8A Corruption of t .. The Miami Herald Frldsy, I)ec. 30, 1983

New breed of anti-Castro mi itant moves toM·a......,...i Since 1980, bas.~ of underground · has shifted south from New Je~sey.

·21 JIM McGEE HI/rald Staff Writer

There is now evidence that Miami bas become home for a new breed of :anti~Castro· terrorist.

Since 1980. alleged anti-castro terrorists bave gradually migrated from New Jersey, the · center of exile terrorlsin in the late 1970's, to Miami, the original base of the ter· rorist underground. .

Unlike their more flamboyant predecessors. these new fighters againstCUtto generally shun pub. licity. Thtr clon't boast of past ties to the CIA. Tht'y don't talk about their herorstn during the Bay of Pigs invasion.

Today"suspected terrorists wear three-piece suits; hold responsible jobs, raisa dose-knit families and consult expenSive defense lawyers; Major sepients of the Cuban exile community consider L'lem patriotic revolutiCl1'Jll'ies.

... Officiailf sar they represent the . future 01 anti-Castro terrorism in . Amarica. a perSistent phl!nomena that no amount of government prosecutiali has extingusbed. . .

"What l:-o&'re talking about is a cause," .£.'ii4FBI official Staniey Klein, W~ (}irects the counterter­rorism ~m at FBI Headquar­ters .• ' . . _~t you can infer from that is tl'.f' 2f!ti·Castro movement is active anttllere has been a decided

injection of new blood, new people­in the anti-Castro movement. It's obvious on its face."

These are the Miami-based exiles whom federal officials have· said are suspected terroriSts:

• Eduardo Arocena, 40; owner of a Miami import-export firm, is portrayed in recent indictments and by FBI officials as the leader of the Oinega 7 terrorist group and chief architect of a six-year wave of bombings and murders. A federal judge has described Aroeena as "highly intelligent" and his arrest apparently came as a shock to his family. He has been accused in fed­eral indictments unsealed Wednes­day of participating in 14 bombings, 11 of them in Miartli. Arocena ad­mitted his Omega 7 activities in tape-recorded conversations with an FBI agent and during a. brief pe­riod of cooperation, officials said. TIley said he also passed an FBI polygraph test. From his jail cell in New York, Arocena ha& issued pub­lic denials of the FBI's allegations . He has not yet entered a plea to the recent chalges.

• Pedro Remon. 38, . a salesman at Ryder Trucks in Miami, has been identified in court papers that re~ port statements by Arocena that he had been a key Omega 7 member and thf" "triggerman" . in two Omega 7 machine-gun murders.

Remon

Remon was initially arrested on an FBI complaint that accused him of placing a bomb under the limousine of a Cuban diplomat. He was named but not charged in a recent in,dict­ment of Arocena. Remon is a mem­ber of the Miarrii-based Organiza­tion for the Uberation of Cuba (OPLC]. In 1980, he was atTested with another alleged Omega 7 member in Belleville, N.J., in an in· cident that Arocena said was part of a failed Omega 7 operation. Remon is being held in New' York on a civIl contempt charge for re­fusing· to answer questions about Omega 7. He has not yet been in­dicted and offielals say he denies being involved in the terrorist group. His attorney . Paul Goldber­ger said recently: "I'm not con­vinced they {the government] have anv krnd of case."

". Ramon Sancbez, ·32,part owner of a MiAmi security alarm service, has long beE'D aSsociated ~'iththe anti·castro movI'ment in

Sanchez Martinez

Miami: Federal officials have al· leged in court documents. based on statements by AroceIia, that San­chez built a bomb that was placed beneath the limousine of a Cuban diplomat in 1980.Arocena has also told the FBI that Sanchez provided explosives to another Omega 7 sus· pect. Like Remon, Sanchez is a member of OPLC. He is presently being held on a civil contempt charge for refusing to answer ques- · tions about Omega 1. His laWyer, Adolfo Koss, said the FBI is wrong about Sanchez: "Ramon has no con· nection with or knowledge ·of · Omega 7 activities and the govern­ment has zero proof (he} is an Omega· 7 member."

.. .Jose A. Martinez, 46, supervi­sor of · bridge m8iIitenance' for Metro-Dade County, is described in an FBI affidavit as an associate of

. IUeged Omega 7 members. ltsaid he traveled with members of the group to Latin American countries to meet witbright-wing officials

Gonza)ez· Novo

regarding Omega 7 activities. Until Martinez was named in the affida­vit, he lived quietly in Miami with his family and- was considered an excellent employe by his Metro· Dade supervisors. He has not been publicly connl'cted with any bom­bings. Martinez ' abruptly resigned his job earlier this month and disap­peared after FBI agents confronted him with evidence in the Omega 7 investigation. Presently a fugitive, Martinez is being sought as a mate;

rial witness in the Omega 7 a,lSe. His attorney, Miguel San Pedro, said: "I don't know of any involve­ment in Omega 7 on his part."

• Jose Ignacio Gonzalez, 41~ a successful Mi.ami businessman and formf'r insurance. salesma.nt was named in an FlH complaintthil.t said he wa.s present during aconfronta­tion GVer money t9 be colle(.tedby Omega 7.A former business associ­ate of Arocena in Miami, he has not been publicly , conn.l'cted to any

bombings. but a senior FBI offidal deseribed Gonzalez as a key mem­ber of Omega 7. He was indicted ThurSday on two counts of lying underoatb before a grand jury in­vestigating Omega 7. He has report· edly ·denounced the government aI­le~ations as "a bunch of lies", but bas not yet entered a plea to the perjurycbarges. His attorney, Ste· phen Glass, saysGonzale~ is being pursued because of his past busi­ness relationship with Arocena: "As far as we're concerned it's innuendo ... .Apparently if you know some­'b04y that is riR Omega 7J you're gOing to be gUilty by association."

• Guillermo Novo, 44, an adver­tising executive for WRHC radio station, is described in FBI reports as a principal figure iii anti-Castro terrorism: He was convicted in the 1976 ,bombing murder, of former ChiLean diplomat Orlando Letelier, but that guilty verdict was later overturqed on appeal. He was ar­rested in a 1974 bazooka attack on the United Nations on charges that were later dropped. Novo's tenure as a leader in the now-inactive Cuban Nationalist Movement was interrupted by a jail term on a per­jury charge stemming from the Letelier investigation. He was not active in the group when sorn" members were accused of pressur· ing merchants to contribute money. Novo is highly regarded by WRHC officiills and has not been publi~ly linked to any recent bombings. H~ declined to comment. Novo attend· ed· a recent court hearing held in Miami for ·Arocena.

-Nueva'estirpe de' • terr()rlstas .se

1

instalaen Miami Por JIM McGEE Redlll;lor de El Miami HflraJd

Desde 1980, supuestos terroris­tas anticastristu, ban : emigrado gradualmente de Nueva Jersey. centro del terrorismo exUiado a fines de los sete:llta. a Miami, base original del clandesttnaje terroris­tao

'. A diferencia de ' sus mas extra­vagantes predecesa,res. estes nue­vos combatientes. . anticastristas evitaa por 10 getteJ'aJ la publici­dad. No alardeall I.&} contactos pa­sados con la AI~enICla Cen.tral de

. Inteligeneia (CIA,. y no hablan sobre su beroislno durante la in­vasi6n de Bahia de,cochinos.

Los actuaies .sospecbosos de terrorismo usan tr~es de tres pie­zas, tienen empleos reaponsables. son buenos padres de familia y consultan a costosos abQgadOS de­rensores. Importantes segmentos de la comuni<la.l u.iUada cubana los consideran rlwo}ucionariospa­tri6ticos.

.Lbs funcionariOs expresan que ello"5 representnn el futuro del -terrorismo antic;astrista en Esta-. dOi Unidos, fenC>Q1encpersistente

. qtie no ha 10gntCio extif.lguir nin .. • 'gp,n tipo de pernecucl6n aubetna-

~ental. l

"De 10 que hilblamos es de \lnat causa", declaro .el funciOnario de' , Ill'· Oficina FedE!ral de Investiga­dones (FBI) Suualey Klein, q~en' :ditige el progrlLllR8 antiterronsta en las ofieinas etaJltraJes del FBI.

;: . "Lo que uno pu~e. infenr de. : esto es que el movumento anti .. . :castrista esta a(:1ivo. y que ha ba- . bido una inye(:c:i60 decidlda de sangre nu~va y de ~ente. nueva en . el movlmlento anticastriSta. Esto resulta obvio a I)rimera vista".

Estos son los e:xiliadOs residen- . tes de Miami que los funcionarios .federales estilDlUl sospechosos de terrorismo:' I

• Eduardo Arocena: de 40 anos, propietario de una ~mpresa de importaci6n y exportaci6n de Miami~ presentadu en autos de procesamientos recientes y por funcionarios dd FBI como Uder del grupo terrorista Omega 7 y principal arqult~ de WUl o~ de atentad.os 4ioaJRlteros y aseSlna­tos que ha durado seis anos. Un juez federal describi6 a Arocena como "extremadamente inteligen­te" y aparentElme~te su. ~esto pasmo a su propla faJUJUa: Ha sido acusado en un encausanuento federal dado a la publieidad ayer, de haber participado en 14 aten­tados dinamiteJ'os, 11 de ellos en Miami. Arocerul admitiO sus acti­vidades en Om4~ga 7 en conversa­eiones grabada!; con un agente del FBI y durante un breve periodo de cooperaei6n, . deelar~on los. funeionarios. Estos anadieron que Arocena tambUin pas{) una prueba poUgrafica. .

Oesde _ su calda carcelarla en Nueva York, Arucena ha hecho deelaraciones pubUcas refutando los alegatos del FBI. Hasta ahora 'no se ba declarado culpable 0 ino­cente de los recientes cargos.

• Pedro Rem6n, de 38 anos, vendedor de la empresa de camio­.nes Ryder de Miami, ha sldo iden­tificado en los documentos pre- ' sentados ante la corte que se re­fieren a informes de Arocena como miembro de Omega 7 y autor de dos muertes por ametra­llamiento cometidos por la orga­nizaci6n. Rem6n fue arrestado inicialmente por una denuncia becha al FBI. que 10 aeusaba de haber eolocado una bomba en la limosfna d!! un diplom,tico cuba­no" Tambien fue mencionado pero no acusado en el reciente auto de proeesamiento de Arocena. Rem6n .es miembro de .Ia Organi­zaci6n para 18 Liberaci6n, de Cuba (OPLC), que tiene. su sede en Mia­mi. Fue arrestado en 1980 en Be­lleville, Nueva Jersey, en un inei­dente que seg"Cln Arocena formaba parte de una operaci6n faUida de Omega 7. Rem6n esta detenido en Nueva York y acusado de desaca­to a un tribunal civil por negars~ a responder preguntas sobre Omega 7. No ha &ido instruido de cargos y los funcionarlosdicen .que niega estar involucrado con el grupo terrorist&.. Su abogado, Paul Goldberger. declar6 reeien­temente: "No estoy convencido de que (el gobiernoJ tenga caso algu­no que presentar".

• Ram6n sanchez, de 32 alios. copropietario .. de uOa firma cle. ... ala~ ;de seguridad de Miami. 1 ha sido' asociado durante mucho tiempo con elmovimiento anti­~trista en ~sta ciudad. Funcio- I

narios federales · alegan fro dacu­mentos presentados a la corte, ba­sanOOse en declaraciones de Aro­cena, que sanchez' construy6 .una . bomba eolocada en 1980 debajo ' de la limosina de un diplomatico cubano. Arocena tambielil dijoal FBI que Sanchez proveyl~ los ex­plosivos a otro hombre sospeeho­so de ser miembro de Omega 7 . Como Rem6n, sanchez es miem­bro de la OPLC. Actualmente estA detenido por desacato civUya que se neg6 a responder preguntas sobre Omega 7. Su abogado. Adolfo Koss, expuso que el FBI est' equivocado respectl)a . San­chez: "Ram6n no tiene relacion alguna con ' Omega 1, oj conoci­~iento de sus actividades. El go­bierno no tiene prueba. alguna para demostrar que es miembro de. Omega 7",

• Jose A. Martinei~ ' de 46 aims, supervisor de mantenimien­to de puentes del gobierno metro­politano de Dade, es dlescrito en una orden de detencit>n federal como asociado de supuestos miembros de Omega 7. En la misma se dice que viaj6 con miembros del grupo a paises lati­noamerican~. donde se reunio con funcionarios derecbi~as para tratar sobre actividades de Omega 7. Antes de ser l!1enci~n~­do en los informes, MaJ.'tmez VIVla tranquilamente en Miami con su familia y era eonsideradoexce­lente empl~ poT ~" jefe& .eQ el

gobierno del condado. No ha esta­do publicamente vinculado con ning"Cln atentado dinamittlro. A principias de este mes, Martinez renunci6 abruptamente a su tri1-bajo aprincipios de este mes y de­sapareci6 despues que agentes del FBI 10 confrontaroncon pOle bas relacionadas eon la investigacion sobre Omega 7. Martinez. actual­mente fugitivo. es busca(1o como testigo material del caso Omega

. 7. Su abogado;Miguel San Pedro, ~ ha dicbo: "Desconozco que baya . estadq involucrado con Omega : 7". .

• Jose Ignacio Gonzilez, dtl 41 : anos, prospero negociante de • I Miami 1. ex vendedor de seguros.

fue mencionado en la denuncia del FBI, la cQal eXpOne que estuvo l)resente durante· una confronta­don sobre uo dinero que Omega 7 fba a recoger. Gonzalez, ex socio d.e ncgocios de Aroeena •. no ba es­t.ado pubUcamente . relacionado oon ningUn atentaclo terrorista • pMero un importante funcionario d'tel FBI dijo que GonzAlez eTa miembro clave de Omega 7. Gon­ZlUez, por su parte, protesto con­tra las acusaciones del gobierno. dca nominlitldolas "una· partida de mtentiras". Hasta abora no ha pre­Sell1tacio un alegatocontra los car­g()S de perlurio. Su abogado, Step­he:n Glass,dice que Gonzalez es pelt'seguido debido a su pasada re­la<:i6n de negocios con Arocena: "EI1 10 que a nosotros respecta, es U~l inferencia f . .. ,. Aparente­mente, si uno conoce a determiDa~ da·;persona, es decir [en Omega 7\, ust .. ~ va a ser culpable por aso­ci8(:i6n" .

Itt Guillermo Novo, de 44 aDos, ejecutivo publicitario de la emiso­ra i'adial WRHC. es descrito en info;rmes del FBI como figura prin.cipal del terrorismo antieas­trista. Fue haUado culpable del aterttado dinamitero ocurrido en 197fj que taus{) la muerte al ex di­p)oDl.atieo chileno Orlando Lete­lier.pero el veredictQ de culpabi-

. lidadl fue desestimado posterior­men1te en una apelacion. Fue arresttado en 1974 por un ataque con lInortero en Naeiones Unidas, pero 'las aeusaciones fuerOD reti­radlll; mas tarde. EJ termino presi­denc{al de Novo en el ya lnactivo Movii!Diento Nacionalista Cubano fue i1ttterrumpido por una senten­cia que cumpli6, condena resuJ· taDte 1de una acusaci6n de perjurio relacilOnada con la investigacion del CllSO Letelier. Ya no estaba ac­tivo 16:n el grupo cuando algunos miemibros fUeron aeusados de ejerceiJr presi6n sobre comercian­tes para baeer que contribuyeran dinero. Novo es tenido en gran es­tima . por funcionarios de la WRHtG y no ha estado pu~Jicfl­mente- relacionado con ' nmgun atentaJ10 dinamitero reciente. De­di"nb ' haeer comentarios.