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<http://www.antiterroristas.cu/index.php?tpl=noticia/anew¬iciaid=1973¬
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iciafecha=2005-03-15><br><br>
Former FBI Chief Confesses to Irregularities in Case of Cuban Five
<br><br>
Jean Guy Allard - Granma Internacional March 15, 2005<br><br>
Nearly seven years after a farce of a trial, seven years<br>
after a long succession of cruel and degrading treatment,<br>
seven years after encouraging a campaign of disinformation<br>
in the press, a former Miami FBI bureau chief has admitted<br>
that the five Cubans imprisoned in the United States for<br>
defending their country against terrorism were not given<br>
access to some intelligence information relating to their<br>
case. The confession was made on the airwaves of the<br>
right-wing Miami station, Radio Martí, in a dialogue with<br>
none other than Cuban-American terrorist leaders Luis<br>
Zuñiga Rey and Horacio García.<br><br>
Confiding in this remarkable way was Héctor Pesquera, head<br>
of South Florida FBI bureau and the man primarily<br>
responsible for the arrest of the Cuban Five. The comment<br>
was made in the third of a series of five interviews filmed<br>
by Tele Martí for a program called “There Had to be<br>
Silence”. Although the TV station’s only viewers are its<br>
own producers, the program sound was diffused over Radio<br>
Martí last January 15 at 8pm.<br><br>
The incredible declaration by the man who obsessively<br>
pursued the Cubans and viciously attached the “spy” epithet<br>
to them, was made in answer to the following question by<br>
Zúñiga:<br><br>
“Do you believe that at some moment the security of the<br>
United States was in danger or that they had access to some<br>
intelligence information that could be valuable to the<br>
enemies of the United States?”<br><br>
And Pequera answered:<br><br>
“No. For example, in the case of (Antonio) Guerrero a<br>
retrospective study of the information was made that he had<br>
taken, but the investigation was unable to determine if he<br>
had such intelligence information.”<br><br>
It was clear as the rest of the interview demonstrates <br>
that Pesquera was speaking in an atmosphere of complete<br>
confidence. Aside from Zúñiga - an old acquaintance of the<br>
FBI - the former bureau chief was also in the presence of<br>
Horacio García who he had identified in another Miami<br>
television interview as a friend and FBI informer. In fact,<br>
García was among the organizers of a celebration that took<br>
place in Miami after the condemning of the Five a<br>
celebration Pesquera attended.<br><br>
For years García was with Roberto Martin Pérez, Alberto<br>
Hernández and Feliciano Foyo, one of the capos of the<br>
paramilitary committee of the Cuban American National<br>
Foundation (CANF) begun by Luis Zúñiga Rey and the<br>
international terrorist Luis Posada Carilles who was<br>
publicly designated as his main source of financial and<br>
logistical support. García abandoned the CANF to join the<br>
current “hard core” of Zúñiga Rey, some days before<br>
September 11.<br><br>
Zúñiga, on the other hand, was actually designated by US<br>
President Bush as a member of the U.S. delegation to the<br>
annual meeting of the UN Human Rights Commission! This, in<br>
spite of the fact that according to a report by UN Special<br>
Rapporteur Enrique Bernales Ballesteros that he was an<br>
extremist directly involved in a terrorist campaign carried<br>
out in Cuba in 1997 by mercenaries hired by Luis Posada<br>
Carilles.<br><br>
The series of interviews contains several other interesting<br>
declarations by Pesquera who Zúñiga servilely refers to as<br>
“the FBI bureau chief” although he left that position in<br>
December of 2003.<br><br>
Last January 22 - again in the same series diffused by the<br>
badly named Radio Martí along with García and Zúñiga -<br>
Pesquera made another confession that allows one to<br>
ascertain how he had arrived from Puerto Rico with<br>
instructions to proceed at all cost against the group of<br>
Cubans who had infiltrated terrorist organizations in<br>
Miami:<br><br>
“I arrived here in May, 1998. They informed me of what was<br>
going on. We then began to stress that this investigation<br>
into the effects of intelligence should no longer remain as<br>
is, but should change direction and become a criminal<br>
investigation.”<br><br>
And then, the creator of the case against the Cuban Five<br>
reveals:<br><br>
“I had many problems convincing the Justice Department of<br>
this.”<br><br>
This statement once again confirms what Pesquera had<br>
declared some days before going into retirement in an<br>
interview granted to Miami Herald reporter Larry Lebowitz<br>
in 2003. He said that he was obliged to “persuade" U.S.<br>
Attorney General, Janet Reno to arrest the Cuban patriots.<br>
“Others in the Justice Department didn't want to touch<br>
this”, he recalled, adding, “Everything was on the line (of<br>
demarcation).”<br><br>
We should remember that on October27, 1997, the U.S. Coast<br>
Guard captured off Puerto Rico an arsenal of weapons along<br>
with several suspects aboard a yacht named “Esperanza”. All<br>
were linked, in one way or another, to the CANF in Miami.<br>
In spite of the spontaneous confession of one of the crew<br>
that the yacht was bound for the Venezuelan island of<br>
Margarita to murder the Cuban president attending an<br>
international forum there, Pesquera’s investigation made<br>
sure that all those inculpated were freed. Again, Pesquera<br>
attended the resulting celebration organized by the CANF.<br><br>
On September 12, 1998, barely four months after their<br>
arrival in Miami, Pesquera sent his agents to arrest the<br>
Cuban “spies” as he was to label them in his first contact<br>
with the press on the subject. The operation against people<br>
that didn’t have the slightest criminal record was worthy<br>
of Hollywood. The suspects were thrown to the floor by men<br>
armed to the teeth, then taken to the Miami FBI<br>
headquarters where they were isolated in punishment cells,<br>
intensely interrogated for two days during which they were<br>
neither allowed to wash nor to shave, and then<br>
photographed. It was those pictures depicting supposedly<br>
hardened criminal faces that were used by a hysterical<br>
press that had been bought and paid for by the Miami<br>
right-wing.<br><br>
Violating every prison norm and international agreements<br>
against torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment,<br>
Pesquera and his FBI accomplices kept the Cubans locked up<br>
in solitary confinement this way for a full 17 months.<br><br>
René González, Gerardo Hernández, Antonio Guerrero, Ramón<br>
Labañino and Fernando González continue to be incarcerated<br>
today, for purely malicious reasons, in five different<br>
prisons spread out over the immense U.S. territory<br>
forbidden or severely restricted to have contact with their<br>
families.<br><br>
Finally, it is always worth remembering that while he was<br>
persecuting these Cuban patriots who were fighting against<br>
terrorism, Pesquera had no knowledge of the fact that 15 of<br>
the 19 real terrorists who carried out the September 11<br>
attacks against the Twin Towers and the Pentagon, were<br>
training only a few kilometers from his office.<br><br>
<http://www.antiterroristas.cu/index.php?tpl=noticia/anew¬iciaid=1973¬
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iciafecha=2005-03-15><br>
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