(RepublicanJournal.org) – A former US ambassador is in custody after allegedly being exposed as a secret agent. The bust was the result of an FBI counterintelligence operation, which uncovered evidence suggesting the ex-official was covertly working for the Cuban government. The suspect faces charges of acting as an agent of a foreign government, use of a US passport secured by a false statement, and conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States.
The Department of Justice shared a press release on Monday, December 4, stating Victor Manuel Rocha, a Miami, Florida, resident who formerly worked as a US Department of State employee, stands accused of being an agent for the Cuban government for over four decades. Prosecutors allege the 73-year-old began gathering intelligence for the island nation starting around 1981. Officials claim Rocha obtained employment in positions giving him access to privileged information, and he did so solely to provide the information he gained to Cuba.
An FBI agent posing as a Cuban intelligence representative allegedly caught Rocha in his scheme by claiming to be his new contact. The suspect reportedly told the agent via electronic communications that he had worked for the “Dirección” — a formal name for the foreign country’s intelligence agency — for “40 years.” Rocha allegedly called the US “the enemy” and referred to himself as a loyalist to Cuba.
According to court documents the DOJ released on December 4, Rocha was born in Columbia in 1950, but he became naturalized in the United States in 1978. By 1981, he was working for the US government, using the information he gathered to support Cuban intelligence. He worked in multiple US embassies between 1982 and 1994.
Rocha went on to become director of Inter-American affairs on the US National Security Council, where he worked directly with Cuban officials — supposedly on behalf of the United States. Never once in all his years in service for the American government did Rocha attempt to disclose that he was also working for Cuban leaders.
Rocha appeared in court on Monday, December 4, where the judge set a bail hearing for December 6.
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