A Little Havana memorial was damaged again, and police say surveillance video captured the moment a man stepped onto its gray missile display and broke it. The arrest came days later, putting a fresh spotlight on a monument that carries deep meaning for Miami’s Cuban exile community.
According to WPLG Local 10, a city parks employee reported the damage Sunday morning after the incident at the Bay of Pigs Monument. Police say the man in the video wore a white tank top, black shorts and black shoes when he stepped on the monument’s missile portion around 9:18 p.m. last Saturday, causing it to break.
The damaged section had already been repaired after an earlier act of vandalism, police said, and officials estimated the latest repair bill at about $1,000. The monument sits inside Bay of Pigs Memorial Park, which the City of Miami upgraded before unveiling a new monument in 2023.
Why The Monument Damage Brings A Felony Charge
Detectives reportedly identified the suspect through his clothing and distinctive tattoos while reviewing surveillance footage from the area. The lead detective then spotted 27-year-old Jean Carlo Rojas standing near the monument and called officers to detain him, according to Local 10.
Rojas is charged with felony criminal mischief involving a memorial or historic property. Under Florida law, damaging a memorial or historic property by more than $200 can qualify as a third-degree felony.
Rojas waived his Miranda rights and agreed to speak with detectives, though part of his interview statement was redacted from the publicly released arrest report. He was already out on felony bond in a separate case involving allegations of battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting an officer without violence, and he was being held Friday at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on a $2,500 bond.
A Memorial At The Center Of Little Havana History
The case arrives as Little Havana continues to preserve and promote the history surrounding the failed 1961 invasion. Hoodline previously reported on the reopening of the Bay of Pigs Museum for the invasion’s 65th anniversary, underscoring how much of Miami’s Cuban history is concentrated around these nearby memorial sites.
For a monument built to honor those who fought and died in the Bay of Pigs invasion, a broken centerpiece is more than routine park damage. It is another repair job for a public symbol that Little Havana keeps asking to carry the weight of memory.
