Boat shot by Cuban authorities reported stolen from Florida Keys home, sheriff's office says

David Goodhue, Miami Herald on Feb 26, 2026

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MIAMI — The boat the Cuban government says arrived in its waters Wednesday carrying 10 armed men was reported stolen hours later from the Florida Keys according to a report from the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.

The Cuban coast guard approached the boat and shot several of the men after taking fire from people aboard, according to a statement from the Cuban government. The firefight happened about one nautical mile northeast of the El Pino channel, in Cayo Falcones, off the northern coast of Villa Clara province in central Cuba.

The government said all 10 people were armed and opened fire first. Authorities said they found assault rifles, handguns, Molotov cocktails, bulletproof vests, telescopic sights and camouflage uniforms on the vessel.

On Wednesday, Monroe County Sheriff’s Office deputies went to a house on Avenue G in Big Pine Key in the Lower Keys around 8:45 p.m., where a man, Angel Montera, reported his 24-foot boat was stolen.

Montera told deputies he lives in Miami-Dade County but keeps the boat at the Big Pine Key house, where the owner lets him keep it in exchange for construction work, according to the report.

He told deputies he reported it stolen because media called earlier in the day about the shooting, and the registration number released by the Cuban government matched the one on his vessel, the report states.

A neighbor told deputies that she saw a white pickup pull into the property Wednesday, and a man got out of the truck and onto the vessel, leaving around 6:30 p.m.

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