Manuel Rocha, a retired American diplomat, was accused by U.S. authorities on Monday of having worked as a secret agent for the Cuban government for decades. The authorities allege they have evidence that the man was clandestinely supporting the socialist country while working in the U.S. Department of State.
Federal prosecutors filed a formal criminal complaint in federal court in Miami against Rocha, claiming that he helped with Cuba’s “clandestine intelligence-gathering mission against the United States.” They also claimed that he met with Cuba’s spy agency as recently as 2017.
The complaint claims that Rocha pursued diplomatic roles in the American government to obtain classified “nonpublic” information and influence American foreign policy. In a written statement, US Attorney General Merrick Garland said Rocha served as agent of Cuba for over 40 years and said the man will be met with “the full force of the Justice Department.”
“This action exposes one of the highest-reaching and longest-lasting infiltrations of the United States government by a foreign agent,” Garland wrote.
Breaking News: A former U.S. ambassador is accused of working for years as a secret agent for Cuba as he rose up the State Department ranks. https://t.co/6WfZHWEA5L
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The complaint mounts three offenses against Rocha: “Conspiracy to Act as An Agent of a Foreign Government and to Defraud the United States,” “Acting as an Illegal Agent of a Foreign Government,” and “Use of a Passport Obtained by a False Statement.”
It details that Rocha, full name Victor Manuel Rocha, was born in Colombia in 1950. Rocha was naturalized as a US citizen in 1978, and is currently in possession of multiple American passports as well as one from the Dominican Republic.
He was involved with Latin American matters for over 20 years in his various roles at the State Department. He was the Director of Inter-American Affairs on the United States National Security Council for Cuba among other countries, from 1994 to 1995. From 1995 to 1997 Rocha served as Deputy Principal Officer at the United States Interests Section in Havana, Cuba and was ambassador to Bolivia from 1999 until 2002.
According to an FBI agent that went undercover to meet with him, Rocha admitted he was working with the Cuban government and would often refer to the US as “the enemy.” In the affidavit provided by FBI special agent Michael J. Haley, Rocha was quoted saying “what we have done” is “enormous” and “more than a grand slam.”
Rocha is set to appear in Miami court on Monday afternoon.
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