Oswald and the CIA: The Documented Truth About the Unknown Relationship Between the U.S. Government and the Alleged Killer of JFK (73 page)

Chapter One

1. Richard Snyder, interview with John Newman, February 26, 1994.

2. Interviews with Jean Hallett, July 8, 1994, and with Carolyn Maginnis (formerly Carolyn Hallett), also July 8, 1994. For Oswald on the "showdown," see Oswald, Historic Diary, Commission Exhibit 24, Vol. XVI, p. 96.

3. Ned Keenan, interview with John Newman, July 21, 1994. Keenan later became dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Harvard University.

4. Richard Snyder, interview with John Newman, February 26, 1994.

5. Oswald, Historic Diary, CE 24, Vol. XVI, p. 96.

6. Oswald, "Diary Embassy Meeting," October 31, 1959, Warren Commission, CE 101, Vol. XVI, p. 440.

7. Interviews with Jean Hallett, July 8, 1994, and Carolyn Maginnis (formerly Carolyn Hallett), also July 8, 1994.

8. Richard Snyder, interview with John Newman, February 26, 1994.

9. CE 909, Vol. XVIII, p. 97. Undated, the note read as follows:

I, Lee Harey (sicl Oswald, do hereby request that my present citizenship in the United States of America, be revoked.

I have entered the Soviet Union for the express purpose of appling [sic) for citizenship in the Soviet Union, through the means of naturalization.

My request for citizenship is now pending before the Supreme Soviet of the U.S.S.R.

I take these steps for political reasons. My request for the revoking of my American citizenship is made only after the longest and most serious considerations. s/Lee H. Oswald

10. Richard Snyder, interview with John Newman, February 26, 1994.

11. Oswald, Historic Diary, CE 24, Vol. XVI, p. 96.

12. Richard Snyder, interview with John Newman, February 26, 1994.

13. John McVickar, memo to Thomas Ehrlich, special assistant to the legal advisor, Department of State, April 7, 1964, CE 958, Vol. XVIII, p. 332.

14. Testimony of John A. McVickar, WC, Vol. V, p. 303.

15. See WC, Vol. XXVI, p. 156, CE 2769. Three of the most commonly used Helsinki travel agencies were investigated, and the normal visa processing time was seven to fourteen days. Oswald's took just two days.

16. Richard Snyder, interview with John Newman, February 26, 1994.

17. Oswald, Historic Diary, CE 24, Vol. XVI, p. 96.

18. FSD-234, pp. 1-2.

19. Researchers will note that the address written on the picture in Oswald's passport which appears as CE 946, Vol. XVIII, p. 161, has been excised and Robert Oswald's Davenport street address written in above the excised address. In his contemporaneous reporting of the events in 1959 to the State Department (cable 1304 and FSD 234) Snyder did not mention this. I asked Snyder in 1994 why he did not mention this address in 1959. Snyder's reply was that Oswald had probably written the Davenport address in after Snyder gave Oswald his passport back in 1961 (Newman interview with Snyder, August 21, 1994).

20. FSD-234, p. 2

21. Richard Snyder, interview with John Newman. February 26, 1994.

22. Richard Snyder, CE 909, Vol. XVIII, p. 101, Snyder statement, cable 1623, to State Department from American Embassy in Tokyo, November 27, 1963.

23. McVickar, memo to Thomas Ehrlich, November 27, 1963, WC, CE 941, p. 2., Vol. XVIII, p. 154.

24. FSD-234, p. 2.

25. John A. McVickar, June 9, 1964, testimony to WC, Vol. V, p. 301.

26. Richard Snyder, interview with John Newman, February 26, 1994.

27. Richard Snyder, interview with Scott Malone and John Newman, September 1, 1993.

28. Richard Snyder, interview with John Newman, February 26, 1994.

29. Ned Kenean, interview with John Newman, July 21, 1994.

30. Richard Snyder, interview with John Newman, February 26, 1994.

31. Oswald, Historic Diary, CE 24, Vol. XVI, p. 97.

32. Richard Snyder, interview with John Newman, July 4, 1994.

33. See Edward Jay Epstein, Legend: The Secret World of Lee Harvey Oswald (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1978), p. 96. Epstein is not specific enough in his use of footnotes to pin down whether Snyder gave him the room number and Snyder does not remember.

34. Oswald, Historic Diary, CE 24, p. 4, Vol. XVI, p. 97.

35. Oswald, Historic Diary, CE 24, p. 4, Vol. XVI, p. 97.

36. Robert Korengold affidavit taken by Consul James A. Klenstine at the American Embassy in Moscow, September 8, 1964, CE 3098, p. 2, Vol. XXVI, p. 708.

37. Robert Korengold affidavit taken by Consul James A. Klenstine at the American Embassy in Moscow, September 8, 1964, CE 3098, p. 2, Vol. XXVI, p. 708.

38. Oswald, Historic Diary, CE 24, p. 4, Vol. XVI, p. 97.

39. CIA document 624-823, March 26, 1964.

40. Aline Mosby, interviewed by FBI in Paris, September 23, 1964; see CIA document DBA82118. Mosby had a CIA 201 number-201-252591, in which her 1964 FBI interview was filed.

41. Aline Mosby, CE 1385, Vol. XXII, pp. 701-710; Mosby in this recollection fails to distinguish between her two visits; the entrance and walk to Oswald's room must have been the same on both occasions, but the initial introductions must have been on her shorter, first visit.

42. Oswald, Historic Diary, CE 24 p. 4, Vol. XVI, p. 97.

43. Aline Mosby, CE 1385, Vol. XXII, pp. 701.

44. UPI, October 31, 1959; see FBI HQ File 105-82555-2.

45. UPI, October 31, 1959, see FBI HQ File 105-82555-2.

46. CIA internal memo, Soviet Russia Division, Counterintelligence Branch, June 4, 1964; CIA document 861-374. The document is to Cordelia [nfi] from Lee [nfi].

47. UPI-16, October 31, 1959; see FBI HQ file 105-82555-2.

48. Robert Oswald, testimony to WC, February 20, 1964, Vol. 1, p. 321.

49. See "Tries to Keep Him from Going Red," datelined Fort Worth, but obviously from a newspaper other than the Star Telegram, this from ONI/ NIS files NARA, box 1.

50. NARA JFK files, State, Preassassination file, State Department cable 00081 to Moscow, November 1, 1959.

51. Kantor Exhibit No. 4, WC, Vol. XXII, p. 412. Kantor erroneously describes this call as taking place in "1960"-no further date is given. It is obvious that Kantor's account describes what took place on November I, 1959, the day after Oswald's defection. Otherwise, Kantor's account seems reasonable.

52. Marie Cheatham memo to Richard Snyder, November 2, 1959. See WC Exhibit No. 2659, Vol. XXVI, p. 13.

53. Marie Cheatham memo to Richard Snyder, November 2, 1959. See WC Exhibit No. 2659, Vol. XXVI, p. 13.

54. Sec Hoover memorandum to J. Lee Rankin, May 4, 1964, WC Exhibit No. 834, p. I, Vol. XVII, p. 804.

55. For the FBI list of what the Bureau says it had in their files on Oswald prior to the assassination of Kennedy, see CE 834, Vol. XVII, pp. 804-813.

56. FSD-234, p. 2.

57. McVickar, memo to Thomas Ehrlich, November 27, 1963, WC Exhibit No. 941, p. 3. Vol. XVIII, p. 155.

58. McVickar, memo to Thomas Ehrlich, November 27, 1963, WC Exhibit No. 941, p. 3, Vol. XVIII, p. 155.

59. Richard Snyder, CE 909, Vol. XVIII, p. 101, Snyder statement cable 1623 to State Department from American Embassy in Tokyo, November 27, 1963.

60. Richard Snyder, interview with John Newman, February 26, 1994.

61. Epstein, Legend, p. 96.

62. Testimony of John A. McVickar, WC, Vol. V, p. 301.

63. Testimony of Richard Snyder, WC, Vol. V, p. 265.

64. Richard Snyder, CE 909, Vol. XVIII, p. 101, Snyder statement, cable 1623 to State Department from American Embassy in Tokyo, November 27, 1963.

65. Snyder cable 1304 to State Department from American Embassy in Moscow, October 31, 1959. Snyder had later to go to Acting Charge d' Affaires Freers's apartment to get the latter's authorization, and then walk the cable back to the embassy communications center (Snyder interview with John Newman July 4, 1994). The cable left the comm center sometime that same Saturday afternoon, and therefore arrived early Saturday morning in Washington-in fact at 7:59 A.M.

66. Lee Harvey Oswald, letter to the American Embassy, dated November 3, 1959. See WC Exhibit No. 912, Vol. XVIII, p. 108.

67. Snyder letter to Oswald, dated November 6, 1959, see WC Exhibit No. 919, Vol. XVIII, p. 117. The fact that it was sent "registered return receipt" on November 9 was recorded on the bottom of the letter in handwriting.

68. See WC Exhibit No. 920, which is the embassy account of the letter to the State Department, in Vol. XVIII, pp. 118-119.

69. USNLO Moscow 2090, 1704Z, November 3, 1959, to chief of Naval Operations, routed by Hamner and checked by RE/Hediger. The other defector was Robert Edward Webster.

70. USNLO Moscow 2090, 1704Z, November 3, 1959, to chief of Naval Operations, see Navy copy and ONI copy. The ONI copy is distinctive because it is the only copy that shows Oswald's FBI number, 105-82555. "Hamner" may be a typographical error for "Hammer," the same Lt. J.G. Hammer who was on watch in ONI the moment that Kennedy was shot.

71. CNO 22257 to ALUSNA MOSCOW, 041529Z NOV 59.

Chapter Two

1. Moscow embassy cable 1304 to State Department, October 31, 1959.

2. UPI, dateline Moscow, October 31; see NARA FBI headquarters file, 10582555-2.

3. UPI, dateline Moscow, October 31; see NARA FBI headquarters file 10582555-2. Researchers note: You must turn over the original copy in the FBI HQ file in the National Archives to see the date-time and name stamps. This practice of stamping the reverse side of documents and cover sheets was also common at the CIA.

4. See E. B. Reddy memo to A. H. Belmont, FBI HQ file 105-82555-2.

5. See E. B. Reddy memo to A. H. Belmont, FBI HQ file 105-82555-2B.

6. UPI, dateline Moscow, 31 October; See NARA FBI headquarters file, 10582555-2. Researchers can also locate the UPI ticker by consulting NARA JFK Identification Form number 124-10010-10003.

7. Goldberg interview by the FBI, August 4, 1964; WC, Vol. XXVI, pp. 99-100. Researchers should note that Goldberg thinks he got to Oswald before Mosby that weekend; this is unlikely since, by his own story, he did not go to Oswald's room until the New York AP alerted Goldberg based on a Texas newspaper story (probably the Star Telegram). Thus, the earliest Goldberg could have seen Oswald would have been Sunday, and this is borne out by the fact that the first AP story on the event was, in fact, Sunday, November 1.

8. AP, New York Mirror, final edition, November 1, 1959; see also FBI New York field office file 105-38431-4. Researchers should note that the Goldberg AP story of November 1, 1959, began an erroneous account of what happened in Snyder's office on Saturday, which was later picked up (probably inadvertently) and used in internal CIA postassassination analyses. The AP story read: "A 20-year-old Texan strode into the American Embassy today, slapped down his passport on the consul's desk and said: "I have made up my mind. I'm through." This story is mirrored in Coleman- Slawson memorandum (see NARA JFK RIF 157-10002-10432) of March 6, 1964, to Lee Rankin, Chief Warren Commission Counsel, p. 4, which said Oswald "threw his passport on Snyder's desk." In fact, Oswald calmly handed his passport to receptionist Jean Hallett.

9. Washington Post, November 1, 1959, "Ex-Marine Asks Soviet Citizenship"; see also CD 692, p. 104; and CIA document 591-252A.

10. Washington Post, November 1, 1959, "Ex-Marine Asks Soviet Citizenship"; see also CD 692, p. 104; and CIA document 591-252A.

11. John E. Donovan testimony to the Warren Commission, May 5, 1964, Vol. VIII, p. 293.

12. Nelson Delgado testimony to the Warren Commission, April 16, 1964, Vol. VIII, p. 240.

13. J. Edgar Hoover letter to J. Lee Rankin, Warren Commission, April 6, 1964; see CE 833, Vol. XVII, p. 787.

14. See E. B. Reddy memo to A. H. Belmont, FBI HQ file 105-82555-2. Besides Belmont, copies were also sent to Mr. Trotter, Mr. Brannigan, and Mr. Scatterday.

15. Washington Post, November 1, 1959, "Ex-Marine Asks Soviet Citizenship"; see also CIA document 591-252A.

16. For the FBI list of what the Bureau says it had in their files on Oswald prior to the assassination of Kennedy, see CE 834, Vol. XVII, pp. 804-813.

17. Corpus Christi Times, October 23, 1959, "Goodbye,"; FBI headquarters file 105-82555. The placement of this article in the Oswald file might also have been a mistake: someone has written, "No-not Oswald," next to a sentence which was probably referring to another American navy defector, Robert Webster.

18. Conducting Research in FBI Records (Washington D.C.: Research Unit, Office of Congressional and Public Affairs, Federal Bureau of Investigation, 1984), p. 14.

19. The next stamp after De Loach's 10:36 A.M. entry is Alan Belmont's at 3:32 P.M.

20. John Mayly (Church Committee) interview with Sam Papich, May 25, 1975, Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI) Box 265-14; see also NARA JFK RIF 157-10005-10078.

21. The original, CIA document 592-252B, appears to have been changed, with "Mr. Papich" having been whited out and the initials "RBI" placed in the space; see NARA JFK RIF 180-10092-10380. The real document with Papich's name was released in 1993 in the CIA's 201 file. That Papich had made the "oral" request to CIA's Counterintelligence Liaison element is recorded in the CIA 1993-released documents list.

22. Summers, Anthony Official and Confidential (New York: Putnam, 1993), p. 229.

23. ONI Op-921D1/rl, November 2, 1959, memorandum for the file by J. M. Barron, see NARA JFK RIF 124-10010-10005.

24. Brannigan memo to Belmont, November 4, 1959, Oswald FBI headquarters file, 105-82555-3, p. 2; see also NARA JFK RIF 124-10010-10006.

25. It is in paragraph 3: "Birth: 18 October 1959 at New Orleans, La. Religious Preference: Lutheran. OSWALD entered the Marine Corps at Dallas, Texas, on 24 October 1956 to serve three years. He was released to inactive duty at MACS, El Toro, California, on 11 September 1959 and has obligated service until 8 December 1962. He speaks, reads and writes Russian very poorly. His next of kin, his mother, resides at 3124 West 5th Street, Fort Worth, Texas. At the time he entered service, subject gave his address as 4936 Collinswood Street, Fort Worth, Texas. While in service, he attended the Aviation Fundamental School and completed the aircraft Control and Warning Operator's Course. Subject's record has been sent to Records Facility, Glennwood, [sic] Ill."