The Justice Department released the information below:
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a
civil denaturalization complaint yesterday against Victor Manuel Rocha in the
United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Rocha is a
native of Colombia who was convicted of serving as an unregistered agent for
the Republic of Cuba.
“Under no
circumstances should an agent of a foreign adversary be permitted to hold the
title of American citizen,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate. “Our
mission is clear: to root out these fraudsters and preserve the sanctity of the
naturalization process for those who adhere to our laws. Any individual who
lied during the naturalization process to gain a foothold in this country will
be met with the full weight of the Department of Justice.”
“Victor Manuel
Rocha was not a low-level operative. He was a former United States Ambassador
and senior government official who admitted he secretly served the Cuban regime
for decades,” said U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern
District of Florida. “The Southern District of Florida helped take down one of
the most prolific Cuban spies ever uncovered in the United States. This civil
denaturalization case is about finishing the job. The complaint alleges that
Rocha obtained American citizenship through lies, concealment, and betrayal. A
person who secretly serves communist Cuba should not keep the privilege of
United States citizenship, even while in prison.”
The U.S. seeks
an order revoking Rocha’s naturalization based on his admission in criminal
proceedings that he began spying for Cuba in 1973 before he naturalized in
1978. When he applied for naturalization, Rocha represented under penalty of
perjury that he had not committed crimes for which he had not been arrested; he
was not affiliated with the Communist Party of Cuba; he had not advocated,
believed in, or knowingly supported and furthered the interests of Communism;
and he believed in the U.S. Constitution and the form of government of the U.S.
None of these were true.
In 2023, Rocha
was charged with several counts related to spying for the Republic of Cuba and
passport fraud. U.S. v. Rocha, No. 1:23-cr-20464-Bloom (S.D. Fla. Dec. 5,
2023). In April 2024, Rocha admitted that, starting in or around 1973, he
secretly supported the Republic of Cuba and its clandestine
intelligence-gathering mission against the U.S. by serving as a covert agent of
Cuba’s intelligence services. He pleaded guilty and was convicted of Conspiracy
to Act as an Agent of a Foreign Government and to Defraud the United States and
Acting as an Illegal Agent of a Foreign Government. He was sentenced to and is
serving a 15-year sentence.
The U.S. will
bring seven independent counts seeking the revocation of his U.S. citizenship.
Rocha was not qualified for naturalization for several reasons, including that
he committed unlawful acts, gave false testimony during his naturalization
examination, was not attached to the principles of the U.S. Constitution and
not well-disposed to the good order and happiness of the U.S., was affiliated
with the Communist Party of Cuba, and advocated for communism. The U.S. will
also seek the revocation of his naturalization because he procured his
citizenship by concealing material facts or willful misrepresenting several
facts in naturalization proceedings related to spying for Cuba.
The case was
investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security
Investigations, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The
Denaturalization Unit of the Civil Division’s Office of Immigration Litigation
and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida are
litigating the case.
The claims made in the complaint are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
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