Jason Reding Quinones announces resignation from South Florida U.S. Attorney's Office
The official oversaw the charges against Raul Castro over the Brothers to the Rescue shootdown and another investigation promoted by Donald Trump.
Jason Reding Quinones announced Friday on X that he was leaving his post as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, effective immediately. He said he had submitted his resignation to the president and thanked Donald Trump for choosing him to lead the office. The 44-year-old attorney described serving in the position as an extraordinary opportunity in his life.
His departure coincided with other resignations at the Justice Department: John Eisenberg left his national-security post and Harmeet Dhillon stepped down as head of the Civil Rights Division. U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche praised Reding Quinones's work on investigations involving violent crime, drug trafficking, human exploitation and international criminal networks. He also highlighted the criminal case against Raul Castro.
Reding Quinones had overseen the investigation that led to the indictment of the 95-year-old former Cuban leader. Prosecutors allege that Castro and other Cuban military commanders played a role in the February 24, 1996, attack on two aircraft belonging to Brothers to the Rescue. The incident triggered a serious crisis in relations between Washington and Havana.
In Report 86/99, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights classified the deaths of the four Brothers to the Rescue members as extrajudicial killings committed by state agents. The victims were Armando Alejandre Jr., Mario de la Pena, Carlos Costa and Pablo Morales. The first three were U.S. citizens, while Morales was a lawful U.S. resident.
The indictment was made public on May 20 during an event attended by hundreds of members of the exile community at Miami's Freedom Tower. Prosecutors included a warrant for Castro's arrest; he remains in Cuba. The case coincided with a tightening of Washington's policy toward the island through economic and energy restrictions that worsened shortages and blackouts.
Another investigation overseen by Reding Quinones examined an alleged conspiracy that Trump attributes to officials and former members of the Barack Obama administration to obstruct his rise to power. The inquiry looked into the origins and development of judicial and intelligence actions concerning Trump. That investigation had made little progress and faced internal disagreements, with several prosecutors working on it departing in the preceding weeks.