MIAMI — ICE Homeland Security Investigations arrested a lawful permanent resident in Miami whose sister runs the Cuban military-controlled conglomerate that dominates 70% of the island’s economy, federal officials announced.
Adys Lastres Morera was taken into custody May 22 after Secretary of State Marco Rubio determined she was removable under Section 237(a)(4)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, a provision covering individuals whose presence carries potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences. Her sister, Ania Guillermina Lastres Morera, serves as executive president of Grupo de Administración Empresarial S.A., known as GAESA.
“The Cuban military-controlled GAESA, which is the heart of that country’s kleptocratic communist system, controls up to $20 billion in illicit assets,” said HSI acting Executive Associate Director John Condon. “Adys Lastres Morera’s presence in the United States has potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for our nation, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio has determined that she is removable under the provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act.”
Condon said allowing Lastres Morera to remain would signal that Cuban regime-affiliated networks could continue accessing U.S. financial, educational and social institutions. “Allowing Lastres Morera to remain in the country would send a signal that Cuban regime-affiliated networks could continue to access the U.S.’s financial, educational and social institutions — but that is not the case. HSI will continue to investigate those with ties to our nation’s adversaries and take appropriate actions to neutralize threats against our homeland,” Condon said.
GAESA’s revenues total more than three times the Cuban government’s budget, according to ICE, with profits funneled to hidden overseas bank accounts benefiting only corrupt elites while everyday Cubans suffer under communist rule. Ania Guillermina Lastres Morera is responsible for managing the organization’s internationally held illicit assets.
Adys Lastres Morera entered the United States as a lawful permanent resident on Jan. 13, 2023, under the Biden administration. The U.S. government has not identified records indicating she filed for naturalized citizenship or applied for a U.S. passport. The State Department made its removability determination on May 20, two days before the arrest.
The arrest came days after the U.S. Department of Justice unsealed a superseding indictment charging Raul Castro — brother of notorious dictator Fidel Castro — with murdering four people in 1996. Lastres Morera will remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.