They promised Cubans entry into the U.S. Instead, they tortured and extorted them, prosecutors say.

The kidnappers contacted a second victim’s Miami-based family in January 2019 and said their relative would be beaten and killed if they didn’t fork over $7,000, according to court records. Later, the victim told the FBI that an unnamed kidnapper “told the group that he had raped the wives of other victims he had previously kidnapped as a form of payment,” according to court records.