A man lost his life on Friday night after being stabbed outside his family's home in Santiago de Cuba. Independent journalist Yosmany Mayeta Labrada revealed on his Facebook page that the victim was attacked on Rastro Street by a group of young individuals who were "randomly stabbing anyone in their path."
The assailants had just left a street party at Martí and Corona streets, where a brawl had erupted. They then moved to Rastro Street, where the victim was visiting relatives. The deceased, identified as José Miguel Hechavarría (Titi), was celebrating his birthday. He was a graduate of the Faculty of Technology in Health, earning a Gold Title in the field of Hygiene and Epidemiology. Miguel served as the head of the hygiene department at the Josué País García Polyclinic in the Abel Santamaría neighborhood.
A Brutal Attack
A witness recounted, "The man was sitting down when those people arrived with knives and machetes. His nephew was involved in the fight, and when he stood up to intervene, he was stabbed in the back. He lay there for about 10 minutes, bleeding, without anyone helping him until I and two others carried him and put him on a motorbike."
This account differs from that of Dianeya Romero, who identified herself as the victim's niece and insisted that none of the family members were involved in the altercation. "Those bastards who stabbed him came from a party, slashing at anyone in their way. My uncle was sitting outside because the CDR (Committees for the Defense of the Revolution) party had just ended. They stabbed him twice in the lung, threw my cousin to the ground, and slashed another cousin with one of the knives," Romero stated.
Conflicting Accounts
Romero added, "My uncles were bringing all my cousins inside without realizing that the person lying on the ground bleeding was my uncle. We rushed him to the hospital, where he arrived alive, but he passed away upon entering the emergency room. A young girl from the neighborhood realized it was my uncle because it was so dark."
It appears that the attackers were five in number, and it is still unclear whether they have been apprehended. They reportedly injured several other people as well.
Witness Descriptions
A user identified as Mohana La Más Viral passed by the scene on a motorcycle and described it as a "massacre." "They slashed a friend of my boyfriend, causing a severe leg injury. As I rode home, I saw them on the street before Martí, armed with machetes, files, knives, and various weapons. It looked like World War I," she described.
Lagnara Megret, a local resident, mentioned that the young men had been causing trouble since 3:00 am. "I was sleeping when their commotion woke me up. They were on the entire Martí Avenue, armed and looking for someone to stab," she detailed.