A former United States ambassador has been accused of operating a more than 40-year campaign of spying on the country on behalf of the Cuban government.
Victor Manuel Rocha, 73, was charged on Monday by the Department of Justice for working as a covert agent with Cuba’s General Directorate of Intelligence since at least 1981.
Rocha was first hired by the State Department in 1981 and served in several federal roles, including as the United States ambassador to Bolivia from 2000 to 2002.
Now, he is accused of using his access to classified information and foreign policy influence to benefit Cuba. He also allegedly traveled outside of the United States to meet with Cuban representatives, according to the DOJ.
Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement that Rocha’s espionage mission was “one of the highest-reaching and longest-lasting infiltrations of the United States government by a foreign agent.”
“Those who have the privilege of serving in the government of the United States are given an enormous amount of trust by the public we serve,” Garland said. “To betray that trust by falsely pledging loyalty to the United States while serving a foreign power is a crime that will be met with the full force of the Justice Department.”
Rocha was arrested in Miami on Friday and made his first appearance in court on Monday.
The former ambassador has been charged with conspiring to act as an agent of a foreign government, acting as an agent of a foreign government, and using a passport obtained by false statement, according to the DOJ.
The arrest is a result of Rocha revealing his ties to Cuba during a series of meetings with an undercover FBI agent in 2022 and 2023, the DOJ shared.
During the meetings, Rocha allegedly referred to the US as the “enemy” while praising Cuba and the late Cuban President Fidel Castro.
He also discussed his spy work, saying at several meetings that it was “more than a grand slam” and “not easy” but that it “strengthened the revolution of his country,” according to the DOJ.
During his time in the State Department, Rocha served various countries in North America, Central America, and South America. He also served the National Security Council from 1994 to 1995 and as an advisor to the commander of the US Southern Command from 2006 to 2012, the DOJ shared.
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