{"id":214465,"date":"2024-04-15T06:58:58","date_gmt":"2024-04-15T10:58:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dr1.com\/news\/?p=214465"},"modified":"2024-04-15T07:40:34","modified_gmt":"2024-04-15T11:40:34","slug":"manuel-rocha-sentenced-to-15-years-of-jail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dr1.com\/news\/2024\/04\/15\/manuel-rocha-sentenced-to-15-years-of-jail\/","title":{"rendered":"Manuel Rocha sentenced to 15 years in jail"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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A Federal judge in Florida sentenced 73-year old former US Ambassador to Bolivia (2000-2002) Victor Manuel Rocha to 15 years in jail. The former US Department of State employee had served on the National Security Council from 1994 to 1995. Rocha has been sentenced for acting as an agent for the Cuban government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rocha served as acting ambassador in the Dominican Republic. After his appointment as US ambassador to Bolivia, Rocha was named president of the Canadian Barrick Pueblo Viejo gold mine in the Dominican Republic in 2012.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rocha also served as broker to sell coal from Colombia for the Punta Catalina coal-fired power plant owned and operated by the Dominican government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rocha had an impressive background. He was a member of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. He also was on the University of Miami’s International Advisory Board. At one time, Rocha also was a member of Henry Kissinger’s International Council on Terrorism and was on the advisory board of the Cuba Transition Project of the University of Miami. He served as a special advisor to the U.S. military commander of SOUTHCOM. He was Director of Government Relations for Arcos Dorados Holdings, the company that owns and manages most of the McDonald’s restaurants in Latin America. He was a Senior Advisor on International Business for U law firm Foley & Lardner LLP, with his office in Miami, and president of Barrick Gold Corporation\u2019s Pueblo Viejo mine operation in the Dominican Republic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the time of his arrest, Rocha was working for the
communications and marketing firm LLYC as a Senior International Business Advisor since September 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The US government could initiate procedures to divest the former US ambassador of his US citizenship. Rocha is a Colombian immigrant who became a US citizen after his mother migrated with the family to the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rocha also acquired Dominican citizenship when he married a Dominican. He used his Dominican citizenship to irregularly travel to Havana, the case investigations revealed. The Dominican government has not issued a statement regarding Rocha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more:
El Dia <\/a>
Diario Libre <\/a>
US Justice Department <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

15 April 2024<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Federal judge in Florida sentenced 73-year old former US Ambassador to Bolivia (2000-2002) Victor Manuel Rocha to 15 years in jail. The former US Department of State employee had served on the National Security Council from 1994 to 1995. Rocha has been sentenced for acting as an agent for the Cuban government. Rocha served … <\/p>\n

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