News blackout shrouds trial in Finland for 6 Cuban athletes

By Progreso Weekly Last updated Aug 30, 2016

The trial of six Cuban athletes accused of raping a Finnish woman began Monday (Aug. 29) in the Pirkanmaa District Court, in the city of Tampere, northwest of Helsinki.

The men, all members of the Cuba’s national volleyball team, were arrested on July 2. For background in Progreso Weekly, click here.

The three-day trial is being held behind closed doors and there is little chance that any details will be made public, according to the Finnish daily Aamulehti.

The defendants are, from left at top, Dariel Albo Miranda; Osmany Uriarte Mestre; Luis Sosa Sierra, and from left at bottom, Rolando Cepeda Abreu, Ricardo Calvo Manzano, and Abraham Alfonso Gavilán.

Two of the defendants and their lawyers during a preliminary hearing. The trial is closed to the press.

The case documents will be sealed at the request of the plaintiff, because they involve “sensitive aspects of her civilian life and state of health,” the newspaper reported this week.

“The evidence must be kept secret for 60 years, that is, until Aug. 15, 2076,” the newspaper says, and so must the plaintiff’s personal data.

The Cuban Embassy in Finland and the Cuban Volleyball Federation are providing “all required attention to the athletes and their relatives,” the Cuban daily Granma stated on Aug. 24.

[Photo at top of Cuban defendant identified by the Finnish press as Dariel Albo Miranda.]