A federal court in Miami sentenced former United States ambassador Manuel Rocha to 15 years in prison this Friday, accused of spying for Cuba.
Judge Beth Bloom sentenced Rocha to a total of 15 years in prison: 5 years on the conspiracy charge and 10 years on the charge of acting as an illegal agent of a foreign government, which will run consecutively, she explained. CNN.
Bloom also imposed a fine of $250,000 for each count.
The source points out that Rocha also faces three years of supervised release for each charge, the maximum penalty allowed by law.
“You turned your back on this country time and time again,” the judge told the former diplomat.
Manuel Rocha, who was the United States ambassador to Bolivia, pleaded guilty this Friday to one count of conspiracy to act as an agent of a foreign government and defraud the United States.
The 73-year-old defendant accepted responsibility for acting as an illegal agent of another country without notifying the United States Government.
“I take full responsibility,” he said at the hearing.
“I am deeply sorry,” he added in a message apologizing to his family for his actions.
In December 2023, prosecutors accused Rocha of acting for decades as an undercover agent “of Cuba’s intelligence services.”
As part of Rocha’s plea deal, previous charges of lying to investigators and wire fraud were dropped.
At the end of the trial, the judge considered that prosecutors did not do enough to investigate the possible victims of the actions of Rocha, who according to Bloom provided information for 53 years, and repeatedly declared that the US Government is the only victim. in this case.
“For 53 years the information was provided. I don’t know if there are victims. I don’t know if you know,” he said.
