She's Been Arrested — Secretary of State Marco Rubio Gives The Order To Go as ICE Arrests Sister of Top Cuban Reg
ICE Arrests Sister of Top Cuban Regime Official After Rubio Action
Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced last week that federal authorities arrested Adys Lastres Morera, the sister of sanctioned Cuban official Ania Guillermina Lastres, in Florida.
Rubio said Lastres Morera will remain in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement pending deportation proceedings after he determined she was removable under U.S. immigration law.
According to Rubio and ICE officials, Lastres Morera entered the United States as a lawful permanent resident on Jan. 13, 2023, during the administration of Joe Biden.
Rubio, who is of Cuban descent, said he personally revoked her green card after concluding that her presence in the United States posed a threat to American foreign policy interests due to alleged ties to the Cuban regime and its military-controlled business conglomerate, GAESA, according to reports.
“For far too long, the family members of terrorist organizations, repressive anti-American regimes, and other bad actors who would threaten the national security of the United States have been given a free pass to enjoy the privileges of living in the United States,” he said in a statement.
“Past Administrations have permitted the families of Cuban military elites, Iranian terrorists, and other reprehensible organizations to enjoy lavish lifestyles in our country funded by stolen blood-money, while the people they repress at home suffer in increasingly dire circumstances,” Rubio continued.
“No longer. Under President Trump, we are removing from our country the family members of IRGC terrorists and Cuban regime elites,” he went on.
“Let me be very clear: if you threaten the national security of the United States, there will be nowhere on this earth — much less in our country — that you and your cronies can live lavishly,” Rubio said.
“We will find you, and we will hold you accountable.”
On X, the secretary of state said that Lastres Morera was managing real estate assets in the U.S. while also aiding Cuba’s communist regime:
Adys Lastres Morera is the sister of the Executive President of GAESA, the Cuban military-controlled financial conglomerate that steals millions in aid for the Cuban people at the behest of the regime.
Morera was managing real estate assets and living in Florida, while also aiding Havana’s communist regime, until I terminated her permanent resident status.
I am pleased to announce that today, she was arrested and is now in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
There will be nowhere on this Earth – much less in our country – where foreign nationals who threaten our national security can live lavishly.
ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) indicated that Lastres Morera’s presence in the U.S. poses a threat and undermines American foreign policy interests, making him removable from the United States under section 237(a)(4)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
“Adys Lastres Morera’s presence in the United States has potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for our nation, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio has determined that she is removable under the provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act,” HSI acting Executive Associate Director John Condon said.
“Allowing Lastres Morera to remain in the country would send a signal that Cuban regime-affiliated networks could continue to access the U.S.’s financial, educational and social institutions — but that is not the case,” Condon added.
“HSI will continue to investigate those with ties to our nation’s adversaries and take appropriate actions to neutralize threats against our homeland,” Colton continued.
Guillermina Lastres serves as the president of the Grupo de Administración Empresarial (GAESA), a conglomerate used by the communist Castro regime to control 70 percent of Cuba’s economy.
It is believed that GAESA holds as much as $20 billion in illicit funds concealed in overseas bank accounts.
The Cuban regime manages Cuba’s tourism industry, remittances, and the Cuban doctor program through GAESA and its various subsidiaries.
These three sectors are crucial sources of funding for the ruling communists and their oppressive regime, ICE noted in a press release.
Nearly 150,000 California Mail Ballots Rejected In Primary
California election officials are examining why nearly 150,000 mail-in ballots were rejected during the state’s June primary, with late-arriving ballots accounting for most of the increase.
The higher rejection rate comes despite years of election law changes designed to make voting more accessible and ensure more ballots are ultimately counted.
According to data compiled by the California Secretary of State’s office, 148,241 mail-in ballots were rejected during the June primary, representing 1.73% of all mail ballots returned.
That marks an increase from the 2024 primary, when 108,982 ballots were rejected, or 1.56% of all mail ballots cast.
The largest reason for rejection was ballots arriving too late to qualify under California law.
State data shows that 93,479 ballots were rejected because they failed to meet the state’s deadline requirements.
California allows mail ballots to arrive up to seven days after Election Day, provided they are postmarked on or before Election Day.
Voting experts believe many of the rejected ballots received postmarks dated after Election Day, making them ineligible to be counted even if they arrived within the seven-day grace period.
Kim Alexander, president of the nonpartisan California Voter Foundation, said the timing of postal processing appears to be a significant concern.
“Ballots rejected due to lateness are caused primarily to being postmarked too late to count, not because they arrived too late to count,” Alexander said.
Election experts have questioned whether recent operational changes within the U.S. Postal Service may be contributing to delayed postmarks.
Earlier this year, a group of mostly Democratic U.S. senators wrote to the Postal Service expressing concern that mail-processing changes could affect ballot handling during federal elections.
Updated Postal Service procedures mean postmarks may reflect when mail is processed at regional facilities rather than when it first enters the mail system.
Because processing centers have been consolidated in some areas, election officials have warned that postmark timing could be affected.
Before the June primary, California election officials encouraged voters to mail ballots as early as possible because of potential postal delays.
The June election also featured a highly competitive race for governor, which some experts believe encouraged many voters to wait until the final days before casting ballots.
In addition to late-arriving ballots, approximately 44,000 ballots were rejected because election officials determined the voter’s signature did not match the signature on file.
Another 8,300 ballots were rejected because the return envelope did not contain a signature.
State records also show that 743 ballots were rejected because those voters had already cast another ballot.
Other rejected ballots involved missing ballots inside return envelopes or multiple ballots submitted in a single envelope.
The highest rejection rate in the state occurred in Tulare County, where 3.52% of returned mail ballots were rejected.
Alpine County and Merced County followed closely, each recording rejection rates of 3.36%.
California has frequently faced criticism for taking weeks to complete vote counting after major elections, largely because state law permits ballots meeting certain requirements to continue arriving after Election Day.
Following the June primary, President Donald Trump again criticized California’s election system, while the Department of Justice opened an investigation into election administration in Los Angeles County.
Election experts emphasize that the increase in rejected ballots should not be interpreted as evidence of widespread voter fraud.
A 2025 report by the Brookings Institution found documented cases of mail ballot fraud remained extremely rare, estimating roughly four cases for every 10 million mail ballots cast, The Associated Press reported.
State officials have not identified evidence of widespread fraud connected to the June primary, but the increase in rejected ballots is expected to receive additional scrutiny as election administrators evaluate whether changes in postal operations, voter behavior or election procedures contributed to the higher rejection rate.
