Scoop: US citizens were on stolen boat in deadly shooting with Cuba's coast guard
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio is investigating Wednesday's clash. Photo: Jonathan Ernst/AFP via Getty Images
The 24-foot boat involved in a deadly clash with Cuba's coast guard was stolen in the Florida Keys and had American citizens aboard, U.S. officials tell Axios.
Why it matters: Four people were killed and six injured in the incident Wednesday, the latest source of tension between the U.S. and Cuba as the Trump administration increases pressure on the island's communist regime to change.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. is investigating the incident and has officially asked Cuba for access to the six injured people, a U.S. official told Axios.
- Cuban officials claim that occupants of the vessel opened fire on Cuba's coast guard as the boat approached the island nation, prompting its officers to return fire.
Zoom in: No names of those involved have been released, but the U.S. official said the boat's owner in Florida had reported that the vessel had been stolen by an employee.
- Some of those who were on the boat have criminal records, the official said, and at least one of those killed was a U.S. citizen.
- Another U.S. citizen was among the injured and is receiving care in Cuba, the official said.
- At least one person on the board had a current U.S. K-1 visa, a non-immigrant visa allowing a foreigner to enter the United States to get married to a U.S. citizen, the official said.
- Others who were aboard the boat are believed to be legal permanent residents of the U.S.
The intrigue: The purpose of the armed group's excursion to Cuba is unclear. Florida state and local officials also are investigating the incident.
- The Monroe County (Fla.) Sherif's Office confirmed to Axios that it's investigating the theft of the boat.
- Its owner had reported the boat stolen from Big Pine Key late Wednesday after receiving calls from reporters about it, according to a sheriff's office report.
- The boat's owner told the sheriff's office he suspected a man who was helping lay tile in a renovation project had taken the vessel and left behind his truck near where the boat had been docked.
- The victim told investigators that the man "has family in Cuba to include two young daughters who were still in Cuba," the report says.
