Havana, June 18 (RHC) -- Havana’s Provincial Court handed down its verdict and imposing sanctions on a group of citizens directly involved in the theft and distribution of methanol. The illegal activity led to the intoxication and hospitalization in July and August 2013 of 99 persons, 11 of whom died, after having consumed the product, which was originally stored at Havana’s Chemist and Food Institute.

An article published on Granma newspaper on Wednesday explains that a multi-disciplinary team from the ministries of the Interior and Public Health jointly worked on the case along with Communist Party and Government authorities in Havana and the municipality of La Lisa, where the methanol was distributed.

The Havana Provincial Court held a hearing on the case May 5th and 7th, 2014, and gave citizens Ramon Hernandez and Augusto César Valdes, two guards in charge of the security of the place who stole 60 liters of methanol for illegal commercialization, 30 and 27 years in prison respectively; Abelardo Santos also another guard at the institute was given six prison years.

The verdict also includes the compensation of the victims by the two first men and along with the third one they must also compensate for the material damage inflicted on the higher education facilities.

Prison sentences ranging from six months to four years in prison, were also given to neighbors at the La Lisa municipality community of El Balcon de Arimao, who received and distributed the dangerous substance or covered up the illegal act. Another person was sentenced to correctional work without imprisonment.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Education removed the dean of the institute from the higher education system and the vice-dean and heads of the chemist department and the security department from their posts.

The article explains that the penal procedures on this case express the willingness of the Cuban government to preserve the safety of all citizens through the struggle on crime and illegalities, which will never go unpunished.