Parents desperate as children among group of 10 Cuban rafters missing at sea

A group of ten Cuban rafters, including three children, have been missing for a week after leaving the island in a boat, attempting to reach the United States, Univision reported Tuesday.

The parents of two of the minors told journalist Mario Vallejo that they were "desperate" but still hopeful that their kids are alive somewhere.

Eloy Perez lives in Cuba and saw his son, Eloy Perez Jr, 5, for the last tim on April 4 in the afternoon. "He was playing when I came home from work, and I haven't seen him since. I know they left on a boat. An illegal departure," he said.

"I will move heaven and earth, and I will go to the last consequences to see where they are," he said.

According to the news outlet, the boy's sister is Alejandra Mesa, 16. Her father lives in Miami and also spoke with the reporter. The man said he was very distressed.

"I am very worried. I am very distressed. I haven't eaten for days, thinking the worst. Sometimes I cry, I get very depressed, but within that pain I have, I have a little bit of hope, and I also think that maybe they are on a cliff, maybe they have arrived somewhere," he commented.

Their mother is one of the seven adults who boarded the boat. Her parents knew nothing of her plans to leave the country.

"None of the people who are now missing have contacted family members on either side of the Florida Straits," the media outlet said.

In March 2022, more than 32,000 Cubans crossed the U.S. border and were taken into custody in the United States, according to as-yet-unreleased U.S. Customs and Border Protection figures obtained by The Washington Post.

The number represents double the number of Cuban migrants arriving in February, the U.S. media reported. According to official projections, CBP is on track to receive more than 155,000 Cubans during the current fiscal year, nearly four times the 2021 total, and a 12-fold increase over 2020.

On April 6, video footage surfaced of a group of 11 Cuban migrants, including a three-year-old boy, who were swept away by the current in the Rio Bravo while attempting to cross into the United States, local media reported.