All language subtitles for Filiberto.2017.

December 3rd, 1979.

Sabana Seca Base ambush.

Two marines are killed, ten are wounded.

Sabana Seca attack,

where a number of Navy personnel unarmed, all of them,

in a bus just going to work

were attacked by a combined action

by Macheteros and two more groups.

That resulted in a number of death and injuries.

There's just a whole string of acts

that they were responsible for.

That were intended to terrorize the military personnel

and the civilian government individuals that were in Puerto Rico.

And to fund their revolution

their so-called "revolution"

that was sponsored by Cuba.

As a matter of International Law,

colonized people

have the right to resist colonization

thru any means necessary

thru armed struggle.

They're too bound by the rules of warfare.

They can't engage in torture,

They can't deliberately target civilians,

but they have the full rights of combatants

to liberate themselves.

Who followed the movement,

every month or so there was another spectacular action.

Probably the one that impressed us the most

was the attack on Base Mu�iz,

when amazingly,

they blew up nine A7 fighter aircraft on the ground,

obviously in a very well coordinated attack.

This was the largest destruction
of American aircraft

so-called "American Soil"

since the attack on Pearl Harbor.

It was rather dramatic

and it was a blow that was struck against the U.S.

for its support of the dictatorship in El Salvador.

When they crossed the line

and attacked the FBI personally

directly at the FBI offices.

Then we began to employ many more resources

or any resource we can get a hold of

To solve that crime because

it was a personal attack against the bureau.

Across the street

from the 3384 Levittown Boulevard

There used to be three payphones

as you can see there's a stub there where

the phone bank cables where at.

So they would get on these phones.

On one occasion,

before we fully identify him,

he picked up the phone

made a conversation and went back to the house.

This was before the FBI was recording any conversation

We had no microphones in there.

One of the FBI Agents came up,

cut the phone handle

stuck it in a clear plastic bag

that was sent to the FBI Lab.

As I said earlier,

Filiberto Ojeda was already a fugitive from justice since 1970,

so this is 1983,

for 13 years he had been a fugitive.

The FBI laboratory, identified the fingerprints

on that telephone as those of Filiberto Ojeda, the fugitive.

The story starts here

at the West Hartford Wells Fargo Depot.

On September 12th, 1983,

V�ctor Manuel Gerena, 25,

an employee of the company

tied two of his fellow workers,

drugged them

and escaped with over 7 million dollars.

Juan Segarra would refer to an operation
called El Aguila,

he would refer to being like Robin Hood,

where we steal from the rich and give to the poor.

Once we started to analyze that conversation,

I discovered that conversation,

I brought it to the attention of the supervisory staff and I said:

"You know, I think they're talking about
the Wells Fargo robbery."

Almost a year later the EPB-Macheteros,

a clandestine Puerto Rican group

claimed credit for the Wells Fargo Heist and

and named Gerena as one of its own.

The money and Gerena are yet to be found.

We know that V�ctor Manuel Gerena

has beengiven sanctuary in Cuba.

And Cuba's aggressive support of terrorism

has not gone unnoticed

by the United States Government.

Obviously, they had their disagreements

and they came there to expell him

but he's basically telling them:

"You're not expelling me. I'm leaving!"

So, Filiberto,

everybody says he is the leader of the Macheteros

because he himself said

in a conversation taped here in Levittown

that he created the name Macheteros.

They eventually had a split in the organization.

Avelino Gonz�lez had his faction
included Farinacci,

and Hilton Fern�ndez Diamante and that group,

and Filiberto had his faction

that included Juan Segarra and the others.

We didn't pick that day as the day of the arrests.

We were waiting for Juan Segarra Palmer

to arrive to the United States from Mexico

and that's what triggered the arrest.

Nothing else triggered the arrest.

We were here prepared.

Everybody was on standby.

We brought agents down from several field offices,

we brought the Hostage Rescue Team down

several SWAT teams from other field offices

to support our SWAT teams.

At some point

one of the agents in the back

who could see through the glass door

radioed to Tom Norris.

that he has seen somebody come down the stairwells

and then go back up.

He fired the three shots,

a few seconds later,

don't know exactly how many seconds,

Abe Alba announced that he had been wounded in the eye.

Something had struck him in the eye.

It was either a bullet fragment

or a piece of cement,

I don't know.

But when the three shots were fired

But when the three shots were fired
I felt the blast,

I felt the blast,

'cause I was leading over here,

I felt the blast,

a shock wave myself.

He then, fifteen minutes or so later,

suddenly appeared from behind the wall over here.

With an Uzi, a sub-machine gun, in one hand

and a pistol in the other.

And then slowly walked up to here

and at this point over here he looked to me.

I was behind that wall, over there, behind cover.

He looked at me again,

and then began to raise his hands

and as he did that

two shots rang out

I heard two shots from the back area.

One weapon was blown out of his hand
and the other one was dropped

when he was stunned

and, basically, fell back.

You go back to 1985

and there is Filiberto

with an Uzi submachine gun,

a 9mm on his hands,

shooting it out with the FBI

who has invaded his Country and his Home.

And he was engaged

in the classic act of self defense

It only was different was that

nobody survives that.

Almost nobody survives a shot out with the FBI.

And Filiberto did!

I was happy to see it come to an end

were we can show

the people of Puerto Rico

that we're doing our job.

We identify these members

who self-proclaim themselves

to be members of the organization.

I think I already was at the Metropolitan Center [in New York]

around 4 to 5 years.

so I was a Senior Prisoner.

Also I had spent many years in Prison here [in Ireland].

I knew what prison is about.

When the Macheteros came in,

it was their first day in prison,

their first experience,

so naturally,

they felt intimidated by the environment.

When you go to prison its all very new.

So, I approached the Puerto Rican political prisoners

and I offered help.

Basic things like toothpaste,

batteries for radios, protection.

I went to the local prison's gansters

I went to the local prison's gansters
to assure them that

to assure them that

these are political prisoners

and they needed protection.

I befriended Filiberto

and other Puerto Rican political prisoners there.

Joe and Filiberto had been talking

about my work at the United Nations

where I was highlighting the similarities

between Puerto Rico and Ireland,

as colonial situations.

I appeared a number of times

before the UN Decolonization Committee.

And Filiberto said: "I need to talk to you."

I said: "What about?"

He said: "Well, Bill Kunstler,

who's been my lawyer 'til now

hes got young familiy

and he can't carry on with the case.

This is gonna go on for too long

I think you're the man I want to represent me."

Me and Filiberto would sit down and play chess.

He would tell me much about the history of Puerto Rico,

of the culture, the language, and how Puerto Ricans

have yearned for selfdetermination and freedom.

He was very familiar

and had a great understanding

of the history of Ireland.

I was actually shocked.

He actualy more about the history of Ireland than I did.

Because he was a great reader

he knew much about the politics of the World.

And there's Filiberto;

chained to the bed,

he can't move,

he's so weak,

he just got out of major heart surgery

and all around him are three agents with submachine guns

and I'm thinking: "This is just crazy!"

He was released into my custody,

and one of the conditions

of his bail was that we had to live together.

And that was fine with me,

because I couldn't had

a more delightful housemate.

We had a collective of lawyers

all living togheter in Hartford.

I will travel up from New York

at the beginning of everyweek

and stay with Filiberto,

and he basically took wonderful care of me

The house was always very tidy.

He cooked wonderfull meals;

rice and beans four times a week.

The prison conditions

in the federal courthouse in San Juan were terrible.

Judge Cerezo said:

"Well, I'll go up and have look for myself."

US Attorney was horrified!

He said: "You can't go up there,

this man is dangerous!"

That's the only time

I've ever seen Filiberto lost for words,

when the Judge walked in,

she introduced herself and held up her hand to him

And I could almost hear his thought process

saying to himself:

"Here's a symbol

of United States oppression in Puerto Rico,

a Federal Judge,

but at the same time,

here's a puertorrique�a,

I can't refuse to shake hands with her

even for what she represents."

So, after a moment of heistation,

he held up his hand and said:

"Welcome to my prison."

For Filiberto it was important

that he should be represented by independentistas,

and we had a wonderful team

led by Willie Abreu.

Filiberto Ojeda decided that

he wanted to cross examine me directly

he wanted to cross examine me directly
rather than through his attornies

rather than through his attornies

acting as his own attorney.

I think that his purpose at the time

was to try to turn the courtroom

into a propaganda platform for him.

We have to respect the Jury decision.

The court gave the Jury that out basically.

She said:

"If you feel that he feared for his life,

you must acquit him."

So they did.

I was there the night they acquitted him.

it was sad, but,

what can you do?

We have to respect the Jury system.

He was an agent. A pawn of Cuba.

To come over here and make a name for himself

thru this so-called "revolution."

It was an incredible experience

because I felt: "Here I am, I'm sitting with

Puerto Rico's Nelson Mandela,

Puerto Rico's Malcom X,

Puerto Rico's Che Guevara;

and of all the people

that he could be,

he's with me."

And he went on for a year

and on September 23,

El Grito de Lares,

In1990.

1990, he cuts his anklet bracelet

and escapes.

I had told my wife the night before:

"I'm going to bed tonight because

tomorrow is the Grito de Lares

Ojeda has been out for a year with his bracelet,

Ojeda has been out for a year with his bracelet,
I'm afraid something's gonna happen."

I'm afraid something's gonna happen."

When I got up on the morning

I heard it on the news that he has escaped.
When I got up on the morning

I heard it on the news that he has escaped.