Former Cuban judge detained by ICE outside Florida home, denies Communist Party ties
Aug 18, 2026·Location: Cooper City, FL
Country of origin: Cuba

Katrina Castro-Menéndez, 41, a former municipal judge from Matanzas, Cuba, was detained by ICE agents outside her home in Cooper City, Florida, after her husband left for work and while her 15-year-old daughter slept inside. She was taken to ICE offices in Miramar and then to the Broward Transition Center, where she remains held pending removal proceedings. The Department of Homeland Security alleges she committed immigration fraud by concealing Communist Party membership on her asylum and residency applications, reasoning that her past judicial role implies such affiliation, but Katrina says a lawyer who charged her $3,000 never properly interviewed her and that mandatory Cuban civic groups she belonged to are distinct from party membership. She appeared before an immigration judge in Miami on August 5 without legal representation and testified she had never joined the Communist Party. Her husband, Deyni Rojas González, whose humanitarian parole documentation has expired, cannot visit her in person or maintain video calls, and she says she has rehearsed how to tell her daughter they may be deported to Cuba.
Timeline
Sources
- Cuban ex-judge in ICE custody facing deportation in Florida: What do we know?
en.cibercuba.com·Aug 17, 2026·archived copy
- Katrina Castro versus ICE: US accuses a former Cuban judge of being communist
english.elpais.com·Aug 17, 2026·archived copy
- Katrina Castro versus ICE: US accuses a former Cuban judge of being communist | U.S.
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