U.S. ex‑ambassador charged with spying for Cuba

Manuel Rocha faces charges for his prolonged involvement with Cuba. Prosecutors allege the 73-year-old has misused his role within the U.S. government to advance the agenda of a foreign nation. Starting in 1981, accusations state that he supplied confidential details to the Cuban intelligence service and hid his international travels to convene with intelligence operatives from the U.S. authorities.

According to CBS News, Attorney General Merrick Garland characterized the situation as "one of the highest-reaching and longest-lasting infiltrations of the U.S. government by a foreign agent." He noted that Rocha pursued roles within the U.S. government, which "afforded him access to confidential information and the capacity to influence U.S. foreign policy."

FBI Director Christopher Wray said Rocha violated his oath to protect and defend the Constitution and betrayed the American people's trust. Investigators claim that Rocha was enlisted by Cuba's Directorate of Intelligence in Chile in 1973 - report CBS News.

The Justice Department reports that the diplomat admitted to "decades-long" work for Cuba during meetings with an FBI investigator in 2022 and 2023. To obtain his confession, the FBI agent posed as an employee of the Cuban intelligence service. During the meeting, the suspect was said to have acted like a "Cuban spy" and consistently called the US "the enemy."

In November 1981, Rocha began working for the US Department of State as a Political Officer in the US Embassy in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, from December 1982 to January 1985. From February 1987 to February 1989, he worked as a Political-Military Affairs Officer at the US Embassy in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Rocha served as the First Secretary of the US Embassy in Mexico City, Mexico, from February 1989 to November 1991.

According to the Department of Justice information, the Colombian-born and then naturalized in the United States man served on the US National Security Council from 1994 to 1995 and as US ambassador to Bolivia from 2000 to 2002. He also held various State Department positions for over two decades. From 2006 to 2012, he was an advisor to the head of the U.S. military's Southern Command, whose area of responsibility includes Cuba

According to court filings, a previous U.S. ambassador to Bolivia, charged with clandestinely acting as a representative for the Cuban government, has entered a plea of not guilty to the federal accusations

Source: CBS News