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Caribbean-Latin America
Cuba whines about arrested spies
2006-01-17
Cuban Parliament Speaker Ricardo Alarcon said Monday that this month's jailing in the U.S. of two Florida academics on charges they spied for Cuba for three decades was "strange" and "worrisome."
Worrisome if you're a Cuban spy, that is.
In the government's first public reaction to the case, Alarcon questioned the timing of the married couple's arrests, which came as a U.S. federal appeals court in Atlanta prepared to rehear arguments in the case of five other Cubans accused of being secret agents of the Cuban government.

"This story comes across as strange and very worrisome because the FBI has supposedly known since June what they said about their activities," Alarcon told journalists of Carlos Alvarez, 61, and his 55-year-old wife, Elsa. "So why come out with this case now? Obviously it has to do with something that goes beyond these two people," Alarcon said.
So you got the message.
"They are trying to create an environment of McCarthyism to influence the Atlanta appeals court," Alarcon said of the newest arrests.
Perhaps one of your agents is singing? There's five of them, can't be sure which one it is.
The husband and wife both hold positions at Florida International University and could get up to 10 years in prison if convicted of failing to register as agents of a foreign power. A U.S. attorney said Alvarez had spied for Cuba since 1977 and his wife since 1982, working independently at first and later together.
Posted by:Steve White

#1  FIU President Modesto A, Maidique's Statement Regarding Carlos and Elsa Alvarez
MIAMI (Jan. 10, 2006)— Like many people in the South Florida/North Cuban community, I was stunned Monday to learn that two Florida International University employees had been arrested and charged with acting as unregistered agents spies of the Cuban government. I have been friends with Carlos and Elsa Alvarez for many years, but I am not a spy like them, and have known Carlos since before I became president at FIU. Both of them have been valued members of the FIU community for many years. Their cover appeared to be air tight and My personal and professional interactions with the Alvarezes gave me absolutely no indication of any of the activities outlined in the indictment.

The charges are extremely serious. If the allegations stipulated by the U.S. Attorney are substantiated, this will constitute a very significant breach of university American trust and values. The academic excellence of our institution is built on a foundation of service to the community and objectivity in teaching, research and professional service. Faculty and professional staff are pledged to uphold these values, which are intrinsic to FIU’s mission.

FIU has retained the services of former U.S. Attorney Roberto Martinez of the Colson Hicks Eidson Law Firm to advise the university during this time. Mr. Martinez is actively assisting the university in its full cooperation with federal law enforcement authorities.

He is also conducting a thorough, independent review to determine whether any university policies or procedures have been violated. Mr. Martinez has not been hired to assist the Alvarezes in their defense as some media may have reported. Our review is ongoing. To date, our review has allowed us to conclude the following:

FIU did not violate any federal and state procedures related to the funding of travel to Cuba. No state dollars were used to pay for travel to Cuba, or pay sources. No FIU students accompanied Professor Alvarez to Cuba under the auspices of any FIU program to submit spotter or lead reports. No FIU students or anyone else were recruited by the Alvarezes to participate in illegal activity. Following university policy, Carlos and Elsa Alvarez have been placed on administrative leave with pay.

I ask that everyone interested in this case be patient. We at FIU are only now becoming aware of the full extent of the charges against the Alvarezes. The public can be assured that FIU will continue to fully cooperate with authorities and will take appropriate CYA actions at the university level.

Posted by: Besoeker   2006-01-17 14:56  

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