Jul 29, 2008 4:06 pm US/Eastern
Omega 7 Leader Asks For Presidential Pardon
LITTLE HAVANA (CBS4) ―
A new petition drive kicked off today in Little Havana with postcards addressed to the White House asking for outgoing President George W. Bush to issue a pardon to 65-year-old Eduardo Arocena. Some have labeled Arocena as a Cuban freedom fighter, others simply call him a terrorist.
He was sentenced to life plus 35 years after gunning down a Cuban diplomat. He was also convicted by a South Florida jury for planting nine bombs around Miami. He is also serving time for the attempted murder of Cuba's United Nations ambassador.
He was also considered to be the head of the militant anti-Castro group Omega-7. The group targeted Cuban officials and sympathizers in the late 1970's and 1980's with terrorism tactics like bombings.
"We believe it's time, 25 years for what he's done is more than enough," supporter Dionisio de la Torre, Jr. said.
His wife, Miriam, requested the pardon on humanitarian grounds. Eduardo is currently 65-years-old.
Many times, an outgoing president will issue multiple pardons during the administration's final days. In 1979, President Jimmy Carter pardoned Puerto Rican terrorist Lolita Lebron, who'd taken part in the 1954 attack on the House of Representatives. Five congressmen were wounded in the attack. And in 1999, President Bill Clinton pardoned members of a Puerto Rican nationalist group responsible for a string of armed robberies and deadly bombings in the United States.
If President Bush doesn't issue a presidential pardon, Eduardo Arocena will not be eligible for parole until 2023. His scheduled release date is March 2050, when Arocena would be 107-years-old.
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