Víctor Manuel Rocha, the former United States ambassador accused of spying for the Castro regime for more than 40 years, was sentenced to 15 years in prison this Friday, April 12.
The relatively short sentence comes after the former official accepted a collaboration agreement with the prosecution.
Judge Beth Bloom, in charge of the trial that took place in Miami, Florida, described Rocha as an “enemy of the US government,” emphasizing that his espionage actions represented an attack against democracy and national security.
For now, we can only wait to see how much information Rocha will be able to provide to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) about possible Castro spies currently in the United States.
Some critics consider Rocha’s sentence to be too short, especially when compared to the 25 years given to Ana Belén Montes, another of the regime’s star spies who was discovered while working for the United States.
Despite the criticism, others consider it a fair sentence, since 15 years represents a considerable portion of the 73-year-old official’s remaining life.
According to The New Herald, the former ambassador pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the North American government and acting as an illegal foreign agent, this after his defense proposed an agreement that would benefit both parties in the trial. After pleading guilty, he asked the judge to speak to apologize to her, to the United States, and to her family for the decisions he made in recent decades.
Despite the apology, Rocha justified his actions with the environment of “proliferation” that communism offered during his youth.
“As a student, I was strongly influenced by the radical politics of the time. Today I no longer see the world through the radical eyes of my youth,” he declared.
Judge Bloom was not happy with the collaboration agreement proposed by the prosecution, as it did not provide for the confiscation of her property or ensure restitution to additional victims.
For this reason, he added a fine of half a million dollars to the sentence, also raising the possibility of future hearings to review restitution and additional punishments in the case, including the option of revoking his US citizenship.
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