurred” will be made. For the crime of murder with the aggravating circumstances that occurred in this case, the Cuban penal code provides for 20 to 30 years of deprivation of liberty or the death penalty, although the last time the latter was applied was in 2003.
For the crime of murder with aggravating circumstances that occurred in this case, the Cuban penal code provides for 20 to 30 years of deprivation of liberty or the death penalty
The Public Prosecutor’s Office adds that “it will continue to act in accordance with its constitutional mandate, within the framework of legality, in defense of our people and the institutions of the country,” while the case continues to be investigated under its supervision.
The disclosure of the identity of the suspect has puzzled public opinion, and in the absence of more data or details, people have gone to social networks to look for the individual, without finding any information online, which has led thousands of people to question the name given. The Public Prosecutor and the Ministry of the Interior, on the other hand, do not seem to have a definite criterion when it comes to disseminating the full names of detainees, which they sometimes keep secret out of respect for the presumption of innocence; others, such as in this case, are provided.
The arrest of the alleged murderer of Leonel Mesa Rodríguez, head of sector in Caibarién, occurred just one day after the crime at 4:45 pm last Saturday in Remedios. The Ministry of the Interior made public a note on social media, where it was also detailed that the suspect was carrying the officer’s pistol and a knife, both allegedly used in the murder.
The speed of this arrest also surprised the population, which in any case favors a “crackdown” on the wave of criminality that is affecting the country.
Mesa was buried in Taguasco, Sancti Spíritus, with an honor guard and a parade in a military vehicle. A Cuban flag covered his coffin, flanked by wreaths of flowers sent by Raúl Castro and Miguel Díaz-Canel. In various provinces there have been official acts of homage in the days following his burial.
Mesa was a member of the Ministry of the Interior, recognized with multiple distinctions, including “Internationalist Fighter in Ethiopia” and the “Praise to Virtue,” awarded last June. Although he has been highly praised by his colleagues, he also had multiple detractors, among them those who called him “Quick Lime” for his alleged abusive methods.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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