In what began as a standard audit at a poultry farm in Guantánamo, a legal battle has unfolded leading to the sanctioning of five employees, including Yanet Martínez Latamblet, while the farm’s executives remain unscathed. Martínez Latamblet was held accountable for the loss of over 7,000 chickens — a charge she vehemently denies, implicating the state-run enterprise’s leadership instead. This situation was detailed in an extensive report by 14ymedio.
“I want to expose the violation and harassment I’m experiencing from my company’s top management,” Martínez Latamblet declared. On September 25, the Municipal Court of Guantánamo sentenced her to one year of house arrest for “failing to safeguard state property.” She contends that she lacked the time and resources to mount an adequate defense and plans to appeal the decision, maintaining that the true culprits were never brought to justice.
Between 2017 and 2024, Martínez Latamblet worked as a breeder at the Lajita 1 farm. On September 7, she was summoned for a trial over “neglect of duty,” only to learn during the proceedings that she was actually being accused of the massive poultry shortfall.
“We found out everything right there; we had no preparation,” she told the outlet, emphasizing that rumors had always pointed to the farm’s leadership as being at fault. The audit conducted in September 2023 uncovered the disappearance of over 7,000 chickens, worth more than 100,000 pesos. When the loss was discovered, employees were called into a meeting where they were pressured to reimburse the missing amount from their own pockets.
“They demanded we pay up,” recalled Martínez Latamblet, stating the sum was “unpayable,” even if shared among all employees. After refusing, the embezzlement scandal came to light, sparking legal proceedings.
Located at kilometer 1 on the road to Santiago de Cuba, the Lajita 1 farm was inactive for over 15 years until operations resumed in 2016 with the goal of boosting local poultry production. However, chronic shortages of feed, fuel, and poor internal controls have severely hindered its operations.
In such precarious conditions, the burden of responsibility for losses often falls on workers, while management-level irregularities escape legal consequences, according to employee complaints. Martínez Latamblet’s appeal could become a pivotal case illuminating the dynamics of impunity and accountability within Cuban state enterprises, where a lack of transparency and structural decay leave the weakest links in the production chain facing criminal charges.
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