Miami (AP) - A Florida boat captain and his wife were wined and dined in Havana, after the Cuban government agreed to return $10,000. The captain had paid it to a salvage company to rescue his boat when it ran aground during the "Freedom Flotilla."
Ray Jensen of Islamorada, Fla., and his wife, Lorraine, have been guests of Cubatur, the International branch of the Cuban National Institute of Tourism, in an apparent effort to mend tourism relations with the United States.
During an informal ceremony Tuesday, the couple accepted a stack of crisp $100 bills.
The Jensens were flown to Havana on Monday by an Atlanta based lawyer, Edwin Marger, whom the Cuban government had asked to contact Jensen after it learned of the towing charge from a newspaper article.
Gary Gonzalez, director of promotions and information at the tourism institute, said Cuban officials were "flabbergasted" when they read of the charge to Jensen.
"What happened to you was a mistake," Gonzalez told Jensen in Havana. "I’m speaking not just for the institute, but as a friend and I regret that this happened to your.
The charge was criticized by south Florida fishermen. A number of fishermen complained to the Cuban government about treatment of boat captains at Muriel Harbor, where boats have picked up Cuban refugees for the past three months, and threatened to boycott the Hemmingway Fishing Tournament, held in May for the 30th year.