Brendan Boucher

I have been reading your blog Larry, great stuff, glad to know more is coming! I listened to a podcast you and David were on as well. Suffice to say I cannot stop thinking about these connections. Gene Wheaton was a man in an incredibly unique position to obtain unguarded first hand knowledge of some of the most pivotal yet lesser know events in modern history. It's not difficult to understand why Carl Jenkins decided long ago this chapter of his life was closed and that any efforts to drudge up these matters would be met with hostility. From the 2005 Wheaton interview I believe he says he was somehow trying to broker immunity through Sen. Hugh Scott of Penn. I got the impression that this was during the mid 80's but Sen Scott's last year in office was 1977. Possibly he was still trying to use his clout in 85-86? Whatever it was he was clear that Jenkins in no uncertain terms said he would not be involved. Even the knowledge that Wheaton thought this might have been possible likely unsettled Mr Jenkins.

Oh yes, I have been devouring any and all threads mentioning Wheaton or Jenkins since Mr Simkin posted last week. Thank you all for your efforts. Are there likely records concerning Jenkins that are still classified because he is alive?

I am fascinated by Carl Elmer Jenkins and Gene Wheaton right now. The information relayed through his (Gene's) taped interviews is utterly priceless and makes SO MUCH sense when looking back at the Guatemala-Iraq period of US history. I realize the absolute specifics are few, and that stands to reason. He emphatically says at one point in his interview, 'It's not like somebody sat me down and explicitly laid out what happened in 1963', he was able to piece together what happened through decades of conversation both to and around him by covert operators at that time. Is there any reason to doubt Gene Wheaton? I also find it amazing that Carl Jenkins was able to avoid the "spotlight" for so long, even though it's only like the dim flickering of a lighter actually... The guy responsible for the recruitment of BOP participants, who ran Maritime operations against Cuba for years, and was training a rifle assassination team to eliminate Castro in 1963 was basically unknown to researchers until 2005? I suppose it was his ability to fall into what appears to be a fairly normal existence in the 1970's right until the present day that enabled this invisibility. I believe he is still alive and must still be protected by certain (most?) doc releases, correct? Although it seems clear Carl Jenkins was highly unlikely to discuss his life/career with anyone outside his immediate circle of family and friends, it's hard to understand the (apparent) inaction of Anne Buttimer of the ARRB when dealing with Gene Wheaton. The fact that she left the Board and is apparently unwilling/unable to discuss Mr Wheaton is a bit peculiar. It's impossible to believe that someone could forget such allegations during a face to face interview. Daniel Sheehan's book look's to cover a critical juncture in the live's of Wheaton and Jenkins. The copy online leaves out the page right after Elisabeth Jenkins, herself a high ranking CIA psychologist, gives her husband the OK to work with Wheaton and Sheehan in an effort to blow the lid off Iran-Contra (among other goals). I've ordered a copy and hope to learn a good deal more concerning this matter. Are there indications that Wheaton and Jenkins had a falling out after this jaw-dropping scandal was (sort-of) exposed? Possibly due to the way that Sheehan handled it? Any info on Jenkins or Wheaton would be gladly welcomed.

Would we expect the Cultural Attache to have had any encounters with the individual identified as Oswald on 9/27? And on that same page above he reports that Duran confirmed the Visa visit. I was going through these reports last night and I just come away thinking, what was this all for? Obviously in the midst of the Cold War these people thought they were doing their part to take down the monstrous USSR and it's Communist brethren. But in the end the information gleaned from the extensive surveillance operations around the Globe, and Mexico City in particular, amounted to a hill of beans. It's truly hard to fathom the amount of time and energy that went into these colossal intelligence gathering efforts and in the highest profile investigation ever undertaken they are shown by the historical record to be little more than Keystone Cops. Whether that was actually the case or a gigantic ruse is a worthy debate and the MEXI Station should really face much more scrutiny on this front. Alberu does have some interesting observations of Azcue, Mirabal, and Duran in early November 63 though.

I base my opinions on common sense in this matter and am not casting aspersions on anyone. Nobody was being granted travel to/through/or around Cuba when taking the course of action exhibited by the individual who frequented the Cuban and Russian embassies on 9/27/1963. I say "individual" because I can allow for a scenario where Oswald was impersonated from the get-go in Mexico. However, I'm not ready to go down the rabbit hole where the CIA has the chutzpah and the means to falsify foreign documents from a government who happens to be an avowed adversary, whose original copies they have no control over, and who would then "play along" again in 1978 (and to this present day) when they produced a different page/copy of the same document package.

George, I don't follow your logic with regards to the existing documents. The WC received photos of Cuban documents. If they then altered these photographs and published them, wouldn't Castro/Cuba jump at the opportunity to embarrass the United States and their sham investigation. I'm truly baffled by the suggestion that it "really doesn't matter" to the Cuban Gov't whether their documents were forged or falsified as depicted in the Warren Report volumes. And the idea that Cuba actually did grant Oswald a Visa is ludicrous.

Hi George, I've based my statement that he was denied on the document in Commission Exhibit 2564. https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=1141#relPageId=846&tab=page The next page is a translation explaining what he had been told several times in Mexico, "let us know when the USSR will have him for a visit and then he can swing through Cuba." The reason why I accept the Cuban documents is because I cannot seriously entertain the possibility that Castro wanted Kennedy dead. Therefore I don't see the documents as "covering their tracks" of any kind.

I sincerely applaud your work on this matter. I'm not sure how anyone could read your series and conclude that Lee Oswald, or anybody at all, could have made the trip laid out in the Warren Report. You've literally put that one to bed. I do find PDS' work on Mexico City fascinating and much of it makes sense. Thank you for this debate, I think Mexico City is central to understanding the forces at play in this drama. It is disconcerting though that so many people have worked at this angle for so long and yet there are so precious few concrete facts available.

Then why has Cuba been playing along with this charade since 1964? The Warren Commision exhibit is a photo of a photo sent from Havana. I find it inconceivable that this image could be altered and Castro would go along with it.

It doesn't matter where the photos originated. For the purpose of establishing Oswald's presence in the Cuban Consulate on 9/27 they stand as the best evidence. David asks if I can imagine a scenario where the Oswald photographs are added to a blank application that unknown individuals have procured, filled out with the same kind of typewriter used in the Consulate, somehow signed by Consul Mirabal, sent to Havana, processed and stamped on 10/10, then finally denied on 10/15 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I mean, I suppose it's not completely out of the realm of possibilities. Surely it is easier to believe than the US altering the documents and photos that were provided to the WC by Cuba. I'm not saying I'm certain Oswald was in Mexico, as I think out and out impersonation is nearly as likely. But to rule it out completely and invalidate the Visa Application as a historical document on account of minutiae from Duran's 1978 testimony is unwise in my opinion. Especially as she does not unequivocally say the LHO killed in Dallas was not in her office on multiple occasions.

I fail to see how the location of where the photos were obtained is of any consequence. Minsk, NO, or Mexico, the crux of the matter is this. How would Oswald's photo be present on a document coming out of Havana, Cuba if it was not provided to their Mexican Consulate on September 27, 1963?

In CE 2564 I think you can make out where a staple once was. And as these would have been from a photo strip, naturally there will be differences. Just to be clear though David, you believe the Visa application images in existence today are not what was completed on 9/27/63? That somehow Cuban files were manipulated?

I just find it hard to envision a scenario where the Cuban Consulate in Mexico forwarded an application to Havana that did not contain a photograph. And if they actually did, then it's even more bizarre that the US would be able to doctor the documents (actually photos of documents) without any protestation from Cuba. We know that the application packet consisted of 6 pages/layers and that at least 3 variations of the application would be made in one sitting. This is obvious when you compare the images provided to the Warren Commission and then to the HSCA by the Cuban government. I don't have an issue with the absence of staples/staple holes in one of the photos either. Different photographs were used for different copies of the application. And I think you can actually see where a staple may have once been on CE 2564 anyway. I have no problem accepting that US Government documents were tampered with regularly, but I have serious doubts that pictures of Oswald were somehow added after the photographs of original Cuban documents were obtained. To me, this is THE main sticking point of the "Oswald never went to Mexico" version of events, because it is not inconceivable to me that he may have been transported surreptitiously without leaving a documented trace. If we allow for the idea that Oswald was never in Mexico, I would think that an impersonator using pictures of Oswald to apply is more likely than after the fact additions/alterations.

As always, great documentation David. How do we explain the application filed by Sylvia Duran which was then sent and processed in Havana? Was it an Oswald impostor/lookalike in and out of the Consulate that day? I think we all agree that these interactions occurred between Duran and someone. I'm just having a great deal of trouble working out how an impersonation fits in here with the shenanigans that ensued in the days and weeks to follow in the MEXI Station. If we accept that someone other than the LHO killed in Dallas was in the Cuban Consulate filing paperwork I think this action must have been perpetrated from outside the framework of the main assassination plot.

Jim, I'm not commenting directly on the OP here. I was going off something David Lifton said and I am merely speculating. To even entertain this line of thinking one must assume Oswald was in Mexico City at some point. I'm not trying to impugn anyone's work in this field, just trying to add something to the debate. On Azcue, I'm not implying any sort of Cuban connection, just that I find his testimony of little consequence.

To me, Azcue's testimony to the HSCA is worthless. There is no incentive whatsoever for him to confirm that it was indeed Oswald in the Consulate and every reason to throw some gum in the works. He'd been in Cuba since before the assassination of course and why would he not take this opportunity to take a shot at the US. The fact that he has "Oswald" in a blue "Prince of Wales" suit is not very convincing when coupled with the photos eventually affixed to the application. As for Duran, her testimony certainly leans toward LHO having been present in front of her multiple times. And there can be no doubt that someone went to the Cuban Consulate and filled out a Visa form with Oswald's information. Is it your supposition that someone eerily similar to Oswald may have been that man causing somewhat of a scene in the Consulate?

Part of the scenario that Mr Lifton lays out has been discussed here before and I think it makes the most sense. Oswald was possibly caught on camera with someone whose identity, if disclosed, would make a Lone Nut assassin case impossible. But I do not think this would have been a mistake by any means. I believe Oswald and unknown compatriot(s) may have been deliberately inserted into the record by a different faction of operatives. Operatives who would have facilitated his entry and departure from Mexico without leaving documentation. I cannot profess to know the exact reasons this might have been done but it does help explain what ensued. By most accounts the agents working in Mexico City (and with MEXI from DC) were extremely competent at their jobs and were generally intelligent people. The extant record displaying their handling of the Oswald in Mexico saga paints them as bumbling idiots. Were they truly inept? Or were they willing to look inept in order to cover up something far more important? The documented cable traffic is literally laughable. For almost two months they play this charade where surely at least one of the parties knows damn well they're talking about the wrong man. There simply must be a reason that the MEXI Station had to obscure the fact that they did not have photos of Oswald on the dates they said they did and that their matching of voice to picture was obviously erroneous. I think what makes the most sense here is that Official Washington needed this "loose end" until after the assassination. When word started whipping around that Oswald had been in Mexico and may have met with Kostikov/Dept 13/KGB/Cuba figures, that was really all that was needed to ensure most people fell in line. It was far more preferable to have a Lone Assassin than to have had the Commies knock off the President, and everything that would entail. If the Oswald mis-identification had been exposed pre-assassination there had to have been a chance it would have disrupted the plot with him as a patsy. This to me explains the ham-handed, ever shifting cover up of the true details of Ozzie in Mexico. DJ, I know you have done exhaustive work on Oswald's supposed adventure to and from Mexico City and you are convinced the trip was never made. One of the main things that makes me believe Oswald did actually apply for a Visa is that the application, with his picture attached made it to Cuba and was then viewed in the 70's. If Oswald did not apply for that Visa you would have to accept that either Sylvia Duran filed an application for someone whose picture did not match the person in front of her or that somehow Cuban files were doctored after the fact to include Oswald's photo. Mexico City (like everything else) is a complete morass, but if any sense can ever be made of the machinations that unfolded there in late September-early October 1963 then you are a long way to understanding the entire plot, planners, and personages intimately involved with the assassination. FWIW - I enjoy and respect Bill Simpich's work on Mexico City but this idea of a "Molehunt" which once made some sense to me just does't anymore. Not to mention that the term "Molehunt" hardly fits the description of any operations supposedly run by Angleton, etc. after Oswalds appearances/phone calls in Mexico, does it?

Doesn't seem to be much out there regarding LICOZY Apparently the Steve Kenin from Philly who went to Temple, was photographed with Castro, rode his motorcycle around Mexico, and whose name is phonetically identical to the mystery "Kennan" has no connection to this program?

What if the original goal of Oswald's venture to Mexico was indeed to obtain a visa? The fact that the visa application sent to Cuba in 1963 and seen firsthand by Congressional investigators in the 70's was affixed with Oswald's photograph is strong evidence that he was the individual in and out of the Cuban consulate several times on Sept. 27th. Is it reasonable to think that equipped with a number of documents displaying his communist bona fides his handlers believed he might actually be able to procure a visa in Mexico for travel to Cuba? One can imagine the operational possibilities from there if successful. In this scenario Oswald is shepherded into Mexico City in an unknown fashion, surreptitiously, and is probably there on the 27th only. Whether he avoided Embassy surveillance, there was no surveillance, or surveillance was buried is really anybody's guess. Having all hope extinguished of receiving a visa though, it was necessary for those with knowledge of the situation to enact a plan B. Or, in an equally likely scenario the gambit was piggybacked or hi-jacked by those with high level intelligence connections. I think either would explain the incredibly disjointed goings on from September 28th forward. And also the unconvincing paper trail, having been made as an afterthought. It has been noted that David Phillips cited Anne Goodpasture with having discovered Oswald at the Cuban Embassy. It's a pretty puzzling statement considering the events that followed. But what if this is a nod to a lesser known history? What if by the morning of September 28th Goodpasture/MEXI/Others have made the connection? "Holy sh*t!, it's Oswald!!" They're presented with a golden opportunity. Silvia Duran and Oswald are duly impersonated Saturday morning with the dead giveaway being that she is referred to as "someone later identified as Silvia Duran". The transcribers know Silvia Duran's voice. And Oswald did not speak broken Russian. But anyway it's now entered into the record that "Oswald" has visited both the Cuban and Soviet embassies, and that he would be having further visits. A good deal of evidence exists that there is at least one missing call that discussed "Oswald's" need for financial assistance but the coup de grace was delivered in the second October 1st phony call that elicited the name Kostikov from the Soviets which was quickly followed by "My Name is Oswald". Those with knowledge of TUMBLEWEED would make sure their Kostikov knowledge would stay hidden until the appropriate time. If our Intelligence Agencies had been acting in good faith it's inconceivable that this information would not have set off alarms in early October 1963. Instead what we have following these events appears to be an enormous charade. Which actually helps immensely when trying to explain certain actions. How else can we accept Goodpasture/MEXI equating a phone call with an image from a different date? And why wouldn't HQ send a picture of Oswald to Mexico City? If the goal was to make sure the fable coming out of MEXI stayed attached to LHO then it makes sense. Taking this one step further, and I have no idea whether this was part of the original plan or not, but if we assume Oswald was supposed to be killed in a setup/shootout scenario on the 22nd, then what are the chances a picture of Oswald shows up in Dallas from Mexico in the wee hours of the 23rd?

Ah yes, thanks Sandy! Somebody possessing Oswald's documents was in and out of the Consulate at least twice on the 27th. Frame "13" which is distorted or whited out is listed as "Man Leaving" at 11:40 might be of interest still. Azcue's testimony is interesting DJ. Amazing to me though that the first time he saw Oswald's image was on a newsreel of him being slain by Ruby. Cuban TV or Newspapers were not showing the image of Kennedy's killer? He does seem pretty convinced though. This response was fairly amusing. http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/russ/jfkinfo/hscaascu.htm Another item touched on briefly in the testimony is the somewhat bizarre scenario where a "Non-Oswald" character was told to procure a photograph for his Visa application and then this impostor returns with actual pictures Lee Harvey Oswald and Sylvia Duran affixes the photo and processes the application without issue. Azcue chalks it up to a simple mistake, while conceding it's possible he is mistaken as well.

I won't feign to know exactly what the plotters had in mind. The point I was trying to make is that I highly doubt the call linking Oswald and Kostikov was a legitimate intelligence operation. This was a golden opportunity to connect an extremely rare bird in Oswald and a KGB officer associated with Dept. 13. If LHO was never used we would have never heard about the call/incident so what was the risk in planting that time bomb?

David, have you seen slides 8 and 14 that aren't completely whited out? Because somebody did go into the Consulate and discuss Visas with Silvia Duran right? I'm not implying this was necessarily Oswald I'm just wondering why those 2 frames don't show anything? I wonder about Silvia Duran as well. She seemed to believe that the man who's image was splashed across the TV for days was the man who attempted to obtain travel documents in her office. If this was not the same person, was there truly an impostor that was so similar to Oswald that Duran was unable to recognize the difference? Her treatment at the hands of the authorities is pretty appalling and I have no doubt that certain statements could have been coerced out of her, but I'm not aware of her raising the specter the the man she interacted with in late Sep. was not the man who was being shown on television. The other thing that bugs me about the "Oswald never went" scenario is that we know these initial visits ascribed to LHO are fairly innocuous. It's all about Visas, and we know for sure because the Cubans and Russians are taking about it back and forth on tapped lines. It isn't until the Kostikov bomb is dropped in the absurd Oct. 1 call that things become much more vague and potentially sinister. To me it makes far more sense that "they" would piggyback on top of an actual Oswald visit. In my mind the only way an LHO visit works is if he is driven down and then driven back in fairly short order. I trust Mr Joseph's painstaking research on this matter. I had entertained this possibility but I find it very unlikely that this was a MEXI Station operation. They had impersonated Cuban Embassy personnel over the phone in July to snag Eldon Hensen and Headquarters was not at all pleased that they would risk the LIENVOY operation to dupe this Texas cattle rancher. And they knew what the Unidentified American had discussed in the Embassies anyway, Visas. The October 1st call was almost assuredly used to plant a virus, because without the Kostikov-Oswald connection there is hardly anything nefarious going on. Those names having been uttered together sent shockwaves through certain corridors post-assassination. The people in the know pre-assassination would make much of this supposed link later on when they needed to push the hypothetical LHO/Russia/Cuba conspiracy. It strikes me that a "Mexico Mystery Men" thread may be necessary because it seems nigh on impossible to nail down who was doing what when in MC.

I'm having a hard time placing Win Scott as one of the star conspirators. Which is exactly what he would have to be if at anytime before the assassination he knew the Mystery Man was not Oswald. The cable traffic from Mexico indicates they are absolutely clueless about the machinations unfolding. MEXI 7019 is a shining example. On the night of November 22nd they cable HQ as if they've made a big discovery that the guy they think may be Oswald in the early October photos was captured on October 15th in front the Cuban Embassy as well. They cable some useless info about people flying out of Mexico in November with somewhat similar names to LHO in MEXI 7020. And then to top it off they send a bunch of photos up to Dallas that could really only ever cause problems. You've got to wonder why Eldon Rudd ends up showing one to Marguerite Oswald unless they were indeed thought of as relevant. I just can't conceive of a scenario where they let these images of an individual who is actually known to them (and known not to be Oswald) enter the fray. Therefore, I'm not convinced that Scott's memo to J.C. King is proof positive that they know the true identity of the Mystery Man. On Anne Goodpasture, I'm of the mind that she was taking orders. I found a passage of her testimony to Jeremy Gunn interesting and revealing though. Precisely. I've never understood why anybody involved wouldn't have wanted this image out. Surely they could have cropped other individuals out if necessary. To me it's more likely that Oswald was supposed to be photographed but wasn't than it is likely that he actually was photographed when he wasn't supposed to be. And thanks for the welcome DJ!

When analyzing the saga of the so-called "Mystery Man" of Mexico City it is hard to come to any other conclusion than that there were some serious shenanigans going on at HQ to make sure MEXI Station doesn't figure out that this character who they have extensive surveillance of is not Oswald. How else is it possible that Mexico City sends pictures to Dallas on the 22nd of this individual because they STILL think it may be LHO? I mean when you think about this it is ridiculous. Headquarters knows full well the description of the individual that MEXI thinks might be Oswald is not accurate, at all. When a photo is requested from HQ for comparison they refuse to send one of the several they have on file. Instead they ask the Navy for an image of Lee Henry Oswald. It is received November 26th in Mexico City. I find the fairly extensive series of Mystery Man photos remarkable for many reasons. To think they were able to capture so many perfect photos of this person on October 2nd, 4th, and 15th but unable to secure a single snap of Oswald on the 27th or 28th of September truly beggars belief. But I'm starting to think this may actually be the case. And I'm also leaning towards the likeliness that this gentleman truly was, and always will be a mystery. Notebooks full of MM photos: https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=4172#relPageId=7&tab=page The Mexico City Station looks incompetent in this ordeal. The fact that this guy who was in and out of the Soviet and Cuban Embassies multiple times over a two week span was mistaken for Lee Harvey Oswald right up until the assassination is a stinging indictment of the operation down there. Of course in that day and age they needed cooperation from HQ which they did not receive. Obviously this was not lost on the plotters.

I recently stumbled across the documents recounting this incident and CIA HQ's response. I think there are some interesting things we can learn from the affair. Here is Mexico City's cable to HQ concerning their effort's to ensnare Hensen. Job well done boys! Who knows what Eldon is planning to move "from one place to another"?!? Turns out HQ doesn't quite see it that way. A pretty scathing dispatch is sent back to Mexico City and the implications may be instructive to help us understand future conduct. Mexico City acknowledges HQ's misgivings in their July LIENVOY report. I have seen it suggested here and the few other places this episode is detailed that because the CIA Mexico City Station used assets to impersonate others in the Hensen case that it increases the possibility that it might have been the CIA themselves impersonating Oswald in the Oct. 1st-Kostikov calls. Those that cling to the official tale might say that this was the CIA just doing their job, trying to gain additional intel on the recent American visitor. Based on these documents I find it unlikely that the MEXI Station had anything to do with the bogus Oswald calls and that they were placed for far more nefarious purposes. Is there any additional information out there about Mr Hensen? Ironic that he was concerned abut visiting the Embassy because a spy might see him but he accepted calls and meetings from complete strangers. Judging from the Mexico City Station's performance on Oswald, Mystery Man, and others unknown, he would have been much better off just turning up at the Embassy and offering his services in person.