Ex-ambassador charged with serving as secret agent for Cuba’s intelligence services for decades

By JOSHUA GOODMAN and ERIC TUCKER
Associated Press

MIAMI (AP) — A former American diplomat who served as U.S. ambassador to Bolivia has been charged with serving as a covert agent for Cuba’s intelligence services dating back decades, the Justice Department said Monday.

Newly unsealed court papers allege that Manuel Rocha engaged in “clandestine activity” on Cuba’s behalf since at least 1981, including by meeting with Cuban intelligence operatives and providing false information to U.S. government officials.

The complaint, filed in federal court in Miami, charges Rocha with acting as an illegal agent of a foreign government. The 73-year-old had a 25-year career as a U.S. diplomat, including top posts in Bolivia, Argentina and the U.S. Interests Section in Havana

He is due in court later Monday. It was not immediately clear if he had a lawyer.