In the spring of 1980, Hector Sanyustiz rode his red motorcycle to Fifth Avenue, one of the most elegant streets in Havana. Although he desperately wanted to leave Cuba and knew that the United States typically accepted refugees from communist countries, he still worried about the unknown factors in an attempt to escape the island. In January, a group of Cubans had unsuccessfully tried to take refuge in the Peruvian embassy, hoping to claim asylum and be granted permission to leave the country, but the Peruvian ambassador had not been sympathetic. Sanyustiz had been a bus driver but had lost his job after swerving to avoid killing a pregnant dog, which incurred the wrath of a government official who happened to have been on board the bus at the time. The man had taken issue with Sanyustiz’s driving and used his power and influence to persecute him. Although Sanyustiz was able to hold on to his job for a while, he eventually could no longer bear the man’s scrutiny and he resigned. Such occurrences were common in Castro’s Cuba, and Sanyustiz was fed up.

Hector had been born in the countryside but had moved with his family to an impoverished area of Havana when he was a small boy.