FBI Suspends Agent; Claims He Was a Spy

The FBI has suspended a 15-year veteran amid allegations that he spied for Cuba, but colleagues say the agency is retaliating against the Latino agent for a discrimination lawsuit, a newspaper reported.

The New York Times said in today’s editions that Fernando E. Mata, 48, who is based in Miami, also lost his security clearance as a result of the three-year investigation.

FBI spokesman Robert Davenport in Washington confirmed that Mata had been placed on administrative leave but refused to say why.

An FBI official who spoke on condition of anonymity told the newspaper that “no matter what you think of the FBI, it’s ridiculous to think” the agency would retaliate by making such a serious allegation.

Mata’s attorney, Hugo A. Rodriguez, said Mata has been repeatedly questioned about the possibility of contacts with Cuban intelligence agents several years ago.

“They haven’t told us what he’s being charged with,” Rodriguez said. “He has not done anything wrong. He has not compromised the interests of his employer or the government.”

“What the bureau is doing to Fernando Mata is unspeakable,” said Leo A. Gonzales, an FBI agent who retired last year. “There’s no doubt in my mind that Fernando is a patriot and a loyal American.”

Gonzales told the paper that the allegations appeared to be a maneuver to force Mata out.

Mata was one of the plaintiffs in a landmark discrimination lawsuit brought against the FBI by Latino employees.

Judge Lucius D. Bunton of El Paso ruled in September, 1988, that the FBI had demonstrated a pattern of discrimination against Latinos in promotional opportunities and working conditions.

The FBI was ordered to make sweeping changes in its promotional polices.

Rodriguez said it was unlikely that Mata could be charged with espionage because he was granted limited immunity from prosecution in exchange for agreeing to undergo lie-detector tests and other questioning last year.