Born in Cienfuegos , Posada Carriles fled to the United States after a spell of anti-Castro activism . He helped organize the Bay of Pigs Invasion , and after it failed , became an agent for the CIA . He received training at Fort Benning , and from 1964 to 1967 was involved with a series of bombings and other covert activities against the Cuban government , before joining the Venezuelan intelligence service . Along with Orlando Bosch , he was involved in founding the Coordination of United Revolutionary Organizations , described by the FBI as " an anti-Castro terrorist umbrella organization " . Posada and CORU are widely considered responsible for the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner that killed 73 people . Posada later admitted involvement in a string of bombings in 1997 targeting fashionable Cuban hotels and nightspots . In addition , he was jailed under accusations related to an assassination attempt on Fidel Castro in Panama in 2000 , although he was later pardoned by Panamanian President Mireya Moscoso in the final days of her term . He denied involvement in the airline bombing and the alleged plot against Castro in Panama , but admitted to fighting to overthrow the Castro regime in Cuba
1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner
Cubana de Aviación Flight 455
Luis Posada Carriles