Sabotage of Cuban electricity system: penalties up to 30 years according to Supreme Court
The Governing Council of the Supreme People's Court issued Ruling 475, classifying theft from the National Electricity System as sabotage. Sentences exceed ten years of imprisonment.
Supreme People's Court classifies crimes against national power grid as sabotage
The Governing Council of Cuba's Supreme People's Court issued Ruling number 475, dated 23 May 2025, in which it reaffirms that unlawful acts against the country's critical infrastructures—including the National Electricity System—constitute the crime of sabotage, according to tribuna.cu.
The ruling was issued pursuant to Article 148 of the Constitution of the Republic and Article 29, section 1, subsection g), of Law No. 140, relating to courts of justice.
Theft of photovoltaic components and fuels at the centre of the problem
The judicial document responds to a practice that authorities describe as growing: people are stealing components, parts, resources, fuels and dielectric oil belonging to photovoltaic parks, solar panels and generator sets, among other assets of the state energy system. According to the ruling, such conduct directly affects the National Electricity System and undermines the government strategy aimed at mitigating the energy deficit.
The Governing Council states that such acts fall within the crime of sabotage provided for in Article 125 of Law No. 151, Penal Code, promulgated on 22 May 2022. That article protects the normal functioning of public goods, the security and stability of the State and its institutions, as well as any activity that the State considers a priority, such as the energy programme.
Sentences of seven to thirty years, or death penalty in aggravated cases
Article 125 of the Penal Code establishes penalties of seven to fifteen years of imprisonment for whoever, with the purpose of preventing or hindering the normal use of energy infrastructures, destroys, alters, damages or impairs them.
Penalties increase to a range of ten to thirty years, life imprisonment or death penalty when any of the following circumstances apply:
- Serious injury or death of any person is caused.
- Fire, explosives, chemical or biological agents or other means capable of producing serious consequences are used.
- Collective security is endangered.
- The affected assets belong to the State's material reserves.
Applicable aggravating factors and parole restrictions
Article 80 of the Penal Code allows courts to assess aggravating circumstances according to each case. Among these are participation as a member of a group of three or more persons, the involvement of minors under eighteen years of age, the use of means that create common danger, exploitation of nighttime hours, a motive of profit, and having acted under the influence of alcohol or drugs with the purpose of committing a crime.
Regarding parole, Article 89, section 2, of the same legal code stipulates that those sentenced must have served at least two-thirds of the imposed sentence before that benefit can be evaluated.
Sentences exceeding ten years in all cases tried in 2025 and the first quarter of 2026
According to the data collected in the ruling and reproduced by tribuna.cu, the chambers for crimes against state security of the provincial people's courts imposed, during the period January–December 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, sentences of imprisonment exceeding ten years on one hundred per cent of persons tried for these charges.
Along with the principal penalties, the courts applied accessory measures: prohibition from frequenting certain places, seizure, confiscation of assets and prohibition from leaving national territory subject to payment of civil liability.
The Governing Council emphasises that the courts have acted "with the rigour and rationality that such conduct demands, based on the serious social harm of acts of this nature".
Context: state energy programme under pressure
The Cuban State frames these measures in the context of the economic, financial and energy blockade imposed by the United States, against which the Government has launched a programme aimed at ensuring electricity generation. The authorities contend that theft of materials belonging to energy infrastructure directly obstructs that effort and harms the population.
(Original source: Cubadebate, via tribuna.cu)
Source: Google News CU — La Habana