Huber Matos Benitez dies at 95; Cuban revolutionary broke with Castro
Huber Matos Benitez, whose disenchantment with the Cuban Revolution he had helped lead brought him the wrath of Fidel Castro and 20 years in prison, died Thursday in Miami after a heart attack. He was 95.
His death was confirmed by his grandson, Huber Matos Garsault.
In 1952 Matos was a teacher and rice farmer in his early 30s when Gen. Fulgencio Batista led a coup that overthrew democratically elected President Carlos Prio Socarras. Hoping to restore democracy to his country, Matos took up arms against Batista's forces.
After traveling to Costa Rica to obtain weapons and ammunition for the poorly-equipped rebels, he joined with Castro and served as a commander in the Sierra Maestra mountains. The two clashed on occasion, but Matos claimed that at one point Castro named him third in line for leadership after Castro's brother Raul. The Argentinean Ernesto "Che" Guevara was fifth, Matos maintained.
http://www.latimes.com/obituaries/la-me-huber-matos-benitez-20140301,0,2660586.story
