Trial of Spanish politician accused of Cuban dissidents' deaths to start soon

A Spanish politician accused of the deaths of Cuban dissidents Oswaldo Payá and Harold Cepero will go on trial August 31 on a charge of vehicular homicide.

Spain’s El Mundo newspaper has reported that the oral segment of Angel Carromero’s trial will start in the eastern city of Bayamo, near the spot where the car he was driving crashed into a tree, killing the two Cuban passengers.

Relatives of Payá, a leading dissident awarded the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize in 2002, say they do not believe the government’s version that Carromero caused the crash, saying they have reports that another car forced him off the road.

Cuban prosecutors are asking for a seven year sentence or 42 months for each fatality on a charge of vehicular homicide, alleging that Carromero was driving too fast when he crashed on July 22.