Relatives had said that at least 19 people were traveling, including 7 minors, but the Mexican Navy claimed to have rescued 16, including four children.
14ymedio, Mexico, August 23, 2026 / Twin boys Leosdel and Leosniel Oviedo Garrobo, who were traveling on the boat carrying Cuban rafters that was located on Thursday after being missing at sea for more than a week, died during the crossing. This was confirmed to Martí Noticias on Saturday via text message by Leobel Ricardo Oviedo, the father of the little boys who were only two-years-old.
Just a day earlier, he had told the Cuban-American media outlet, “I am very grateful because they have made a great effort to find them.” At that time, as evidenced by interviews he gave to other journalists, he was certain his sons were in good health.
According to Martí Noticias, Adacheli Sosa, Oviedo’s cousin, recounted that the father, who has lived in Cancún for almost a year, went to “the place where the migrants were staying”—the Yucatecan city of Progreso—to reunite with his family, originally from Vertientes (Camagüey), but upon arrival, only his wife, Yusimy Garrobo Leiva, 35, was there. “He met with his wife, and she confirmed that the two young children had died during the journey, apparently from dehydration,” Sosa told the news outlet.
According to statements from a relative of other rafters who were on board, they had to throw the bodies into the sea because the smell they gave off was attracting sharks.
According to statements made to Mario Vallejo by a relative of other rafters who were on board, they had to throw the bodies into the sea because the smell they gave off was attracting sharks. “The mother of the children was in very bad shape,” the relative told the reporter.
The Mexican Navy had released an image on Thursday of the boat, found 10 nautical miles from Chicxulub Puerto, in the state of Yucatán, by some fishermen, who helped the migrants and notified the authorities.
They had been missing since the boat departed for Mexico from Pinar del Río on August 11. The alert was raised by the rafters’ families, who were asking for help from the authorities or anyone who might know if they had been rescued by the coast guard, a recreational boat, or fishermen.
Journalist Mario Vallejo issued a plea on his social media accounts, posting images taken by the rafters themselves inside the vessel. According to initial reports, at least 19 people were on board, including 7 minors.
However, the Mexican Navy reported the rescue of 16 migrants, including four minors. All of them were taken to facilities of the Ninth Naval Zone in Progreso, from where personnel from the National Migration Institute (INM) were contacted “to determine their status and carry out the corresponding procedures,” official sources told 14ymedio.
So far, neither the authorities nor the families have provided any further details or explanations regarding the discrepancy in the figures.
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