The Marielitos
Posted: Sat Aug 30, 2025 7:14 pm
Marielitos is the name given to the Cuban immigrants that left Cuba from the Port of Mariel in 1980. Approximately 135,000 people left the country to the United States in what became known as the Mariel boatlift. The Cuban government permitted approximately 125,000 Cubans to board a decrepit fleet of boats in Mariel Harbor. Of the 125,000 refugees that entered the United States on the boatlift, around 16,000 to 20,000 were estimated to be criminals.
While the majority of Marielitos settled in Miami and integrated into the city’s existing Cuban community, a portion of them eventually moved westward, drawn by economic opportunities, family connections, or in some cases, efforts to escape the heavy policing and stigma they faced in South Florida. By the late 1980s and early 1990s, clusters of Marielito migrants had begun to establish themselves in cities like Los Angeles.
In Los Angeles, these displaced Marielitos often found themselves in neighborhoods already marked by poverty, limited job prospects, and entrenched gang cultures. Some of the younger Marielitos, or those with prior criminal backgrounds, became involved in organized street crime. By the early 1990s, Marielito gangs had emerged in L.A., blending Cuban identity with the city’s gang landscape. These groups gained a reputation for drug trafficking and ties to both local and transnational criminal networks.
At the center of the Marielitos was Julio Montana, a figure who came to be regarded as the leader of the Marielitos in Los Angeles. Montana organized the fragmented Cuban crews into a more cohesive force, giving them both identity and direction within the city’s underworld. His influence helped solidify the Marielitos as a recognizable presence in L.A. during the 1990s, feared not only for their volatility but also for their ties to larger criminal networks that stretched back to Miami and even Cuba.
While the majority of Marielitos settled in Miami and integrated into the city’s existing Cuban community, a portion of them eventually moved westward, drawn by economic opportunities, family connections, or in some cases, efforts to escape the heavy policing and stigma they faced in South Florida. By the late 1980s and early 1990s, clusters of Marielito migrants had begun to establish themselves in cities like Los Angeles.
In Los Angeles, these displaced Marielitos often found themselves in neighborhoods already marked by poverty, limited job prospects, and entrenched gang cultures. Some of the younger Marielitos, or those with prior criminal backgrounds, became involved in organized street crime. By the early 1990s, Marielito gangs had emerged in L.A., blending Cuban identity with the city’s gang landscape. These groups gained a reputation for drug trafficking and ties to both local and transnational criminal networks.
At the center of the Marielitos was Julio Montana, a figure who came to be regarded as the leader of the Marielitos in Los Angeles. Montana organized the fragmented Cuban crews into a more cohesive force, giving them both identity and direction within the city’s underworld. His influence helped solidify the Marielitos as a recognizable presence in L.A. during the 1990s, feared not only for their volatility but also for their ties to larger criminal networks that stretched back to Miami and even Cuba.