Alvarez was considered Alarcon’s "right-hand man."
He was also point man of the regime's propaganda campaign for the "Cuban Five" (convicted spies imprisoned in the U.S.)
These types of purges aren't atypical.
In 2009, Castro's economic "czar" Carlos Lage and foreign minister Felipe Perez Roque were essentially disappeared overnight.
Penultimos Dias's Ernesto Hernandez Busto managed to obtain Alarcon's phone number and called to ask about his long-time friend and advisor's arrest.
Alarcon nervously said "absolutely nothing" and hung up.
Listen here.
Picture: Alvarez is the one in the middle.
