Cuba sentences former Economy Minister Alejandro Gil to life in prison for espionage and corruption

Former Cuban Minister of Economy Alexandre Gilwho less than two years ago was a close associate of the president, Miguel Díaz-Caneland responsible for implementing the island’s major monetary reform, was sentenced to life in prison for a dozen crimes, including espionage.

Gil’s conviction, announced this Monday in a note published by the Supreme People’s Court of Cuba, ends a chapter that began in February 2024, with his sudden dismissal after having been at the head of the Ministry of Economy and Planning since Díaz-Canel’s first term in 2018.

The former Deputy Prime Minister is also the a senior official fired for corruption on the island for decades. His accusation came as a surprise. The Cuban president sent him a “grateful hug” on social networks a few hours after his dismissal.

A month later, Díaz-Canel himself reported that Gil was under investigation for “serious errors” and declared that “neither the Party (Cuba Communist, PCC, the only legal one) nor the government” would allow “the proliferation of corruption, pretense and insensitivity.”

In its note from this Monday, the court specifies that the former minister was considered guilty of espionage; acts detrimental to economic activity or procurement; corruption and theft and damage to documents or other objects, documents or other objects in official custody and violation of official seals and violation of the rules for the protection of classified documents.

The former CCP Central Committee member was tried for these crimes in a first trial held behind closed doors in Havana between November 11 and 13.

Additionally, Gil was tried in a second trial, held between November 26 and 29, for bribery to commit falsification of public documentsinfluence peddling and tax evasion, all three on an ongoing basis. For this reason, he was sentenced to 20 years in prison, the court said.

Both sentences can be appeal within 10 days.

In their note, the judges said the former official “deceived the country’s leaders and the people he represented, thereby generating damage to the economy” and “did not respect the working processes with official classified information which he manipulated, stole, damaged and ultimately made available to enemy services.”

The Supreme People’s Court held that these “highly harmful behaviors” make the person under investigation worthy of a “severe criminal response” by establishing that “betrayal of the country “It is the most serious crime and those who commit it face the harshest penalties.”

Until his disgrace, Gil acted on the island as one of the most high-profile Cabinet members.

He was also tasked with implementing the major reform of 2021 (designed by others since 2010), which attempted to end the use of a dual currency in Cuba. The controversial Order task This failure caused the value of the peso to fall and opened the doors to dollarization on the island.

He was also responsible for implementing the first adjustment measures to try to stabilize the economy. Among them the controversy stands out increased fuelincreases of up to 400%.