Leslie Sharp

1 hour ago, Paul Cummings said:

Yes. Apparently he had numerous relationships with other banks including Bank of America.

Hopefully the following won't be construed as an attempted diversion a-la "the tramps in Dealey", but it might (or might not) help to flesh out candidates for who ran the Tramp Diversion — considering your candidate Twombly specifically. (hope you'll indulge the personal anecdotes but they're important to establishing context.)

Bruce Twombly was legal counsel to Professional Travel Service located on the 7th floor of Two Turtle Creek Village in the mid-'70s. PTS's primary clients were the national accounts for the American Society of Petroleum Engineers and the American Soceity of Petroleum Geologists.  The favored destination of both societies in the mid-'70s was the Canary Islands off the coast of Spain, possibly influenced by Fort Worth oilman Sid Richardson's established presence on one of the major islands since the late 1940s.  Arch Swank, architect for his Canary compound was married to Patsy Swank, stringer for LIFE Magazine and was the catalyst for Dick Stolley to secure the Z film on behalf of C.D. Jackson.

(Sid Richardson along with his relatives, the Bass's, was an infamous gambling buddy of oilman Clint Murchison, notorious for having been a benefactor for J. Edgar Hoover's annual trips to Del Mar — an interesting history in light of recent revelations that developer of the Dallas Trade Mart, Trammell Crow's son, Harlan, has been a similar benefactor for one of our Supreme Court Justices, Clarence Thomas for years.)

Major Ralph Ganis reveals that the Skorzeny Papers indicate that Otto Skorzeny and Jean Rene Souetre traveled to the Canaries in 1962/1963.

Travel agency PTS hired contract travel agents to service their preferred clients: one was Eleanor Weber whose son Garry Weber would later serve on the founding board of the 6th Floor Museum; the other was Mitzi Calder, wife of independent oilman Bruce Calder who sublet the small office in the Republic National Bank building from his good friend George de Mohrenschildt.  On at least one occasion while I was employed as the assistant to the president of PTS, Bruce and George dropped in to pick Mitzi up for lunch.  I later discovered that our receptionist lived within a block of the de Mohrenschildts on Travis.

@Paul Cummings This circuitous route to your "Twombly" who you suspect as having "handled" Holt's role in the diversion is likely nothing other than a string of pure coincidence and totally unrelated to the tramps in Dealey. I trust it does, however, highlight the interconnectedness of the Dallas socio-political dynamics that ruled well into the 1970s and quite likely impacted the efforts of both the Church Committee and HSCA.

"oil smoothes the way for sudden and sometimes deadly change." — Rene Lafitte



 

Now, back to nuts and bolts off the crime.

@Evan Marshall did your sniper friend identify his preferred weapon for the Dealey hit?  And in your experience, isn't it possible to match fragments with specific fire arms and why hasn't that stone been turned beyond the rifle found in TSBD?  Don't snipers have favorite rifles? My PI in Boston calls his "gladys". Has anyone studied the preferred weapons of known European snipers? And, in your experience, do snipers choose their weapon relevant to a specific assignment, or do they accept any rifle shoved in their hands the morning of the assassination?

On 7/15/2023 at 4:23 PM, Paul Brancato said:

First sentence - what did Lafitte and Angleton correspond about and when? Did I miss this in Coup in Dallas? Do you have the documents? 

1 hour ago, Evan Marshall said:

We discussed this in the past and I've read the book that some folks seem to be in love and remain unconvinced. When I have a source who produced gas and motel/ hotel receipts from Reno, Nevada to Dallas, Texas, just prior to the assassination who was a US special forces sniper a bunch of old Nazi's become too unlikely for me to find real.

But @Evan Marshall How is that evidence that those who produced gas and motel/hotel receipts, just prior to the assassination and happened also to be a US special forces sniper, prove that those identified by Lafitte weren't the shooters in Dealey? I don't understand the logic, let alone the detective work. But you're a trained detective so I defer to your thought process to a degree.

11 minutes ago, David Josephs said:

In the research I have been doing over the last 2 years I am finding there are those who managed the DPD aspect of the cover-up were in at least 2 camps... The "Will Fritz always gets his man" camp and a "Military intelligence" camp.

The latter being controlled from outside the department as you say...  letting Ruby in to kill Oswald was a Fritz/Westbrook/Croy thing.  It is Croy who puts the Tippit/Hidell wallet into Westbrook's hands.

On the other hand there was an entire Military Intel contingency within the DPD along with an FBI-backed one.  I'd agree the tramps were somehow directed by this faction and not the Fritz one.

But why so overtly parade them?
Was there any other news coverage of these men?  If not, it would suggest the timing was much later in the day than acknowledged and I believe suggested by the change in the shadows as someone posted.

If they were outside assets (with Lansdale allowed to walk past an officer with a rifle and right next to 3 men supposedly suspected of the assassination) why allow them to be photographed?

Harkness says more tramps were removed from the train(s) than just these 3 - yet again, when?

Who do you see as the force behind the Military faction - The Lt Colonels @Steve Thomas has brought to light?

 

David, we also have Col. Sam Kail.  I hope @Robert Montenegro is following this thread because he has identified documents to support the significance of Kail appearing in private records that also name Cols. Crichton and Brandstetter as well as "de Mohrenschildt" and Col. Lawrence Orlov - both known to have "known" Lee Oswald btw.

4 minutes ago, David Josephs said:

In the research I have been doing over the last 2 years I am finding there are those who managed the DPD aspect of the cover-up were in at least 2 camps... The "Will Fritz always gets his man" camp and a "Military intelligence" camp.

The latter being controlled from outside the department as you say...  letting Ruby in to kill Oswald was a Fritz/Westbrook/Croy thing.  It is Croy who puts the Tippit/Hidell wallet into Westbrook's hands.

On the other hand there was an entire Military Intel contingency within the DPD along with an FBI-backed one.  I'd agree the tramps were somehow directed by this faction and not the Fritz one.

But why so overtly parade them?
Was there any other news coverage of these men?  If not, it would suggest the timing was much later in the day than acknowledged and I believe suggested by the change in the shadows as someone posted.

If they were outside assets (with Lansdale allowed to walk past an officer with a rifle and right next to 3 men supposedly suspected of the assassination) why allow them to be photographed?

Harkness says more tramps were removed from the train(s) than just these 3 - yet again, when?

Who do you see as the force behind the Military faction - The Lt Colonels @Steve Thomas has brought to light?

 

You're speaking of the 488th, which by some accounts was merely nominal; however, it was credible enough to have been one of the two Texas MI units invited to train at the Pentagon in summer of 1963.  The other dozen or more units were training in far less interesting locations.

If we are to accept that Col. Jack Crichton and Col. Frank "Brandy" Brandstetter were leading figures in the 488th — and most agree Crichton established the unit himself, with the mandate of protecting interests of the petroleum industry per sé — then we have at least two prime candidates for managing (from some distance) diversions like the tramps that involved DPD.

23 minutes ago, Paul Cummings said:

Holt says he owned the University Bank of Fullerton which served as a conduit for CIA funds. Twombly also worked as Executive VP for Caribbean Operations of Coca Cola. 

Let me check spelling.  I knew an attorney in Dallas the mid-'70s who served as general counsel to the Turtle Creek Travel agency that handled the national accounts of the petroleum engineers and geologists.  It sounds like mere dot connecting, but I for one turn every stone.

Fullerton CA presumably? 

The Dallas Twombly family is directly related to the Vanderbilts a.k.a. Whitney and Freeport Sulphur.  I'm sure we can identify at least three degrees of separation from Caribbean Ops of Coca Cola! 🙂

5 minutes ago, David Josephs said:

If we can believe Chambers.

Understood... that's why I said No to #2, I didn't see how one would affect the other.

So. Don't these official records insist that DPD writ large was following a semblance of protocol and the majority were completely ignorant they were being played? Those directly involved or at best knowledgable were among a tight cadre being managed by someone outside the department. 

6 minutes ago, Keyvan Shahrdar said:

I think, but don't quote me on it.  Bard, the AI for google is searching the archive database and is getting the meta data from the entries of the documents that have not been released.  The other explanation is that bard is hallucinating and making up document numbers that do not exist.  Personally, I think that the archive has released the meta data of the documents that have not been released either on purpose or by mistake.

Fascinating! Truth Will Out though the heavens may fall.

Or, it's the latest operation — this time AI —  to confuse and kick the can down the road in hopes that there's a smoking gun if only Biden would conform.

19 minutes ago, David Josephs said:

{my bold emphasis}

I'm sorry Steve... there is no record of the men being paraded thru DP other than the photos.  There are no mug shots or fingerprint cards for these 3 arrested tramps?  @Leslie Sharp "Capt Jones assigned to watch 3 hobos dirty"

I don't see how your posts explains 2 arrests on the 22nd of the same tramps.  Sorry

 

Jones visibly shaken suggests he played no role other than that required under the circumstances. Process of elimination.

20 minutes ago, David Josephs said:

I can definitely accept there was something behind that parade...  that it would have any bearing on the ballistics or forensics... I don't see how...  can you help me understand?

David, I meant that the forensics and ballistics seem to have overlapped in this thread, and I would hope we could stay focused on the potential implications of who managed the tramps and that episode, specifically.

Just now, Paul Cummings said:

You asked who might responsible for their appearance and according to Holt he got his instructions from Twombly. 

Sorry, Paul, I meant to ask can you elaborate on Twombly's backstory and who might have directed him to direct Holt?  An effort to work up the food chain maybe?

7 minutes ago, David Josephs said:

Hi Leslie...  these tramps were never arrested... they were just paraded thru DP for some odd reason...  no one had a squad car to take them? when virtually every other person involved was transported in a car.

Do you think any of those 3 men had a role in the assassination?

note: just like manhole cover bullet guy and Mexico's Mystery Man, can we really say we have actually identified them correctly?

So the answer to your 1st Q is yes...  and No to the 2nd.. at this point

Thanks, David,

In response to your response to Q1: I agree.  To Q2: I disagree.

If the Tramps were mere diversion "for some odd reason",  and paraded by Wise and B. knowing they didn't have a squad car to take them, does that not suggest the episode was orchestrated by "someone" and adding weight to who Wise and B reported to directly?

Steve listed a number of other DPD, and I noted that one might well be familiar with FBI SA Bard Odum ... a prime suspect for hands-on maintenance on the ground of all things suspect in early hours of investigation.

13 minutes ago, Paul Cummings said:

Phillip Twombly for Holt

Elaborate? Who might have been in direct command of Twombly?

Pierre Lafitte under the alias Jean M. Martin was conveniently spirited out of New Orleans seven months following Shaw's acquittal, never to be heard from again with exception of a few sightings.

"Lafitte, Jean-Pierre 66, chef at the Plimsoll Club whose cooking has been praised by no less than Ladybird Johnson. Known locally as Jean M. Martin, arraigned in Boston on 1962 indictment charging fraud of speculator Ralph L. Loomis of more than $300,000 in South African mineral rights and diamond mining deal. Trial set for 1/12 in federal court, Boston. Arrested 12/5 by FBI, for which he was for some years an informant in its swindling investigations. Charged also with jumping bail on the 1962 charges of mail fraud. Loomis, of Kittery Point. ME, died about a year ago. Pleads innocent to bail jumping charge. ($7,000) New Orleans States-Item, 12/22-23/69 Lafitte goes on trial in Boston. Lives Armonk, NY fraud charge now down to $100,000. Feds say he has used many names and came to New Orleans Plimsoll Club about two years ago, brought by management firm which has operating contract. Feds say he jumped $50,000 bail in 1963. New Orleans States-Item, 1/12/70 Trial postponed indefinitely in Boston, no explanation in story with no dateline. Feds say after he jumped bail on the original charge he toured Africa, Europe and the Bahamas for five years. New Orleans States-Item, 1/13/70"

This is an appropriate opportunity to review the story that when Richard Helms realized photos of Lafitte had been circulating, he sent agents around to confiscate any photographs they could find. 

Is anyone interested in who might have been responsible for the tramps appearance and arrest in Dealey? Would that inquiry move the investigation along beyond the decades-long debate over ballistics and forensics?

21 hours ago, Ron Bulman said:

This is interesting.  No Cubans used as shooters?  Makes sense per Harvey's notes about using foreign assassins.  The Cubans that might have been used, from Operation 40 were at that time Cuban refugee's, residing in the United States.  Some of the groups of them were known for their independence, taking the CIA's money but not following orders well.  E.G. the need for Joannadies being put in place to calm them down/straighten them up.  Other stuff.

I had never read of Hank working in the Whitehouse.  I wondered what administration, in what capacity?  I found his obituary. It said he was 72 when he passed, doing the math he would have been 16 in 1963.  Reading on it mentions him working in the Carter Whitehouse, but not what he did.

Thanks, Ron.

And of equal if not far more significance is that Hank had access to at least TWO pieces of correspondence from Lafitte to CI James Angleton related to the assassination.  

Also, this particular note should dispel theories that Cuban Nationals, exiled in the US, were tapped as shooters in Dealey.  The extent of their possible employment within the support teams, a.k.a. "swamp groups" referred to in Lafitte's Oct. 9 entry, leaves the door open that certain skill sets were just too good to pass up, i.e. Umbrella Man and Radio Guy as posited by Alan Kent.

Slowly, I believe, we are whittling down the list of those who fired at John Kennedy.  This particular argument also supports to the degree possible at this juncture, the forthcoming, long awaited, review of Roscoe White as well.

Hank was with the Office of Personnel throughout the Carter Administration, interviewing and investigating applicants. He told the story that at a photo-op, he and Carter commiserated over the pain caused by long distance running . They shared similar groin injuries as I recall and their graphic descriptions may have been caught on camera! 🙂 

(He was born in December of 1946.)

For any who have followed Clay Shaw's alleged involvement in CMC (Centro Mondiale Commerciale) and/or Permindex, I had not seen the attached document and the relevant information prior to publication of Albarelli's Coup in Dallas. If this information was in the public domain prior to release, we simply missed it. @Fred Litwin

The memorandum released in 2023 identifies a Dr. Werner von Arx as president of the Swiss-based Permindex.  The official responsible for this March 1967 memo, John J. Shea, states: We believe that the CMC  and PERMINDEX are identical, respectively, with the World Trading [sic] Center and PERMIDEX [sic] mentioned in FBIS-37.  Shea then notes in item 4. OCR/FID file information lists Permindex as a Swiss real estate and property management firm and lists its management as follows: President — Dr. Werner von Arx. Other officials — Timothy Fales, Dr. Otto Wiesberg, Dr. Nikolaus Fischer, Randolph Vetter. (NOTE: Dr. Fischer joined the faculty of LSU where (if recent profiles are up to date) he remains a professor emeritus.)

https://www.archives.gov/files/research/jfk/releases/2023/104-10181-10116.pdf

Before moving to Dr. Arx, I would emphasize that Jean Pierre Lafitte, friend of James Angleton since the early 1950s through his association with FBN George Hunter White (and Sidney Gottlieb), I would note that under the alias Jean M. Martin, Pierre Lafitte had returned to New Orleans in 1967 to serve as The Chef of the Plimsoll Club located in Shaw's new iteration of the International Trade Mart a.k.a. World Trading Center.  Lafitte is alleged to have broken into Jim Garrisons offices with his good friend, James Phelan who had purportedly infiltrated the DA's efforts to indict Clay Shaw.  "alleged and purportedly" are applied here judiciously. 

Reviving this thread:

@Ed Berger or any who have followed Clay Shaw's alleged involvement in CMC (Centro Mondiale Commerciale) and or Permindex, I had not seen the attached document and relevant information prior to publication of Coup in Dallas. 

The memorandum released in 2023 identifies a Dr. Werner von Arx as president of the Swiss-based Permindex.  The official responsible for this March 1967 memo, John J. Shea, states: We believe that the CMC  and PERMINDEX are identical, respectively, with the World Trading [sic] Center and PERMIDEX [sic] mentioned in FBIS-37. Shea notes in item 4. OCR/FID file information lists Permindex as a Swiss real estate and property management firm and lists its management as follows: President — Dr. Werner von Arx. Other officials — Timothy Fales, Dr. Otto Wiesberg, Dr. Nikolaus Fischer, Randolph Vetter. (NOTE: Dr. Fischer joined the faculty of LSU where (if recent profiles are up to date) he remains a professor emeritus.)

https://www.archives.gov/files/research/jfk/releases/2023/104-10181-10116.pdf

Before moving to Dr. Arx, I would emphasize that Jean Pierre Lafitte, friend of James Angleton since the early 1950s through his association with FBN George Hunter White (and Sidney Gottlieb), I would note that under the alias Jean M. Martin, Pierre Lafitte had returned to New Orleans in 1967 to serve as The Chef of the Plimsoll Club located in Shaw's new iteration of the International Trade Mart a.k.a. World Trading Center.  Lafitte is alleged to have broken into Jim Garrisons offices with his good friend, James Phelan who had purportedly infiltrated the DA's efforts to indict Clay Shaw.  "alleged and purportedly" are applied her judiciously. 

2 hours ago, Robert Montenegro said:

Today, I make this post in the spirit of great shame and humility.

I have lashed out publicly, in unwarranted fashion, at two dedicated fact-finders, researchers, Leslie Sharp and Joseph Backes, for different reasons—to which I say to each of them, I am deeply sorry, you do not deserve to be targets of my personal mar & ail.

For tens years now, always roughly around this time of year, I have suffered from physical irritability, and psychological despair.

This is because on 11 August 2013, I received the devastating news that three of my personal friends were killed in action, while engaging in combat operations in Paktika, Province, Afghanistan:

My squad leader, SSG. Octavio Herrera.

My assistant squad leader, SGT. Jamar Avery Hicks.

My battle-buddy, SPC. Keith Erin Grace Jr.

 

 

May the almighty keep you in the fold of infinite creation and brilliant enlightenment, brothers—be at ease, & rest.

And for ten long years, I have been in the brutal pursuit of why.

Why was I, and so many of my brothers-in-arms, thrusted into a conflict with no final goal, no sound tactics employed, no end-game, no exit-strategy, & ultimately, no reasonably sane geopolitical purpose?

The horrific answer I have come to in the past four or five years is that a fascist clique of heartless, soulless, psychopaths have thrusted the full mechanisms of Western Civilization (for what it is worth), in a suicidal death spiral—a death spiral whose gyrating center is the Military Industrial Complex and the profiteers that keep it in motion—all for the sake of profit, nothing more.

Three trillion dollars worth of US taxpayers money and natural resources disappeared in Afghanistan and over five-hundred thousand Afghan civilians perished from direct combat action, disease and malnutrition.

Not to mention over four-thousand US military servicemen and defense related contractors were killed in action in a twenty-year war on sovereign Afghan soil, and God knows how many have taken their own lives (and still are killing themselves).

It is not lost on me, that one of the last heads of state that was invited to the Kennedy White House, was the honorable “Father of the Nation,” King Mohammad Ẓāhir Shāh, the non-aligned, imperial ruler of Afghanistan:

 

 

Above is a photograph, taken 5 September 1963, of President Kennedy, greeting King of Afghanistan, Mohammad Ẓāhir Shāh on the North Portico of the White House, along with Chief of Protocol, Angier Biddle Duke, who is standing in the center.

Like President Kennedy, King Ẓāhir was also the target of a coup d'état, that involved the sponsorship of Western intelligence assets.

Once again, I apologize to anyone on this forum if I have come off as an irritable S.O.B., but I suffer from not just shell-shock from my own personal experiences in combat, but from the loss of three of the most affable human-beings I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing.

I’ll leave you, the reader of this post, with the words of hope from one of the most important, albeit, personally flawed (as we all are), statesmen of the 20th century—words that sadly, represent a missed opportunity of peace, this Earth, and its inhabitants, all suffer from:

 

 

I am sure that if President Kennedy had lived, the situation in Afghanistan would have been different, and my brothers, and countless others, would still be alive...
 

Monté,

When the tears subside . . .

Meanwhile, no apologies necessary here, and you continue to be a breath of fresh air in my world.

(btw, you are a fine, fine writer, and while Hank wasn't prone to professional jealousy, I suspect he would envy this piece — and bleed for you for the experiences that prompted it.)

best. L.

On 7/12/2023 at 8:47 AM, Steve Thomas said:

Paul,

A number of other policemen from that same Second Platoon, Headquarters Station show up in the JFK story.

In addition to Marvin Wise, Billy Bass was one of the Patrolmen.

Sergeant Rio Pierce and Patrolman Ray Vaughn appear in the Oswald shooting on the 24th.

Joe M. Poe is at the scene of the Tippit shooting.

Captain Cecil Talbert takes command of the TSBD shooting scene and also shows up in the alley behind the Texas Theater.

John Adamcik searches the Paine home in Irving on the 22nd and 23rd.

Kenneth Lyon is one of the Policemen who drive Oswald from the Theater back to Headquarters.

Jimmy Valentine is the driver of of the infamous Car# 207.

Notorious group of people.

Steve Thomas

@Paul Cummings @Bill Brown @Steve Thomas

I ask about SA Odum, Steve, because he appeared on the scene at critical locations in the early hours and days of the investigation including several on your list:

The late great Raymond Gallagher referred to Dallas-based FBI SA Bardwell Dewitt Odum as "the ubiquitous bard":



Ruth's " Handler " Bardwell D. Odum, FBI SA
His office: The empty house next door to Ruth.

"It is twice the pleasure to deceive the deceiver."
Jean de La Fontaine (1621-1695) French poet.

Michael had known Agent Bardwell "Bob" Odum prior to
November 22nd. (9 H 444)

On page 783, in Vol. 15, of the Warren Commission Hearings, we see
the
name Odum listed twice, once as Bardwell D. Odum and again as Hart
Odum. Both listings are the same man. He was a special agent of the
FBI and was stationed in Dallas at the time of the JFK assassination.
His name is seldom mentioned by researchers, yet he was probably the
most assiduous investigator involved in the 1963-1964 investigation.

Odum was in the TSBD at the time that the murder weapon was found.
Later, Lt. Day drove Odum to the police station with the weapon. Odum
was seen and photographed leaving the building with Day at sometime
close to 1:45 pm.

Acording to Day, the agent used the car radio to contact his FBI
office to describe the rifle. 4H264, Meager, p.100.

SA James P. Hosty Jr. mentions the Bard numerous times, and it is
Hosty who is witness and reporter to the spirit-like nature of SA
Odum.

It was between 1:45 and 2:00 pm. that Odum and Day made the
delivery to Lt. Day's office at Main and Harwood Streets in downtown
Dallas. At the very same time, according to Hosty, Bardwell was at
the Texas Theater witnessing the arrest of LHO. Odum, himself made a
statement (HSCA document #01431) describing his observing the arrest.

His statement begins: "At approximately 2 p.m., November 22, 1963, I
was informed by an unidentified policeman of the DPD that a suspect
had been seen entering the back door of the Texas Theater. I
immediately proceeded to the Texas Theater...."

Dallas police radio transcripts reveal that at 1:51 pm. car No. 2
radioed to the dispatcher that they were on their way in with the
suspect (WR. p, 179).

Talk about double Oswalds, now we have a double Odum.

In Dallas, the agent was well acquainted with Michael and Ruth
Paine. Mike called the agent BOB; Ruth called him Mr. Odum and
sometimes Hart.

Additional notes on the bard:
Odum was never called before the Warren Commission and the only time he surfaces during the hearings was during Sylvio Odio's testimony. He walked in, stayed for only a few minutes, and left the room. Odum had also been present in Dallas Police HQ when the bogus photo of Oswald arrived from MC; despite Hosty's insistent the photo wasn't Oswald, Bard insisted that they take the photo to Marina for identification (where they were blocked by Marguerite).

22 hours ago, Ron Bulman said:

Hi Leslie. Between your post above and those below in this thread and Roberts post below about possible participants in the organization aspect of the assassination, and, his post in another thread about potential assassins, it got me to thinking.

The teams part is what really got me going.  I've read speculative comments by others and maybe somewhere in a book or two about thoughts of teams being used.  You mention those of Souetre, Canon and Morales.  Robert mentions up to five teams.  Something along these lines has seemed the most logical way it happened to me for a few years now.  I do think the efforts of the teams were coordinated.

If we consider the work of Dr's Mantik and Chesser examining and evaluating the x-rays in the National archives, then JFK was hit in the hairline above the right eye and in the right temple hairline.  In addition, I believe there is evidence of an entry wound in the back along the edge of the blow out.  First, we have a throat shot, then (?) something at T-3 in the back, then, Dan Rather, Cartha DeLoach (? - of Hoovers top 3-4-5) and someone else saying the first version of the Zapruder film they saw violently forward, last we have the version we've all seen, back and to the left.  Take with a grain of salt, shake it up, I'm not saying that Is the way it happened.  Just the way I've interpreted what I've seen and read over the years.

One point I'm getting at is I think the shots were synchronized.  I'd come to think of the teams as a shooter, a spotter - for longer shots with binoculars to observe close up the actions of JFK and those immediately around him while the shooter focuses on the target, and, possibly rear observer/guard to keep anyone from wandering too close.  Given the time frame of what I at least think may have been three shots hitting JFK in the head in 1-2 seconds they virtually had to be simultaneous.  Coordinated by radio instruction from an on site in Dealy Plaza or near the edge of it.

Once upon a time I thought this might have been Morales as the dark skinned guy in a (?) brown sports coat or White dress shirt seen on the sixth floor by a witness on the ground.  Not so much anymore, though he was quite likely somewhere around.

As a result of Coup, your and Roberts comments and those of others I've come to wonder if this might have been Souetre.  If he was Skorzeny's most trusted or one of his most trusted assassins and trainers at his three training facilities around Madrid might he have been even more valuable in the on site set up and execution of the operation than just one of the assassins.  Coup claims he was possibly in Florida, New Orleans, Dallas and more in the months before meeting with others involved, then in Mexico City ten days before the assassination, doing things just an assassin probably wouldn't.

I've thought for some time the operation was planned out and set up well in advance.  Some one or two maybe three walked Dealy Plaza, probably more than once.  They had access to the TSBD and Dal-Tex.  They timed the run from the last shot on the sixth floor to the elevator and how long it took to get to the ground, along with other escape routes.  Where to hide/get weapons out. Weeks if not a month-two-three in advance.

I could see Soutre and say Morales working together on this given their backgrounds???

Food for thought.

@Ron Bulman I've read and re-read your valuable analysis. And, by chance conversed with a researcher yesterday who has walked the scene numerous times with an expert in such matters; together they are convinced that the South underpass is one sniper location.  I also shared with him that "grate + span" appear in Lafitte's November 17 entry. He said, "makes sense. Thanks for the corroboration." and talked me through why it "makes sense."

 Coup claims he was possibly in Florida, New Orleans, Dallas and more in the months before meeting with others involved, then in Mexico City ten days before the assassination, doing things just an assassin probably wouldn't.

Hank obviously placed faith in the assertions of an SAC agent who laid out Souetre's trip in early 1963. He wouldn't have included it without nailing down a second source.  Then to his surprise, Lafitte corroborates it  when he writes on May 9, Souetre and Davis in April Here. [Hotel] — Shaw Where? This may be an aide memoire jotted after the fact, but either way, it proves that Lafitte knew Souetre had been in New Orleans in the Spring. Your argument that Souetre was an actual shooter comports with my own. although I've received pushback from gunmen and members of working groups who strongly suspect Jean led a team that fired on Kennedy but didn't fire himself.

As far as I know, we only have Jean Souetre's word that he wasn't in Dealey. I've never seen the alleged affidavits including one from his commanding officer, an OAS general. 

If we consider the work of Dr's Mantik and Chesser examining and evaluating the x-rays in the National archives, then JFK was hit in the hairline above the right eye and in the right temple hairline.  In addition, I believe there is evidence of an entry wound in the back along the edge of the blow out.  First, we have a throat shot, then (?) something at T-3 in the back, then, Dan Rather, Cartha DeLoach (? - of Hoovers top 3-4-5) and someone else saying the first version of the Zapruder film they saw violently forward, last we have the version we've all seen, back and to the left. 

Ron, your approach — integrating Mantick and Chesser's conclusions with known characteristics and weapon preferences of the alleged shooters — is solid "gumshoe" detective work in my view.  I've even asked Dr. Chesser if there is any way to determine that a predominately left-hand shooter ("Boots" Askins)  fired a shot that hit Kennedy. The  answer (paraphrasing) was, "unfortunately, no ".

In early 2019, Hank said that given the time constraint we were under to publish in fall of 2019, we would have to discontinue that analysis and leave the shooters where they were prior to taking positions in Dealey.  

I've thought for some time the operation was planned out and set up well in advance.  Some one or two maybe three walked Dealy Plaza, probably more than once. 

As you no doubt know, Lafitte leaves clues that Oswald was involved in the shooting at the Walker house in April; the incident coincides with Alan Kent's argument that a key date in the evolution of the decision to assassinate Kennedy in the near future was the Al Thomas dinner held early that month (as I recall). I factor in the "official" invitation for the President to visit Texas issued by the Knights of the Order of San Jacinto as another datapoint, and have spent considerable time trying to nail down the signatures on that invitation.  I was told that Jay Harrison had a copy of the original  stored on his DAT that he updated (near) daily; I had that DAT in my possession in search of a technician who could transcribe the photo images Jay preserved but fell ill; eventually it ended up in the hands of a researcher in North Carolina.  Presumably it remains stored in a safe.

I digress, but I think this history explains to some degree the conclusions drawn by Hank and his team that the possibility of eliminating Kennedy permanently originated long before spring of 1963 but (according to Lafitte and his interactions with Angleton) things began to take shape around the time Oswald landed in New Orleans.  Conjecture, but backed up with notes maintained by the eventual project manager of Lancelot Project.

Hope you'll continue this dialogue.  

 

ON THE QUESTION OF CUBANS EMPLOYED IN DIRECT CAPACITIES IN SKORZENY'S STRATEGY FOR DALLAS:

@Robert Montenegro @Paul Brancato@Ron Bulman
Following is an exchange between Hank Albarelli, Leslie Sharp and Alan Kent, January 16, 2019, 6 weeks after Hank had taken physical possession of the datebook to initiate authentication; 48 hours before he fell seriously ill which incapacitated him for a month; and 4 months before the strokes that would end his life on this planet: 
 

Lafitte's comment regarding "Cubans in direct capacities" is huge.

It is indeed.  I wonder if the comment warrants a prominent place - perhaps very early in the book.

I don't know where it ideally belongs, but it would be a very effective answer to the inevitable questions about the Cuban shooters who populate a great many scenarios. And "direct capacities" implies to me that Cubans may have been utilized in "other capacities," which I believe that a small number were. 

Hank and I had a similar discussion by phone this morning.  

But I don't know that we can leap from "having no direct capacities"  to "may have been utilized in 'other capacities,'" at least not if we are relying on evidence from Lafitte and or Angleton.  The Cubans were working for the CIA, no doubt, but does that mean they were involved in the assassination of Kennedy.  I realize that tomes have been written on the topic, which makes this exchange between Lafitte and Angleton all the more explosive ... ergo a fairly prominent place in the book.    

I have frequently argued that in the end, the Cubans were used as patsies. Hank makes a strong argument that Cubans could not be trusted.   

Why?

Why what?

When I worked at the White House I was told by a Cuban “leader” to never trust a Cuban with anything you don’t want known or much else. Filed it away in my head. Andreas hated JFK as he blamed him for having killed his parents. 

Sent from my iPhone

Why huge?

Sent from my iPhone

I said 'huge', because it indicates to me at least that Cubans were hardly instrumental in the assassination, contrary to what many researchers have argued.  It is also huge if it can be determined that Lafitte / Angleton did not the employ any Cubans - at all - in any capacity - in the operation.  

Alan makes a sound argument that Cubans may have been used in 'other capacities' in his monograph about Umbrella Man and Radio Guy, among others, but if those characters haven't surfaced in any Lafitte material, the claim that Cubans were on the ground will need to come from other sources.  Alan, I haven't read your work in that area for a month or so.  I'll revisit it in light of this new development.  I do remember being impressed by the logic and by the conclusions, but now I have to ask, why didn't those characters surface in Lafitte's writings, particularly when he actually referenced 'Cubans' not being utilized in a 'direct capacity'?  Could it be he wasn't privy to them being used?

I think it’s important to consider that Lafitte, Angleton, and Harvey shared a cultural bias against Cubans... obviously they stuck with “their own” — Americans, French, Italian, Jews/Israelis, a few others. QJ/WIN no Cubans... worth thinking about... 

Sent from my iPhone

I think that point is important - and the ethnic bias in favor of "their own" plays into this. They believed that the Cubans talked too much, and probably that half of the radical Cuban community was infiltrated by Castro's G-2. Another, complementary point, is that using Cubans as gunmen in Dallas would have been far more dangerous than using white men who spoke multiple languages. A greater chance that a person of color would be noticeable at that time and place.

Great points! 

1 hour ago, Robert Montenegro said:

 

Uhh, Leslie, the "...whom..." that you are, for some strange reason cannot bring yourself to fathom, responsible of the "...swamp groups..." is, in fact, mentioned in the datebook: 

 

COL. Samuel Goodhue Kail, who was literally the CIA task-force commander, Caribbean Admissions Center, Opa-Locka Air Station, overseeing the spotting, recruiting, training, interrogation, integration, and resettlement of thousands of displaced Cuban expats—along with his immediate counterparts at CAC:

 

George E. Aurell (CIA Defector Coordinator, Interagency Defector Committee/ commander, Caribbean Admissions Center, Opa-Locka Air Station)

Dorothe Kerans Matlack (CIA Interagency Defector Committee/ commander, Caribbean Admissions Center, Opa-Locka Air Station)

David Sánchez Morales (Chief of Foreign Intelligence, CIA Counterintelligence Staff, Western Hemisphere Division, Cuban Operations/ CIA liaison, Caribbean Admissions Center, Opa-Locka Air Station)

 

Not to mention that COL. Kail was the United States Army liaison to the entire CIA Cuban Operations Task Force, operating under 4th US Army Operations Group—US Army Assistant Chief of Staff, Intelligence, Pentagon, which just so happened to include:

George Efythron Joannides, JMWAVE Chief of Psychological Warfare and JMWAVE Deputy Director of Covert Operations.

 

Just because that mass-murdering, narco-terrorist, fascist, psychopath Lafitte, didn't mention it in his datebook, doesn't mean it isn't crucial or not intrinsic, to the factual historical narrative of what happened on 22 November 1963!

 

 

And I cannot believe you mentioned the pigpen cypher I identified.

 

We literally talked about that yesterday evening, and you agreed it would never be mentioned until WE, as a TEAM, could verify bonafides on what it represents.

 

I think I'm done here.

 

Adiós Ed Forum, like Pontius Pilatus, I wash my hands.

@Robert Montenegro Monté, check the date of my  post ... it was published prior to our convo last night.

All Non-Discloure Agreements related to the Lafitte material and Hank's investigative material yet to be published remain in place.

My concern (as I think I've shared) is that you're describing a full blown Military Coup. That spectacular assertion simply is not supported by the information found in the Lafitte datebook, nor does it comport with Coup in Dallas. THE Military will end up the patsy, and those functioning outside the hierarchy outlined in the glossary will get away AGAIN, scot free.  Not on my watch.

There is no evidence in the datebook that Kail is actively directing the "swamp groups" nor is David Sanchez Morales mentioned.  That does not suggest they weren't, as you aptly note. But if we employ the Lafitte datebook in this exercise, we do it the way Hank intended with me acting as proxy.  Building blocks, step by step. Otherwise we'll be blathering about — metaphorically speaking —The Three Tramps, for another decade. Too much air in the balloon too quickly will destroy Hank's investigation.

For us, this was always a cold case a murder investigation, based on the clues left by Pierre Lafitte, similar to his investigation into who killed Frank Olson.

As you know, I've been a proponent of propinquity for decades, tilling the soil of corporate genealogy and the Industrial leg of the Military-Industrial Complex in a similar fashion as your pursuit of military documents, so I process the data through that lens as well.  

Those twenty-five years of research prepared me in the event something like the datebook might finally surface.  When it did, through Hank's gumshoe detective work, I knew after our first phone call in late July 2017, that my intuition in 1993  was premonition. I would be directly involved in helping solve this case. Or as Hank repeatedly said,  High Strangeness and Synchronicity brought him together with the right people at the right time.

Let's chill, and get this case solved.