1 of 2 images by Victor Manuel Rocha; in the last image he appears to be talking to an undercover FBI agent Photo: AP Imagens by Victor Manuel Rocha; in the last image he appears to be talking to an undercover FBI agent Photo: AP
On Monday (4), 73yearold Victor Manuel Rocha, former US ambassador to Bolivia, was indicted for 40 years of Cuban espionage.
The US Department of Justice (an equivalent agency of the Justice Department) declared that this was one of the longestrunning and most pervasive infiltrations of the American government by a foreign agent.
In recent decades he has held the following positions in the US government:
- According to the Justice Department, he worked at the State Department (an agency similar to the State Department) between 1981 and 2002.
- In 1994 and 1995 he was an advisor to the National Security Council of the US government.
- Between 2000 and 2002, Manuel Rocha was US Ambassador to Bolivia.
- Between 2006 and 2012 he was an advisor to the US Army Southern Command.
How the USA discovered the spy
In 2022 and 2023 he held discussions with a representative of the Cuban secret service. At these meetings, Manuel Rocha said that he had worked as a spy for decades.
But the man Manuel Rocha thought was a leader of the Cuban secret services was actually an undercover FBI agent.
Actions in the US justice system
According to the Justice Department, he was arrested and charged with several federal crimes, including operating as an illegal alien and using a fraudulently obtained passport.
Attorney General Merrick Garland released a statement on the case. In the text, he states that Victor Manuel Rocha served as an agent of the Cuban government for more than 40 years and “sought and obtained positions in the U.S. government that gave him access to nonpublic information and the opportunity to influence foreign policy.” in the USA”.
2 of 2 A man is seen after unfurling two giant Cuban flags on the sides of a building adjacent to the US Embassy Photo: Ramón Espinosa/AP A man is seen after unfurling two giant Cuban flags embassy spread out on the sides of a neighboring building in the USA Photo: Ramón Espinosa/AP