Cuba unveils new details in fatal U.S. boat shooting and says a second boat on mission failed

Cuba reveals new details on a fatal U.S. boat shooting, confirming a second boat mission failed during the incident.

Top officials with Cuba's Ministry of the Interior unveiled for the first time late Friday (February 27, 2026) the items they said were aboard a Florida-flagged speedboat that opened fire against troops in waters off the island's north coast this week, with soldiers responding and killing four suspects.

Officials also revealed to The Associated Press that authorities were able to establish that the 10 Cuban suspects left the U.S. in two boats, but one failed, so they transferred all the supplies to the remaining one and left the other adrift.

The government said the detained suspects revealed those details and stressed that they immediately contacted the U.S. Coast Guard.

Among the items Cuban officials said were aboard the boat: a dozen high-powered weapons, including one with a scope; a big cooler filled with more than 12,800 pieces of ammunition; 11 pistols; heavy-duty boots, helmets with cameras; and camouflage backpacks.

“We were clearly able to assess that we were facing a terrorist action from a boat coming from the United States,” 1st Col. Ivey Daniel Carballo of the Cuban Border Guard Troops told the AP.

According to Mr. Carballo, the 30-foot (nine-meter) border patrol boat detected an intruder on Wednesday (February 25, 2026) morning and approached to within about 600 feet (185 meters) to investigate, but it was met with high-caliber gunfire.