Bernardo de Torres: The Gusano Who Killed the JFK Witnesses

8/13/2019 Bernardo de Torres: The Gusano Who Killed the JFK Witnesses

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ONE OF BERNARDO DE TORRES MEN WAS THE

PHONY SECRET SERVICE AGENT BEHIND THE

FENCE ON THE GRASSY KNOLL



THE OSWALD CODE

This above an ear study of the two men showing they are identical.One of Bernard Torres subordinates was in Dealey Plaza on the day of

the coup with phony Secret Service credentials. Seymour Weitzman

was the first Dallas Police Officer to scale the fence on top of the knoll.He told Warren Commission Counsel Joseph Ball that he "noticednumerous kinds of footprints..." Although Seymour Weitzman hadscaled the fence first, the officer behind him, J. M. Smith, was the first

to encounter a Secret Service Agent there: “I wasn't alone. There wassome Deputy Sheriff and I believe one Secret Service man when I got there...I pulled

my pistol from my holster, and I thought, 'This is silly, I don't know who I am lookingfor'...Just as I did he showed me he was a Secret Service Agent...”

Weitzman had also seen this man and told Joseph Ball: "[There were] other officers,Secret Service as well." Sterling Holland, who had run to the area where he saw the puff

of smoke, noticed footprints between a station wagon and the picket fence:

It was muddy...a hundred tracks in one location. There was mud on the

bumper as if someone had cleaned their foot...there were 12 or 15policemen, or plainclothesmen, and we looked for empty shells...

The Warren Commission questioned every Secret Service Agent on the scenethat day, and they stated that they went to Parkland Hospital or stayed at the Trade

Center. The HSCA questioned J. M. Smith:

One witness who did not base his Secret Service identification merely

upon observing a plainclothesman in the presence of uniformed policeofficers was Dallas police officer Joseph M. Smith. Smith, who had been

riding as a motorcycle escort in the motorcade, ran up the grassy knollimmediately after the shooting occurred. He testified to the Warren

Commission that at that time he encountered a man who stated that hewas a Secret Service agent and offered supporting credentials...



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( M H 8 ) K I A M I , F L A . , ? E B . : . 9 - . . . C U B ~ E:X :.E G U A ~ D E O KE1UlEOY--3emardo Torres; ... 32-- - y ~ a r - o l d Cubsn ex1le, ~ a y ~ he helr-ed ~ h e seere t servtee ~ ~ ~ n t s guardF r e s ~ d e r . t K ~ n r . e d y ~ h ~ l e tn M 1 a = ~ j u s ~ 4 ~ a y s before h ~ was ~ s s a s s 1 r . e t e d .

T o r r e ~ 1s a ~ s s t n g New ~ r l ~ ~ s ~ 1 s t r c t A ~ t o ~ e l J ~ Garr ison 1n~ r : v ~ : S t t p;ao;i on ln the a s s e s ~ ~ n & . t ior... P ···11:-ephoto{ ~ ~ P wire ato:-yh l ~ : ? 5 e r ~ d 1 9 6 7 ·-- ·-



THE OSWALD CODE

BERNARDO DE TORRES NAME WAS IN OSWALD'S ADDRESS

BOOK



THE OSWALD CODE

The CIA transcribed “Torres” as “Jona”. It transcribed "Editor/Director" as "EdToraz" ignoring the “I” in between the two words however, a closer examination showsthe entry read ED I Toraz. Get rid of the E and it read DI TORAZ, or reverse the ED toDE as in Bernardo De Torres. A check with the postal authorities indicated "that EdToraz is unknown at Post Office Box 2119 (G.P.O.) Present Box holder - Vantage Press130 W. 37th Street, New York City, has had this box since 1960." Vantage Press was avanity publishing house and Oswald was thinking of publishing a sanitized book abouthis experiences in the Soviet Union. The account number was written in a different ink.

It was the number of the State Department account Oswald deposited money into inorder to pay back a loan he had received at the American Embassy in Moscow.

Bernardo G. De Torres (born March 26, 1934) Havana Province, Cuba told theCIA that he entered the United States in January 1955 and began to play professionalbaseball. He gave up studies in Civil Engineering and he obtained work at the FordMotor Company. He told the FBI that he completed his high school education inHavana, Cuba, and had not attended school in the United States. Bernardo De Torreswent to Cuba in January 1959 to attempt to exfiltrate his father. He stayed in Havanaand worked against the Castro regime until November 1959 when he returned to theU.S. After his arrival, he took a course given by the Miami Police Department for private

detectives, and obtained a certificate that allowed him to practice as a detective, whichhe did for the private detective firm of his brother Carlos De Torres. He made trips toCuba in early 1960, where he discussed shipments of arms to anti-Castro forces.Bernardo De Torres enlisted in February 1961. He was Chief of Intelligence of the Bayof Pigs Brigade 2506.

All 2506 Brigade enlistees were routinely processed for ProvisionalOperational Approval and a request for a POA on Subject was submittedon March 2, 1961 and cancelled on April 4, 1962. It is extremely doubtfulSubject was aware at the time of his enlistment that he knew of any CIArelationship with the 2506 Brigade. The investigative phase of the POAindicates that USG interest would be revealed but CIA interest in Subjectwould not be revealed. Subject’s file reveals no operational use of Subjectfollowing the cancellation of this POA on April 4, 1962. William C. SturbittsMay 12, 1978.

The head of intelligence for the Bay of Pigs Brigade had no idea the CIA was itssponsor. Highly unlikely. Bernardo was captured at the Bay of Pigs, and returned to

America in December 24, 1962 after a $50,000 ransom was paid. He later became



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...; ~ '""· ... - ·.- --.· · , '"" ·. · ·-·· ..•. . - ~ · ~ - ; · - . ; ) . " i . J . " 3 . . 1 : , _ ' ( . ~ = ; ; . . ~ ... ~ . ~ : v ~ f . ~ • .- · · ~ , · ··· ··. ~ : ~ ~ . : • : ~ - - r - : ~ . " . . : ' : · ..) . . : . - ~ q ~ : ~ - · :.· : - ~ ~ :-'.7": .·. :: :.; < ~ ~ ~ ~ . : - _ : ; : . ~ ~ .. - - ~· : : .:.,: :_ . Thta 41oe-aat eoatah11 aaUIIar reeo•••, .datlona aor eooelwalo.a of tlla I 'Bl. I t Ia 111• . . OP•Itr i . o ~ : " " : ·: . : - e · , e f lila FBI oad U JoCUI•d Ia JO•r ~ · D C J I II ood II• coo leota • aot to Ia 4latrU••t•d o•te&da "'- ' •· . - · . .• •. ,..., · · .- .

> Q o ; . : : . : . ~ ' ' f : .



IDENTIFICATION FORM

Date:OJ / 02/9Page:1

AGENCYRECORD NUMBER

RECORDS SERIES

AGENCY INFORMATION

FBI124-10040-10152

FILE NUMBER : 62-109060-1ST NR 4638

ORIGINATORFROM

TO

TITLE :

DATEPAGES

SUBJECTS

DOCUMENT INFORMATION

FBIDIRECTOR FBI

SAC

02/23/672

ANTI-CASTRO GROUP TORRES BERNARDO BRIGADE 2506

DOCUMENT TYPECLASSIFICATION

RESTRICTIONSCURRENT STATUSOF LAST REVIEW

OPENING CRITERIA

COMMENTS

PAPER TEXTUAL DOCUMENT

: u

OPEN IN FULL

10/26/92

-------------------------------------------------------------------[R] - ITEM IS RESTRICTED



' /

a i r t e l

.. <. • t; ·. (- . ,.. .c. .•· . ' .J : : .i] \: . 1 1 a : ~

REPRODUCED AT THE NATIONAl ARCHIVES

• . . i. Jl: <J _ - _

: ·. <I ••• • . •• •

2/23/67

1 Yr. Branigan1 Mr • Lenihan1 - Mr. Nasca

. .· · ..I .. •: . :- : ; • • 4 -: , , • ' •

I0 ,;·j, f ,,•. i (; { • • 'J \ 0

.j • ?•' :•:;,/ .: t i :

. l •1 __ _ S4Qe ,.. Jliaa1· New Orleans

... : 0 • ' ., · • •

: . ::.. . • . . . • . . : . . . •,D ~ r ~ ~ r F ~ l (105:0.124552) · ·

BBIUWlllO GOliZALBZ DJ: TORRES ALVABEZ

INTERNAL SBCUBITY - CUBA

&ea&t . epbone c a l l 1:o Jliami 2 ~ 1 / 6 7 1D W h 1 ~ h M ~ a 1 1 l iadvised that aubj•ot has never been an informant, P S I ~ orsource of information. For information both off ices, ~ h eWashington Post, on 2/20/67 carried ar t ic le captioned

Assassination Report Will Grow, CUban Says. Article insummary s ta tes that Bernardo Torres, Cuban exile and mil i tary coordinator 'o t Brigade 2 ~ 0 6 anti-castro group, s tatedhe helped Secret Service guard President Kennedy in Miami,Florida, four days before the assass ina t ion . Torres, aprivate detective who has been helping New orleans Dist r ic tAttorney Jim Garrison in an investigation looking towardreopening the Kennedy assassination case, stated he believesthe Warren report wil l be proved incomplete.

On 2/20/67 Secret Service advised that PresidentKennedy was 1n Miaal on 11/18/63 and spoke a t the OrangeBowl. Since there were rumors prevalent that some CUbansmight t ry to embarrass the President, Secret Service contacted several CUban groups before the Kennedy vis i t andasked for their assistance. Brigade 2506 was one of thegroups contacted but Secret Service did not ta lk to Torres.Torres is known to be a member of Briga<;te 2506, but notknown as one of the top leaders. Some CUbans did mingle inthe crowd to t r l to iden t i fy t rouble makers.

c\/ i l 62-109060 ( M l l ~ ~ ~ i ~ i ; : J ~ ~ Qf. .Pl:esident __ ,ohn Fitzgerald.

l,_./ K U l ~ November 22, 1963, Dallas, Texas) - .. ·· ,

VHN:js /(9) Q/f '

r.

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SEE NOTE PAGE TWO

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J L ··•· _ , ~, . & i d ~ .... a 1 .prtMe t 1 0 a f 1 ~1 that tits l n Y e a t l c a . t l ~ ~ e ··ahowl

that wu d ~ o p e d Sl\

New Prleut whlob ealmlllated ' .In tb• u a a ~ t l l n & t l i J a C)f ·Kennedy. ' · ~ A r r e s t l :wUl \ ·_macle," 1a1 w a n :. .

·• : • • • . . ' ' ., : • ,:t l· . ' '

. "Ther• ~ e r e o t l i , r ~ ~ p l e·besides IM' - t a r v ~ i ¢ a w a l d

- tnvolvtd.'' ne .:ald. ~ e ; w Or·

leans w11s' a: factor .Jn th•. planuinJ;t -ilcycmd the: hadowOf n douht ," • : ' ,1, ·-: I -'·:>' ~ w ; . c 3 _ d ·have'. 'the

n m l i C t -h'l · p liop e In '¢e

Jnitbl .the,proetcu· ltor sRido:.."\V ' 'are not· Wilt• I

ini: f?Ul' : Uine 1111d · _ \ve1

.\"'iii

pro\'e lt. ATI''es ta ·:' will ·be ·Im;sdP.. C.hnr :;cs wlll ··. ie .'filed

anrl d mvictions ..wilL be · ~ - · 1. talncd. · .: . · .' · <

l ' J ' l < ' l d Iris ·- offlct ·;

1 hnd . i n r d l c t l o n1· bce -:u:;" nf _n l < ~ u a ' la\v' i: "whll'h cunsplyacy. )l::

.nn;•l;iml. " : · · 1

......i; . G• r •:l• <In, _hu :' aplmti mo.r"l t ln u .<;.oro It' coverlurI r,rr.•\'1<1 he '·claimed :·; ;, a :; k l: \ 'lr - i n h:: -thn w ~ r •. .

1 r ou .-tl ';: ~ ; ; ; l Jui ·. th n;: . ,·. t l: : CoJO Jml. .

s c.t " 1 ~ ' t Jt: lt J·1 ·;o 1111CllclentOl ':"i l •

1;tticl Gftr •I · ri san · inr lllr:t ':ntn rilay· : l { t " ~ p t ~ n v probe

: . : 2 ~ , r , ; - o ia Orl r. nnl

anr1 . , · : l l i ~ ; W• l'P C:Jl'l'i::d by7·.-IJ:··; i :1rx:· P"i'::·:,,

. recjucstcd the help

. tmstable Cubans dut·ing

THE MIAMI HERALD

February 19,1967

, , ; )'o :.. 1

r;=------ ' - --- ... _ --, - ,_ ...._,

, . 6 , ; 9 ' > .Waf.ren - ·Report• • ' • • ' . • • 0

·. • • . . . . i t- . . , • •

TFI{ , e ~ t l i P 1 ~ o b e.( .. '·

s ·· ;·c·;·> • : :. ;::...

~ ~ § ) : ~ p ~ ~ ¢ y ~ ; · \ ~ , · ~ : :• • • • • • • • • i , J .. • • • .. • • . · • ' 4 : '~ A R L O S l \ l A B T I N U - , . Torres, a private eye . .·. . pur, Amutc• strlf :- ', : ; _ - ~ ronfirmed the ·· exis." ·I ·

l i ~ h l y sec1·e,t._" ; ~ : o b e : h ~ ~ ;ot tl)i{ unptiplishe«;': pic:_·

l a u n ~ b e d ~ ~ ~ ... t J r . ' i s \Yh9h -;',he ~ v r r · .1

a u t l 1 o r t ~ l i ,to,,- d c t e ~ ~ ~ ~ e f_ t \' <en .in New,.Or leitns 'short'.. ::Lee · Harvey .Oswald · ac ted ,··· ly ·. ·before'the . a : ~ s a m i t i o n ·

al.one· ~ h e n he killed Prcsl-1 ·: He 'strongly dt:;n ied ki'tqwing·dent Kennedy will prove the . 1.\1>' oqhe I , I P , in }t:· · . , ·War rert . ~ p o r t w r o n g ·key · ;_::·-·- , ·-\ . -.' ., , .; ;. ·. •t .•

o v e s t i ~ : a t o i s In New 'orleans : ' · ..Ne'f. O r l l l ~ n a a r r l , s u a ~ .1

an4 . i ~ e d i s : t e s a t ~ r - ,';h r n j;o· I,".aie· 2A \C(IL •5 .:: ' ·,

day . i . . . · ~ ~ . /r; · ,·. ;· .. ; - ~ - ' · oi •

· N Orleans · D istrict At· ·

J IId Garr son1 who,started tbe· inv t>stigation · las tfall out ·or ' 'curiosity,'' -dJs..:

closed that h• ha.s come ' tot h ~ conclusion that the W a r

Report , 1s . ',wrong"· .In r

Ulli O . s w a ] d w i . ~ o ,onsplt:ii-CY . . ·· :: : ·

; , . o I ,; ol :I f ·'t o ' ' o

·;:. Slm.llar ·lltatetnent• , ,. wer eil rc d In f\flam . by a.Cuban . ·private' · iletOOtlve Garri»on ·.

~ I r e ~ to loQk .Into tl14{ baqk .l ·1· grounll11 ot ~ v e r a l : Oubanti lwh1).· &M&o.cla te d .· with w a l ~

:·Jhortly before the a s ~ ~ s s l n a .tl()n. :• .- . . ·.. ·:=

.. -; . ,. ·:, f . . J . -:- :: ·.· . ; . f.· ., . t , ••.•••

... .' T ) l e

Warren Report and 'tht; FBI l'elXJrt wllJ l' l'Um_ble

when this ' invest igation ·11

'fremase J,'' Bernardo · T 131, ' hea-d 01 the Associated 1I i i v e s t i n I h c . told ,The'

1"'Herald ' · .. ' · · · -. - T o r r ~ , w a ~ identified a I

New · Orleans ne wsp,per; The.States-Item, ai ' a close fr iendof one . o Oswa ld , . Cuban

~ i e n ~ The pape.r ~ a i d he ,bad n t i f i .one of the .C J·. 1

b a ~ s .from a, l c ~ u r e 0 1 ·w i t ~ t ~ e ~ ; r o u p ·. :·'_,:F ,: ·:

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. .JFK ASSASSINATION SYSTEM

IDENTIFICATION FORM

---------- ---------- --- ----------- ---------- ---- -- -------------AGENCY INFORMATION

AGENCY

RECORD NUMBER

RECORDS SERIES

FBI

124-10073-10359

FILE NUMBER : 89-43-5731 5732 5733 5734 5735

-------------- --- -------- ---- ---------- ------------ ------- ------- DOCUMENT INFORMATION

ORIGINATOR FBI

FROM

TO

TITLE

DATE

PAGES

SUBJECTS

00/00/0011

FBI 105 - 82555-5539

DOCUMENT TYPE

CLASSIFICATIONRESTRICTIONS

CURRENT STATUSOF LAST REVIEW

OPENING CRITERIA

COMMENTS :4 NEWS ARTIC A/T

PAPER TEXTUAL DOCUMENT

uOPEN IN. FULL0

04/06/94

------------------------------- - --- ----------------------------[R] - ITEM IS RESTRICTED



tea

TO:

L i eu t . H. Srii l ey

b t e l l i g e n c e Uuit

1- •...lNTER-OFFIC : : MEMORANDUM

OATE::

Feb. 20, 1967.

SUBJECT:Suspect inP r e s i d e n t i a l

FILE:

Assnss r .atior.

FnoM :s g t Eve r e 1 : t K u y

l n t e l l i g e nee Uni t

RE:i"'ERENCE9:

ESCLOSURER:

I received in fo rmat ion t h i s date t 1at n posGible suspect ns nn

a c o o ~ p l i c e i i l tile o s s ~ s c i n a t i o ~ of IJreGidetlt Jol1n Ken11edy i s aCubur. male.- \NUEL o r E>:;..:;\?F:L) GARCL1 G O · ~ Z ; \ L E Z ~

-l ; . . . . . . . . . . 01-- This r , ub jec t . GO; \Zi\LC}:, is unknown to t h i s o f f i c e , but to the f n c t

th 2 t Sg t . i\ cCracken, on Fr id ay . J3n . 20, 1967, w a ~ c on ta c t e d by

Sta te Attorney Inves t ig3 to r ~ 3 r t i n Dardas . wl1o r eques ted t h a t

S g t . :, cCrEcke n meet ' l d th trio i n v e s t i g a t o r s i r o r . ~ the New Or l eans

D i s t r i c t ; \ t o o rn ey ' s O ff i ce , Det . L es te r U t i l l i o , J r . and Doug la s

Wu rd .

At t l i i s mee-cing the name -of E ~ ~ N U E L or MA:·;UEL GAllCIA GONZALEZ was

brougl1t f o r t h by the NeN Or le a ns inves t iga tors as they were a t t emp t in g

to loca te t h i s man r e f ~ r e n c e narco t ics and a poss ib le murder .Sg t . :rlcC.racken made r e p o r t r e f c r a n c e t h i s meet ing { r e po r t a t t a c h e d ) .

At na t i ~ c did the i n v e s t i g a t o r s from the New Or leans o f f i c e ind ica te

t h a t th7y were look ing fo r th i s Cuban male for involvement in thea s s a s s i n a t i o n of the ' r e s i d e n t .

I t has been r e po r t e d to t h i s w r i t e r tha t a group - i c t u r e showingt h i s C11ban male, also i d e n t i f i e s Harvey Lee Oswald, suspec ted

a s s a s s i n of the P r e s i d e n t .

Attempt r . :.Jre be ing rcade by t h i s u n i t to l oc n t c t h i s £M . \ ~ I J E L GitHCIA

G O ~ Z ~ L E Z but we have no fu r the r in fo rmnt ion ac to the whereaboutsvf t h i s s u b j e c t , p iy s i cn l d e s c r i p t i o n , e t c . as a l l t h i s p e r t i n e n t

in fo rna t ion was witi held by tl1e two i nves t iga to rs from the D i s t r i c ti \ t to rnoy ' s o f f i c ~ in New Orleans . H ~ d we been tnken into t he i r

cohfidefJCC, we could l 1 a v ~ pursued th i s m~ - - - - - \A p:riv:1te inves t ig i : to r by the n n m ~ o f n . E . l t J J . J l ~ T O _ B P . ~ _ : s u p p o s e d l y

w o l k i ~ g oz t h i s a s s a s ~ i n a t i o n p lo t , belnJ 1 oy the ~ c w Crleans

D i s t r i c t At6or11ey's o f f i c e . Torres l1os been ac t ive in the Gny ofPigs o r q a n i z ~ t i o n and other Cuban cruanizat iorJs in ~ j a m i nct i r tu

a.:; :nTnt .e l l i . ;euce; l fo r the se gro11ps.



February 20, 1967

AIBTEL AliUU.lL - llEGISTEUD

TO: DillECToR, FBI

J"Rtw: ··SAC, MIAJII

LEE HARVEY OSWALDIS - ll- CUB

00: DALLAS

105-82555)

(105..;,8342) P)

Be Miami t e l to Bureau, 2/17/67.

Bnclosed to Bureau, Dallas , few Orleans,are clippiugs ot art ic les which appeared in the MiamiHerald, Uiami, Florida, daily newspaper, edit ions ofF"ebriiary 18, 19, and 20, 1967, and an ar t ic le fromtbe Miami News, also published dai ly a t Miami, fromi t s edition o February 18, 1967.

.. J::, With r espect t BF.RNARDO i:IU:-:8, mentioned

in the. ~ i c l e s as a s s i s t i n g - u e w r ~ f ana- District Attorney

f_. : ; J l t ~ .. n invest iaat ion cone ing au a l l e g ~ daccOilp ce ot LEE B.A.BVEY OSWALD, the followins informationi s no d:

" 'l'OBRES was interviewed by the Miami O f ~ i c e on4/3/64 Alillative to a reported plot by meMbers of t h ~B r i :a t carry out a ra id against CUba. The 2508 Brigaae·s:St ········ 'organization uedicated t . the anti-cASTRo cause which

.a·· 1•eau (Enc. 4) (RM) K.. ·\, 2 ;.. Dal las lOD-10461) Enc. 4) \ (ltM)~ - New Orleans (Enc. 4) (UK)

1 - Miami

J.JO/neb8) /g ~ f ~ - S _ 3 f

0 INDEXED ••SE IRCHE .. . '?... .

R·•L I2EO FILED ..........

sE1" f€} :z1 1967

- o A L \ - A ~ i j ? { 1. e I



• /

/ • c " " L F . A . q ~ · n ° ~ L .L. 1 u ~ o {c.Ji•.L· . ~. J REPRODUCED AT THE NATIONA L A R ~ H : / S . DATE t ; 5/

M 105 8342

maintains an off ice in Miami, whieh takes i t sname from tha t force o f CUbans_-\vho t rained to r andpart icipated in the abortive . ./{nvasion of Cuba in4/61. l l

T ~ a4vised t ·t his fUll name i s BERNABDOJ?E . ,_.9. 1RES .JJ.;y, .. .z., but tha t he 1s geii erarr:v· ....

k . n o w n a s D E i t N A B D O a·.· . . OBRES : He stated tha t he heldthe positi0nci1 '1I1l't ... ; c o o r i n a t o r of tha 2506 Brigadeorgauizat ion. Be d i played a res ident a l i en Regis-t r a t ion Card No. A 310 536, reflect ing he had

ar r ived in the U' s: £rom CUba on 1/3/55 to take uppermanent res idence in the Ui. s. He sa id he hadcompleted h is high school education in Havana, CUba,and had not a t tended school in the ·n S• He a d v i s ~ dtha t when he f i r s t came to the u. s., he l i ved inDetroi t , Michigan, where ho was employed by theFord Motor Co. a t Dearborn.

TORRES s t a t ed tha t although he i s a permanentres ident o f the U s.·, and considers himself loya l tothe u ~ s ~ he f e l t compelled to f ight against theCASTRO Government in Cuba, because Cuba i s the landof his bi r th . He sa id that although his efforts to

fight against Communism in CUba might r esu l t in viola-t ion of u. s. law, · he would not cease such effor t s .

He sa id that he did not believe he would beimprisoned for a violat ion of Neutral i ty s ta tu tes , forthe reason that the u. ·s. i s a lso committed to thof ight to overthrow CASTRO and fur ther , the u. s. wasinvolved in violat ion o ~ neutral i ty in i t s support ofthe CUban invasion of 4/61.

Descript ion of TORRES obtained from interviews as follows:

Age:Born:

Height:Weight:

2 •

323/26/34Havana Province Cuba6 - 6 l 115 / pounds



_

IDI 105 8342

Hair :

Eyes:Comp'lexion:Brother:

o ~ o v .. ;.._ t ~ o . . . .

DAT;m / l ~ f Z

Black, straight, baldingon topDark brown, largeOliveCARLOS DE TOlmES, employedby a private detectiveagency in Miami.

On 6/18/66, l OlUlBS was br ie f ly contacted bythe Miami Office concerning the anti-cASTRO plansof the Associat ion of Veterans of the Bay of Pigs

an organizat ion of Cubans who participated in the

Cuban invasion of 4/61), and a t that ti.Jile, TORRESadvised he was residing a t 110 N. w 41st Avenue inMiami, and was the military leader of the association,and had been working on mil i ta ry plans, which he declinedto reveal .

The Jliami Office i s taking no invest igat iveaction with respect to the matters published in theenclosed newspaper art ic les in the absence ofinstructions from the Bureau, lew Orleans, or the 00.

3.



, ·- ..- r-- • , . . . - - - • · e Loa c l l \ 1 ( 1 __, ~ : ~ • t - r n y 5f t.P \ - , e . . L " R c ~ ' ~ Mr. Wicl< I / . ,r ; ' ( ( ~ J ? ' ; : p : ~ o o o u c E . J > . " f l H E P . l i O I ' I • ..._ / Foil . -o r - - ~ : / .. . " /

w. c . SullJ.van DATE: February 20, 1967 r j : : . J ~ , / ...•

• :J.·· 1 .Mr Rosen. Branir;alj]J\31 1 M r ~ Sul l ivan

Sui I . _ : _ , . . _ . _l · · ·

Ttollc - -Tole. Raorn -HolmeGandy__

tv 1 - Mr. Branigan1 Mr. Brennan ( t t /

OF PRESIDENT 1 - Mr. Lenihanc £

lli'ITZGERI\.LD KENNEDY, 1, \ 1 - Mr. Nasca . / f ~ l ¥ ~ ~ - /

2 , 1963 , DALLAS, TEXAS ( ) _ /1/;1- a : r;K)l ... (,'W .'1:.- Lc r;. /P (o'(s/:, / o n 2 / ..200/J6t1Xl ~ f V f/· ~ )Q . \\);_.-- The Washington car r i ed ar t i c l e cap- t

Assass inat ion Report Will Grow, Cuban Says . Art ic le .: r)s t a t es tha t Bernardo Torres , Cuban exi l e and mil i - ~

· coordinator o f Bri'g'ad·e·-2 0 6 a n t f - c a s t r o g ' : o u p s ·ta ted .Tie '\\'-...d s e ~ r e : t s e v i c e g u a r ~ : r P r e s ' i d ~ n ~ K e : q n ~ J.n.. Mia-mi F i o i i d a , }da ys be fore the assass ina t ion . Torres , a pr iva te detec t ive 3n ~ s b ~ e n _helping ' N e ~ p r ~ ~ a n s D ~ s t ' r i c t A ~ o r n e y - _J i.u .. G ~ ~ . . . : . : ? 2 ' } : ' 11.}

il inves t iga t ion looking to ward reopening the ·Kennedy [J/• .1 ·- _:;

~ ~ t t ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ; i ~ _ : - ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ - . ? . ~ ~ - y _ : ~ _ ~ - ~ ~ - ~ ~ . E . e _ ~ _ . ~ E ? E - ~ ~ J j { V ·..;.1

Pursuant to the Di rec t o r ' s request concerning BernardoBur r i l l Peterson, Assis tant to the Direc tor , Secre twas contacted by l i a i son on 2/20/67. Peterson s t a t e ~ ·.·

h e contacted the Secre t Service Specia l ·Agent in Charge ·-mi

1John .Marshall, concerning the above-mentioned news ~Peterson advised t ha t President Kennedy was in Miami ~ . J ~ ~ i

18, 1963, and spolce a t the Orange Bowl. Since r \ ~ d ' ~ f.:: l

e were · rumors prevalent tha t some Cubans might t ry to ..l l ~. the Pres ident , ~ ~ c ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ F Y - ~ e ~ ? n t 3 : ~ t e 9. . ~ _ v : e _ : r ; ~ l - ~ u ~ ~ ;s :o r ~ 1 ; : f 1 ~ .. < : ~ p q . e s Y . .'s . a .. s t ~ ~ ... : t h ~ i z : __ s . : ; ~ n c ~ , . . ~ i

~ 2506 was one of the groups contacted but ~ e c i : _ ~ : _ t __ erx.i.c.e.. .• .- t a ik '-t a·· Tor'i;es·: . 1 ' o r r e s i s ~ known -to-··be·-·n_·-member of ,J ,

. ..... . . 2506, but not lmown as one of the top l eade rs . Some

did mingle in the crowd to t ry to ident i fy t rouble makers.

REOur f i l e s indica te t ha t Torres i s iden t ica l with

,Gonzalez de Torres Alvare z , c.u.Q9.:J\ ... x i - l e .. -bor·n 3/26/34uba and mil i t a ry coordinator o f Brigade 2506. Torresi c ipa ted in the Apr i l , 1961, i nvasipP i g# ~ ~ P ~ 7 and has beenJ ' - ' ..ca l ly reported as being involved . n plans of Brigadeto launch a t t acks on Cuba and v e s ~ ~ ~ ~ t ~ a g n g : : : . w i th Cuba. , . ~ ..

b = en i n t ~ r y i e w e d ·on· s ~ v e r a l occasions and h,as been J. . ....-· ·

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Tiley arc a powerful for c in the Miami area, where well

upwards of 100,000 Cuban exiles reside. A Miami dty

Commissioner is a member, as is the state DemocraticPa rty Chairman. A few years ago , when the Brigade heldits "Firs t Congress," Miami Mayor Maurice Ferre and U.S.Representative Claude Pepper were featu red speakers.On the day of the arrest , the Miami l ler lcl news storypointed out that the Brigade was "well respected" in the

community. Ironically , the editorial in the same issue of

the Herald took a less-laudatory position:

"Until the mid 1960s, overthrowing Fidel Castroseemed to be the official policy of the United Statesgove rnment. Toward that purposl an agency of thegovernment armcu and supported a group of exilesin an abort ive attempt to invade Cuba. Other effortswere made to depose the Cuban dictator.

" But the policy gradually changed , and in recentmonths the rate of change appears to have increased .Most Cuban exiles many of them now citizens of

the United States - find the changes in policy hard toaccept. Some merely grumble. Others take th eircues from the fiery oratory of demagogues whopromise to turn back the clock. And a few - a tinynumber, rea lly- take the law into their own hands.''5

They did more than take the law into their own hands,though ; they seemed to have ignored t with relative impunity. On June 29, 1976, there was a meeting at the New

Englaml Oyster House in Coral Gables, Florida, involving,as a recent Penthouse Magazine article put it, two Chileans,two Cuban exiles, and an American.6 t now appears thatthe participants included Hector Duran, Bernardo de

Torres and Armando Lopez Estrada , from the Brigade2506; General Juan Manuel Contreras Sepulveda, the

notorious then-head of DINA, the Chilean secret police ;andMichael V. Townley, the American who conspired with

the fascist , paramilitary 'atria y Ubertacl against the regime

of Salvador Allende, became a DINA operative after thecoup and wa s directly invo lved in the murder of OrlandoLetelier and Ronnie Moffitt in September of that year.

5Jbicl.

6Lfncst Volkman and John Cummings, The As sassination ofOrlando Lctclicr," Pentlluuse, July 1978 , p . 52, at p. 59 .

10 CovertAction

This meeting , which was apparently conducted underpolice and FBI surveillance, and which may have includedan informant , centered on the murder of Letelier andseve ral sabotage actions. No police action followed thismeeting.

What is more, it is public knowledge that Carballo andLopez Estrada were also present at the secret meeting inJuly of 1976 in the Dominican Republic which organizedthe Coordination of United Revolutionary Organizations(CORU), which claimed credit for the heinous bombing of

a Cubana Airliner in October 1976.7

We will return to the terrorists no tiny number" bythe way ·· and to the Chilean connection, presently. Butwhat of the Miami tria]? After so many years of openly

defiant and illegal behavior, Armando Lopez Estrada andthree of his colleagues were charged with possession of un

registered weapons and violation of the Neutrality Act.

The Neutrality Act Charges

On January 4, 1978, the day before t11e trial properwas to begin, on the motion of the defense at torneys,United States District Judge of the Southern District of

Florida Joe Eaton severed the Neutrality Act charges from

the case. The Neutrality Act count of the indictment cha rgedthe defendants with planning, from the United States, toattack Cuba, a country with which the United States is atpeace ." This particular phrase, essential to a Neutrality Actcharge, was at the heart not only of the defense motion to

sever, but of the entire trial as well . And this is because (asthe defense incessantly pointed out to the judge and jury)of Public Law 87-733 passed by the Eighty-Seventh Congress and signed by John F. Kennedy on October 3, 1962.l t reads:

"Resolved, by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assemble d,

"That the United States is determined to preventby whatever means may be necessary including theforce of arms, the Marxist-Leninist regime in Cubafrom extending, by force or the threat of force, itsaggressive or subversive activities to any part of thishemisphere.

Miami Herald August 16, 1977.

Number (July 1978)



194 eath nWashington

On the question of whether Townleywas a CIA agent, the CIA's

official position was that they had inte rviewed Townleyand had in

fact given him operational status but then bad not actually used

him because they lost contact with him.

Defense counsel sought to attack this claim on three levels: (l)

by making inquiry into the hiring practices of the CIA so as to

establish that the CIA, in addition to hiring full-time agents, also

hired people on a contract basis, and that such hi ings would not

necessarily be reflected in the central office files; 2) that the CIA

operations in Chile were such that it would have been impossible

to lose contact with someone like Townley, who was livingopenly in the capital city; and 3) that Townley bad repeatedly

been seen in the vicinity of the CIA's offices in Chile. Both the

government and the court substantially and improperly curtailed

defense counsel's examination of these legitimate issues 4722 ,

CIA witnesses won't go into where offices are; 4741, CIA wit

nesses won't confirm whether they have an office in the vicinity

where Townley was repeatedly seen in the American Embassy in

Chile; 4740, 4979, limitations on questions going to thecredibility

of CIA officials' claim that they lost contact with Townley).

The court likewise prevented defense counsel from presenting

any evidence to show the CIA's motive for ordering Letelier's

assassination. The CIA had invested immense amountsof ime and

money into bringing about the overthrowof the Chilean socialist

regime and the assassination of its leader, Salvador Allende.

Letelier was one of he principal leaders of an international move

ment working to return Chile to socialism, by revolution i neces·

sary.Townley's CIA files turne d out to be voluminous . After looking

at the files on February 8, 1979, the trial judge took fonn 8:00 to

10:20 A. M. just to review them again on the morning of the ninth

(4930-31}. The judge did not even understand some of he materUd

in the folder, and bad to ask CIA officers to explain t to him. After

reading it, the judge apparently realized that defense counsel

might have some legitimate interest in the material and so asked

the CIA's representative whethe r any part of the material might

be made available to counsel. When the representative said that

portions might be declassified, but that it might take time, the

The Cover-up, Part II 195

Court responded: No, I am not going to wait around for that. I am

not going to wait around for that (4937}. The court then denied

defendant's request for disclosure of he IJ\aterial.

Most crucial to the defense was Townley's admission of his CIA

status to a man named Armando LOpez Estra da. The refusal of hecourt to tum over their LOpez grand jury testimony to the defense

was fatal to their case. Who was Armando LOpez Estrada?

In 1978 LOpez stood trial in Miami charged with a number of

firearm violations. At trial, LOpez was indentified as a long-time

CIA contract agent. Another Bay of Pigs-David Phillips Old Boy .

During testimony the agency was constrained to admit that LOpezwas, as ofl976, still an employeeof he agency. The man testifying

was Grayston Lynch. Lynch had been a CIA case officer for the

Bay of Pigs invasion and Brigade 2506. Lynch testified about

LOpez Esuada's training, particularly with respect to weapons,

pointing out that the weapons provided to the Brigade by the CIA

in the early 1960s were not registered so they could not be traced.

He also testified that although some operations planned by the

exiles received express approval, some did not. There were some

that we neither approved nor disapproved I]f they didn't

bother anything they just ignored them

On June 29, 1976, there was a meeting at the New England

Oyster House in Coral Gables, Florida, involving two Chileans,

two Cuban exiles, and an American. It now appears that the

participants included Hector Duran, Bernardo de Torres and

Armando LOpez Estrada, from the Brigade 2506; General JuanManuel Contreras Sepulveda, the notorious then-head of DINA,

the Chilean secret police, and Michael V. Townley.This meeting, which was apparently conducted under police and

FBI surveillance, and which included an informant (LOpez), cen

tered on the murder of Letelier and several sabotage actions. Nopolice action followed this meeting.

What is more, it is public knowledge that LOpez Estrada was

also present at the secret meeting in July 1976 in the Dominican

Republic. That fateful meeting organized the Co-ordination of

United Revolutionary Organizations (CORU), the heinous boml;

ing ofa Cubanaairliner n October 1976, and theLetelier murder.

Almost as pressing as the questions concerning CIA are those



-

. . ':1; •

184L A B Y R I ~ t .

When: in the morning strategy session, Propper had mentio

T o m b o ~ s actual name frequently, in connection with actions bed

mystenes that would, for peculiar reasons, make it likely that l llriboy w ~ u l d be c o ~ p r o m i s e d Bureau officials realized that theyno ch01ce but to mclude Propper. The participants in the afte h d

meeting discussed the safe and unsafe areas of g r a n d - j u r y ~ ~mony. Then they turned to a second issue: should Propper tak "'b ff h. b . e J.OII).oy o IS su p o e n ~ hst ~ g a i n there were pitfalls either way. Not

to. subpoena h1m m1gbt m 1tself arouse suspicion, and it wouldde-

prrve the Bureau of a proven means of stimulating informant

~ o r t s . Bureau agents had found that it often helps to subpoena n

~ f o r m a n ~ b ~ c a u s e the subpoena itself attracts attention within the

mformant s c t r ~ l e s O f ~ n the informant gets coached for his appear.

ance by the gullty parties and learns a lot in the process.

Of cow:se, it is also possible that the informant will be killed. Bu-

reau f l i c l a ~ remmded Propper and the Justice Department lawyen

that the Br1gade had recently acquired a reputation for viciousneaa

Less than two weeks earHer, on January 7, a former Brigade p r e s ~dent and Miami civic leader who had deno unced terrorism had been

exe:uted in his front yard. Before his death, the man had dared to

t e s ~ f y before Jerry Sanford's grand jury on terrorist killings in Mi-

amt, and the street word was that Brigade members had not appreci-

ated it. At this news, Propper felt new sympathy for Sanford who

no.w had one less witness and one more victim. He hoped the samethmg would not happen to him.

During the m ~ e t i n g an FBI agent suggested that it might be be tfor Tomboy to be to the grand jury-provided, of course, that the

g o v e ~ m e n t somehow excused the perjury. To this, Propper objectedthat rt would put the government in the untenable position of suborn

i n ~ perjury, which might cause problems at any future trial. Be

pomted out that the government could legally agree not to prosecuU

~ o ~ b o y for perjury, but it could not preve nt defense attorneys frol llc ~ t i n g Tomboy 's lies und er oath to impeach his character and his teS·

tJmony. Bureau officials replied that this situation could not arise.for the simple reason that Tomboy would never testi fy at a trial. The

B u r e a ~ would not allow it. He was too valuable an informant. ProP"

per satd he hoped Tomboy would not be called upon in a trial, but

that he could not guarantee it. Bureau officials said he'd better. Ill

the end, they strongly recommended that Tomboy's name be -

m o ~ e from the.grand-jury list, and Propper agreed to postpone thedectslon .On th1s note, the meeting ended and tensions subsided·

185

per thought he had just seen a practical demonstration of the

proP that create Palm Tree Peeking. Clearly, any step toward a

f o r c e ~ jury or a courtroom brings nothing but a i ~ risk, and worr y

gt :llformants and the government agents handlmg t h e ~ wh o al

to1n prefer to soak up information rather than to act on rt.

ays they le ft headquarters together, Propper enumerated for Cor-

ll the reasons why the FBI should have told about ~ m b o yrrorn the beginning. Cornick should have trusted htm, he satd. No

nder the case hadn't been solved by Christmas.{{O b kidd" " hCornick was rolling his eyes. "You've o t ~ e . mg me, e

aaid. "I hope you realize what I've w1th the last fewdays, Gene. You c an see it now. I'm telling yo.u, i an body had even

11J Spected that you knew who Tomboy was thts mornmg at meet. they'd have made me walk the plank so fast you wouldn t havemg,seen the splash."

On Friday afternoon, the day after J immy Carter ~ r p r i s m ~ l lions of television viewers by walking down Pennsylvama A e n ~ e mhis inaugural parade, Propper welcomed the four Cubans. to h1s of-

fice . They all wore dapper three-piece suits and Sunday m i l e ~ - T h ~ e eof them, according to Tomboy, had attended the fateful meetmg w1th

Admiral Mcintyre in September. The fourth, ~ a n ~ o 1 : 6 ~trada, was a colorful figure who served as the Bngade s m1htary di-

rector. L6pez Estrada was a loquacious man .who would a ~ p e ~ rshortly on national television with a bag over h1s head, speakmg m

menacing tones on behalf of the secret a r ~ y waging war againstCastro. Shortly after that, he would stand tnal on charges of m?unt

ing a naval raid aga inst Cuba for the Brigade, and he would wmquitta\ after two CIA operations officers testified favorably on his

Patriotism and government service.Of the other three the most striking was Bernardo de Torres, a

giant hulk of a man who was an informal foreign minister for the

Brigade. He groomed his mustache into a thin spiral tha t reminded

Propper of Snidely Whiplash, the cartoon villain . De Torres traveled

extensively in foreign countries, followed b rumo.rs of ~ r m ~ d e a ~ sand plots .Manuel Camargo, a small man w1th a wtry build, lived

Mexico City and was rumored to be in regular contact with the MeXI-

can national police, narcotics officers, and also the. CIA. L e s ~ wasknown about Roberto Carballo, the Brigade prestdent, a 1 g h t l y

~ l u m p conversationalist who was jolly in spirit except when dtscuss

lllg the treatment of his compatriots by the FBI.



DE TORRES AFTER THE COUP

An article appeared in the St. Petersburg Times that stated ―February 20, 1964 Cubaninvasion Brigade 2506 members have threatened to resign their special U.S. Armytraining to fight Fidel Castro on their own, a Bay of Pigs veteran claimed here today.The 168 exiled officers training here since last year have become impatient with USpolicy toward Cuba said Jose Morales Cruz. However brigade veterans are notexpected to make any definite until after next Monday when they meet with their acting

chief, Eneido Oliva and members of the Defense Department at Fort Benning, Georgia.Juan Jose Peruyero, Bernardo DE TORRES and Andres Basol said the problemstemmed from a lack of action rather than discontent with army life, state Morales Cruz.

The CIA:



His brother Carlos was the liaison between the Intelligence Department ofthe [Brigade] Association and the LNERGO (the true name was deleted,not supposed to be), and provided the necessary means to guide Subjectin his position. Carlos provided information on all matters of importance tothe LNERGO. (once again deleted when not supposed to be) About the

time BERNARDO DE TORRES was involved in the Garrison investigationit was said that he liked to boast of his influence and contacts. (Deleted).[CIA Traces on Sources of Information (deleted) To: (Deleted) Miami FromCAS Miami 10.1972]

BERNARDO DE TORRES was interviewed by the Miami FBI Office on March 3, 1964,relative to a reported plot by members of the Bay of Pigs Brigade to carry out a raidagainst Cuba. BERNARDO DE TORRES told the FBI that

…although he was a permanent resident of the United States, andconsiders himself loyal to the United States, he felt compelled to fight

against the Castro Government in Cuba, because Cuba was the land ofhis birth. He said that he did not believe he would be imprisoned forviolation of the Neutrality Statutes, for the reason that the United States isalso committed to the fight to overthrow Castro and further, the UnitedStates was involved in violation of neutrality in its support of the Cubaninvasion of April 1961.

On May 18, 1966, DE TORRES was briefly contacted by the Miami FBI Field Officeconcerning the anti-Castro plans of the Association of Veterans of the Bay of Pigs. Hewas the military leader of the association, and had been working on military plans,which he declined to reveal. In 1972 HEMMING put former Los Angeles Mayor SamYorty in touch with CARLOS De TORRES. HSCA investigator ED LOPEZ wrote a reporton DE TORRES.

A report of May 12, 1967, from the FBI office in New Orleans stated thaton May 11, 1967 CARLOS BRINGUIER appeared at that office and saidthat on the proceeding day he had been telephoned by Rene Carballo, aCuban refugee in New Orleans. Carballo said he was conducting his owninvestigation of the JFK assassination and was providing the results to areporter from the New Orleans States Item. He said that the head of thetraining camp in Lake Pontchartrain was know as ―el Mexicano‖ and thatthis man accompanied OSWALD to Mexico City. Carballo questionedBRINGUIER concerning the latter‘s contacts with the FBI. BRINGUIERdenied such contacts.

Ed Lopez included the above in his DE TORRES file. Rene Carballo might be related toRobert Carballo, a close associate of BERNARDO DE TORRES. In May 1972 DETORRES was considered for ―intelligence type informant‖ by the Bureau of Narcoticsand dangerous drugs. He gave two cards to the BNDD agent, one of which listed as a



supervisor of sales for Werbell‘s Military Armaments Corp. and the other from Def enseSystem International. DE TORRES told the agent that he comes to Mexico on anaverage of once a month to sell arms and audio equipment and he claimed to be incontact with Mexico‘s Minister‘s of Defense and Education. ―Reason for approach toBNDD is that subject claims to have information on high-placed GOM officials involved

in narcotics traffic and protection. Subject said he is willing to work for BNDD on fixedsalary basis.

On September 14, 1976 Miami confidential source advised three Cubans, including DETORRES (Manolo Camargo Saavedra and Robert Carballo flew to D.C. to meet withChilean Naval Attaché, Rear Admiral Ronald McIntyre at Chilean Embassy, September7, 1976. They desired to unite as many exiles as possible in Florida in order to influencesame to vote favorably for any bills or foreign aid which would help the ChileanGovernment. They also met with Clemens who told them he had high governmentcontacts and asked for $50,000 to deposit in D.C. ban. Cubans became disgusted andreturned to Miami.

DE TORRES AND THE LETELIER ASSASSINATION

BERNARDO DE TORRES was called before a Federal Grand Jury in 1976 that wasprobing the Letelier murder. BERNARDO DE TORRES had attended a meeting withHector Duran, Bay of Pigs Brigade member Armando Lopez Estrada, the head of DINA(the Chilean secret police) and American Richard Townley, during which theassassination of Orlando Letelier was discussed. [Covert Action July 1978] Jack

Anderson reported that Robert Carballo, who is head of the Veterans of the Bay of PigsBrigade might be in danger of assassination. His predecessor, Juan Jose Peruyero wasshot to death in Miami in January 1977 because he was going to talk to the FBI aboutthe Letelier assassination. Carballo was a suspect in that hit. [Jack Anderson April 22,1977]

ROLANDO OTERO IMPLICATES DE TORRES

A Response to Green List Request No. 104574 was requestedfor Rolando Otero Hernandez (born April 18, 1941, 201-285923) on September 21, 1960, by Betty Vetter of WesternHemisphere/4. The request was stamped P.O.A. Expedite. TheCIA stated that Rolando Otero was a former SAB Team Leader,recruited February 1964, who was never used on a JMWAVEmission, and was terminated August 26, 1964, for a securityviolation. He was re-recruited in September 1964 for (deleted)Project in which he served until December 1964. In the spring of1975 Orlando Bosch ordered Rolando Otero to begin a series ofactions against the United States. On October 13, 1975, abomb exploded in a luggage locker at Miami's International

Airport. In December, Rolando Otero bombed Miami's Federal Building, Post Office, FBIField Office, and Police Department. A bomb exploded in luggage locker at New York's



LaGuardia Airport. Numerous people lost their lives. The New York City PoliceDepartment Detectives Lou Fontaras and Kenny Cohen told me Croatian separatistswere responsible for the bombing. Rolando Otero said he was in the DominicanRepublic when the LaGuardia bombing occurred.

Bay of Pigs veteran Frank Castro was a witness to Otero'spresence in the Dominican Republic. Frank Castro, who lived inthe Dominican Republic, was close to Joaquin Balaguer, thePresident of the Dominican Republic. Frank Castro said that Oteroentered the Dominican Republic on January 4, 1976. In 1977Frank Castro was linked to Pablo Gustavo Castillo, who wascharged with a bombing in Miami, and a murder in Mexico. [Miami

News 3.17.77] In 1983 Frank Castro was indicted for conspiracyand smuggling marijuana into Beaumont, Texas. The charges weredropped in June 1984. In June 1988 Frank Castro was indicted forNeutrality Act violations for having taken part in a "militaryexpedition and enterprise to be carried on from thence against the

territory of Nicaragua." [88-6098 CR USDC SD FL cited by Brewton p304] RolandoOtero left the Dominican Republic on January 23, 1976, for Chile, where he remaineduntil he was extradited to the United States in May 1976, and charged with the bombingof Miami Airport. U.S. Attorney Robert Rust was in charge of the case. On August 25,1976, Rolando Otero was acquitted by a Federal jury in Miami, however, on the sameday he was scheduled to be released, he was indicted on identical state charges.

Maurice Ferrer expressed sympathy for Rolando Otero.

OTERO AND HOWARD HUNT

Retried in January 1977, Rolando Otero testified he was the youngest recruit at the Bayof Pigs Brigade training camp, and had been trained by HUNT. Ellis Rubin stated:

HUNT does not know Otero. HUNT never met Otero. He has never trainedanyone in the use of explosives. HUNT'S only connection with the Bay ofPigs operation was as the political liaison officer between the CIA and theBay of Pigs invaders. He had nothing to do with any military operations ortraining. This is another misuse of HUNT'S name by those who would takelicense because HUNT was involved in the Watergate situation. [MiamiHerald 8.24.76]

Just before HUNT was released from prison, he testified at the trial of Rolando Otero.HUNT told the jury he had never seen Rolando Otero before in his life.

MAX GONZALEZ (MAXIAM EMILIO GONZALES)



On December 22, 1976, Joe Crankshaw of the Miami Herald reported:

At least two other persons may have been involved in the December 1975wave of bombings in Miami for which Rolando Otero is to stand trial in FortWalton Beach January 10, 1977, according to court records...An

informant's testimony that he saw Otero, Ricardo Morales, and twounidentified men in a Little Havana Restaurant, discussing bombings, andlater saw Otero outside a washroom at the state attorney's office minutesbefore a bomb exploded there...Other depositions by Metro detectiveDanny Benitez reveal that investigators have been talking to an informantwho has testified that he saw Otero and three other men in a Little Havanarestaurant, discussing the bombings. The informant, identified by othersources as Max Gonzalez, now serving a prison sentence on bad checkcharges, and who is a former associate of FRANK STURGIS - said helater saw Otero in the 6th floor hallway of the Metro Justice Buildingminutes before a bomb exploded in a washroom outside the state

attorney's office. Gonzalez also said that one of the men in the restaurantwas Richardo Morales, expected to be a key witness againstOtero...Gonzalez said Otero, Morales and the two other men werediscussing bombings, and how much dynamite or plastic explosives wouldbe needed. But Gonzalez's testimony to the police differs slightly from anotarized statement he gave to the Miami Herald last October in that hestated he saw the conversation take place in the Rodeo Restaurant andLounge, but his depositions and interviews with police have placed the talkin the Rancho Luna Restaurant. Prosecutors Yoss and Adorno said theydid not expect to call Gonzalez as a witness in the case.

On December 21, 1976, the Miami News reported:

…a confidential informant has told Metro investigators that he sawbombing suspect Rolando Otero near a bathroom in the Dade CountyState Attorney's Office only 30 minutes before a bomb exploded there onDecember 4, 1975, a court deposition reveals. A 150 page transcript oftwo lengthy sessions on December 8, 1976, and December 9, 1976,among Otero, defense attorney William Clay, Assistant State AttorneyGeorge Yoss and Metro Organized Crime Bureau Detective DannyBenitez was filed last week with the county clerk's office. The informant'sstory, if it holds up, could represent new evidence against the 33-year-oldsuspect, who faces trial on nine bombing charges in state court nextmonth. In the transcript, the detective described meeting the informant onthe day after the explosion. He told the detective he had overheardseveral men discussing politics and bombs in Little Havana's RanchoLuna bar-restaurant. One of them was a pock-marked Latin who arguedloudly. A few weeks later the informant said, he twice saw the same mancarrying a package on the sixth floor of the Metro Justice Building. It wasonly 30 minutes before the noon explosion. Subsequently, the detective



said in the deposition, the informant identified Otero's photo as a that ofthe pock-marked man. The informant also later recognized Otero at achance meeting in the Dade County Jail. In August, Otero was acquittedof setting nine bombs in the Miami area after a long trial in Federal Court.The case presented against Otero was largely circumstantial, but the

informant's story puts the suspect close to the bombing scene at a criticalmoment, and could be crucial at his new trial, set to begin January 10,1977.

On January 11, 1977, the Miami Herald reported that the judge inOtero's state trial "instructed the state prosecutors to have aperspective witness, Max Gonzalez, brought from Fort PierceCorrectional Center to Fort Walton Beach so that defense lawyercould quiz him about any testimony he might give at Otero'strial."In February 1971 Maxiam Emilio Gonzales was arrested forGrand Larceny, accused of having stolen $150 from Angel Rosa

during a used car deal. In August 1973 Gonzalez was arrested forpassing a worthless check. In April 1974 Gonzalez was arrestedfor passing a worthless check. In July 1974 Gonzalez wasarrested for passing a worthless check. In June 1975 Gonzalezwas arrested for passing a worthless check. Max Gonzalez

worked with STURGIS on OPERATION SWORD. Max Gonzalez was an informant forDetective Danny Benitez. STURGIS was an informant for Detective Benitez. MaxGonzalez, who had not come forward during the first trial of Rolando Otero, was in jailas usual, facing eight felony charges for passing worthless checks, when heremembered he had overheard Rolando Otero discussing bombings in a Little Havanarestaurant. The man with whom Rolando Otero was discussing the bombing with wasRicardo Morales. What did STURGIS have against Otero? Why did he instructGonzalez to make up this story about Otero? In March 1977, after his conviction, Oterohinted he had inside knowledge of the Kennedy assassination he wished to offer inreturn for a lighter sentence. Was STURGIS aware that Otero was contemplating doingthis in January 1977? HEMMING stated that this was a different Max Gonzalez.

Richardo Morales was scheduled to testify that he heard Rolando Otero boast that heplanted the bombs that exploded in late 1975, however, Morales never appeared. Otherevidence against Rolando Otero included a lift of his thumb print on a remnant from theMiami Airport locker. Otero was only convicted of the Miami Airport bombing.

OTERO TRIES TO MAKE A DEAL WITH THE FBI

In March 1977, Rolando Otero was interviewed in prison awaiting sentencing. The FBIreported on the interview:

On March 1, 1977, ROLANDO OTERO interviewed at the OkaloosaCounty Jail, Crestview, Florida, where he is presently incarcerated waitingsentence following his conviction on state charges relating to bombing



incidents in Miami, Florida, area. Present during interview with Otero wereand Robert Rosenblatt and Bill Clay. These attorneys were present inOkaloosa County, Florida, this date in connection with several motionsfiled in Circuit Court, Shalimar, relating to Otero's state conviction. Otero isscheduled to be sentenced on state charge on March 17, 1977, at

Shalimar, Florida. The presence of these attorneys during interview was attheir request. Attorneys for Rolando Otero stated prior to the interview thatthey had no knowledge as to specifics which Otero was to provide FBIrelating to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

During the interview with Otero, who spoke broken English, Otero allegedthat he had information regarding the Kennedy assassination. Oterodeclined to provide any specific information regarding this matter. Oteroadvised that it was his personal opinion that 'CIA, FBI and Secret Serviceat a high level were involved in the assassination.' When Otero was askedfor specifics as to this opinion, he declined to furnish such information.

Throughout interview, Otero alleged that he had information concerningthe Kennedy assassination that would 'embarrass FBI.'

Initially, Otero advised that he would be willing to testify before the HSCA,headed by Mr. Sprague, concerning the 'concrete' information he had onthe Kennedy assassination. Rolando Otero's condition for this testimonywas for his state conviction on bombing charges to be dismissed by theFBI, or government intervention on his behalf with Florida authorities.

Otero was informed that the FBI could not enter into such an agreement.During the later part of the interview with Otero he related that if this

condition for his information was not met by the end of this week, he wouldthen release information to the media on limited basis concerning theKennedy assassination, and in turn provide similar, but more detailed,information to HSCA. He also claimed at the same time he would furnishother information relating to Cuban activities in South Florida and South

America, which he alleged would be of embarrassment to the FBI.

After the contradiction in his stated intentions in this matter werediscussed with his attorneys it was determined that he initially meant toadvise that he would be willing to withhold information he claimed to haveconcerning the Kennedy assassination, in view of its allegedembarrassment to the Bureau, if the FBI would intervene with stateauthorities concerning the state charge, resulting in the dismissal of thestate charge against him, otherwise he would provide the information hehad in his possession to both the media and the HSCA.

At this point, Otero, with his attorneys present, was specifically andunequivocally advised that the FBI wanted him to furnish any and allinformation he might have relating to the assassination of President John



F. Kennedy and other matters to the HSCA, as a was his stated 'desire'and that the FBI would have no part in his withholding such information.

After this point was made clear to Otero, he advised that in view of this hewould be willing to testify before the HSCA without condition concerning

information relating to the Kennedy assassination, the specifics of whichhe declined to furnish the FBI.

Following this remark, OTERO stated that he had knowledge of a Cubanby the nickname of ―Bambi‖ who was currently in jail in Venezuela chargedwith being involved in the crash of a Cuban airliner. He said that thisindividual had at one time been located in the New York City area and hadalso participated in the 2506 Brigade which participated in the Bay of Pigsinvasion. He said that he would be willing to provide additional informationconcerning this individual to the Congressional Committee.

At the conclusion of interview with Otero he and his attorneys wereinformed that Otero's stated desire to testify before the HSCA would befurnished by FBI to appropriate authorities.

[FBI 62-117290-454X19]

A few weeks later Rolando Otero told a Miami reporter: "The killers of Kennedy are aliveand living in Miami." The testimony of Rolando Otero to the HSCA was classified,although researcher Dick Russell obtained a copy:

They had a rumor in the Cuban community, like Kennedy was a

Communist, he's against us, he's messing up the whole cause. Before theKennedy assassination they called a meeting of these people, and theysaid they had to be ready because there was going to be a coup d'etat inthe United States. [Russell, Man Who Knew Too Much p538]

Rolando Otero told Gaeton Fonzi that Cuban exile Juan Adames (HEMMING claimedthe name was Juan Aldama Abreu) told him that BERNARDO DE TORRES had someconnection with the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Gaeton Fonzi: "FromOtero I got the very detailed contention that, when both were in the Broward County jail,

Adames said that BERNARDO DE TORRES personally knew OSWALD."

MEMO June 15, 1977TO: TannenbaumFROM: FonziRe: Adames & Otero interviews.

Enclosed are rough notes of my latest interviews with Juan Adames andRolando Otero. This was my second interview with both men and the firstwith Adames where I identified myself and my affiliation with the



Committee. The additional information developed in both interviewsstrengthens my opinion that we have a possibly significant new area ofinvestigation which should be given attention.

Here are some of the important points developed in the interview with

Adames:

- His experience in the Dominican Republic revolution reveal MitchWerbell to be an extremely important character in that operation whoseconnections go up to the highest levels of the military-intelligencecommunity.

- Werbell had very close association with Paul Bethel. I have alwaysthought Bethel to be a key figure. He was press attache in the HavanaEmbassy and was probably the CIA's liaison-coordinator with anti-Castrogroups in Miami. He was one of the first persons Veciana was told to see

when he arrived here. Bethel is a very close friend of DAVID PHILLIPSwhom, Bethel himself told me, was working covert propaganda inHavana...

- That DE TORRES himself does have past experience in assassinationinvolvement.

- That Werbell does have a special relationship with Andrew St. George,and that our assumption about that relationship (see Memo May 22, 1977)may be right.

- Although we get a partial corroboration of what Otero had told us Adames had told him about DE TORRES having some connection withthe Kennedy assassination, from Adames we don't get the information thatDE TORRES was involved or that he was on the scene on November 22,1963. That's specifically why I went back to Otero. From him I again gotthe very detailed contention that Adames told him, when both were in theBroward County Jail, that DE TORRES was involved in the Kennedyassassination and that he personally knew LEE HARVEY OSWALD.

Otero said he would be willing to testify under oath to that. Corroboratingto some extent Otero's story is what Otero's girlfriend Kathy told Otero's

lawyer, Bob Rosenblatt, a few weeks ago. She said that during the briefperiod that Adames was out on bond, he came to see her regardingpossibly helping Otero. However, without being asked about it, Kathyvolunteered that Adames seemed interested in what Otero might have toldher about this fellow De TORRES.

Conversely, Adames says nothing to us about meeting Otero in theBroward County jail (though records indicate they were there at the same



time) or his visit to Kathy. I didn't want to question him about it specificallybecause I did not want to reveal to him our lead to him was Otero, and ifwe ever get them both under oath, that could be a significant point to putsome pressure on.

I tend to put more validity to Otero's information since we have made nodeals with him and he has nothing to gain, as a far as a I can see now,from feeding us misinformation. There's a possibility as a far as a I canread it now, that Adames may be weighing the value of his information,holding back to see if the situation will develop where he can get the bestprice or deal for it.

Adames is undoubtedly a con man and there is a risk in using him that hewill sell out, but, on the other hand, he could be of immense value indeveloping the details of DE TORRES possible involvement. On thatassumption, I told him I would make an effort to expedite his situation to

either a work release program or parole. This week he has beentransferred to the Broward County Prison, which may be preliminary toplacing him on the work release program. I'm checking on that, but I wouldlike him to think, it's so, that we had something to do with it. Adames, as aa risk to society, is minimal or nil. I feel we should make an effort toexpedite his situation in order to use him most effectively, or at least dosomething to make him feel we were instrumental in what is going tohappen to him anyway.

I also feel we should perhaps consider at some point a subpoena ducestecum for DE TORRES regarding those photo he allegedly has in his bank

vault. I think we should combine it with a 24-hour surveillance programwhen he gets it. [NARA HSCA 180-10092-10141]

Juan Adames, was incarcerated for possession of a forged driver license. Gaeton Fonzielaborated:

Otero said his source had told him that OSWALD was sent to Russia as aCIA agent. The decision to kill Kennedy was made before OSWALD'Sreturn to the United States. Most of the final planning and coordinationtook place at meetings held at the Dallas YMCA building. BERNARDO DETORRES posed as a photographer in Dealey Plaza on November 22.

Gaeton Fonzi checked with Juan Adames and was told,

I would not put anything past DE TORRES since I know that's the kind ofbusiness he's involved in. He led me to believe he had some photographsfrom down there, but I don't know from when. He said they were in a bankvault. The more I think about it, if DE TORRES was involved in anyway,Mitch Werbell must have been." [Fonzi, Last Investigation Ch. 28]



HEMMING 1994:

Juan Adames worked with Lucian Conein. I did time with Otero.Somebody tried to poison him in the Okalusa County jail. They gave thepoison to the wrong guy and almost killed him. Otero can tell you

something about Dealey Plaza. DE TORRES was military leader of theBrigade in the 1970's. He worked with Anslinger and the Federal Bureauof Narcotics for years. Him and his brother. They worked around GeneMarshall. He is still operational. He had dealt with people like Adamesbefore. DE TORRES don't read this stuff. Unless someone in thegovernment brings it to his attention and that ain't Fonzi's fault or yourfault. I could give a rat's ass for Adames. His case officer will fry. DETORRES did surveillance of OSWALD in New Orleans and in Texas,Dealey Plaza. He don't sue. If you use DE TORRES name, the son-of-a-bitch will kill you. You put that kind of a guy's name on [the Net], the son-of-a-bitch, and you're dead. You wanna be a martyr? This guy is a fucking

professional killer. He won't do it personally. He has people that work forhim. He'll wack your fucking ass in a heartbeat. I wouldn't bandy his nameabout. Fonzi didn't use his name, neither did Propper, a former U.S.

Attorney. [Propper used the name.] I guess they're all cowardly fucksanyway. Maybe you're the only one with any balls? DE TORRES is afraidof me. He think's I'm even more evil than he is. I made him a partner inParabellum, and got him on Werbell's payroll. That's a long story. It hasnothing to do with JFK yet. The HSCA wouldn't give him immunity, so hewouldn't talk.

In March 1977 Rolando Otero was sentenced to 40 years. Released from prison in the

late 1980's, he attempted to extort money from his lawyers by threatening to bombthem. State and federal warrants were issued for his arrest. As of 1996 Rolando Oterowas a fugitive. HEMMING intimated that the DE TORRES brothers might have beenindividuals who offed many JFK witnesses:

I don't see people on the periphery, people that don't have a direct link.People that couldn't prove shit, they just fill in blanks, what with the nastyFBI running around talking to everyone's dog, putting shit together, whowould feel threatened? Not the real shooters. They could give a fuck. Butwho's out there that feels threatened that may have been running dope, ordoing all kinds of crazy shit, who is somebody now. Who is somebodynow? Who is somebody in the fucking community now? I know one ofthem made money in the dope trade and turned that money around andused it against Fidel again. The Contras. And these people livecomfortably. Their associates are politically prominent. They coulderroneously say, 'This guy could cause us a problem.' There are cold-blooded motherfuckers out there that do this shit for practice. It don't meannothing to them. I mean these people love their work. Good thing the

American people don't know about it.



It depends on how the job was done. Shooting a guy with a rifle - that'sCuban. Karate chop, Jim Koethe, he's linked to me cause he interviewedme in 1963 when I went through Dallas. [Koethe, a reporter, was killed bya karate chop to the neck in Dallas on September 21, 1964. His murderremained unsolved.] If you're talking about someone who had an apparent

heart attack or something, those are the Cuban technicians.

BERNARDO DE TORRES AND INTERPEN MEMBER ED COLLINS

BERNARDO DE TORRES fit HEMMING'S description although I have no evidence DETORRES ever committed a crime. The CIA reported: "In conversation Subject stated heis private detective employed by U.S. Government and is sales supervisor for Central

and South American of Defense System International. Has suspicious visitors and thereare rumors that he and brother involved in illegal activity." [CIA 201-295213]

Bernardo de Torres: The Gusano Who Killed the JFK Witnesses

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