Release of Cuban Man Convicted of Hijacking
A Cuban man who hijacked a plane shortly after 9/11 has been ordered to be released in Florida, even though he was slated for removal from the U.S.
In 2003, Michael Guerra Morales, along with several accomplices, attacked the flight crew of a Cuban commuter plane. They hijacked it and flew over 100 miles to Monroe County, Florida, ultimately landing at Key West International Airport.
Morales was apprehended that night when a U.S. Air Force jet was dispatched from Homestead to intercept the aircraft as it took off from Nuevo Gerona, Cuba.
He remained in U.S. custody, serving a 22-year prison sentence for “aircraft piracy.”
A federal immigration judge issued a removal order against him in 2023. After finishing his prison sentence in 2025, he was transferred to the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
However, Judge John Steele, appointed by Clinton, ruled last week that Morales must be released. He referenced Supreme Court decisions regarding the detention of individuals without a country.
Lauren Biss, Assistant Secretary for the Department of Homeland Security, described Morales’ case as just one example of “an activist judge” blocking President Trump’s directives aimed at removing criminal aliens from the U.S.
Biss stated, “Under President Trump and Secretary Marin, we will continue to work to detain and deport those who shouldn’t be in our country.”
Steele noted that while federal authorities plan to deport Morales to Mexico, he found no compelling evidence suggesting that Morales would be removed in the foreseeable future.
He said Morales is eligible for release under a precedent established in the case of Kestutis Zadovydas, a Lithuanian who was deported in 1994 but couldn’t be accepted by any country.
In an interesting twist, after the hijacking in Key West in 2003, Cuba requested the U.S. return the plane and all passengers, including those accused of piracy. Morales and his co-hijackers had claimed they seized the plane “for freedom.”
