Leslie Sharp

I anticipated that retort, Sandy. I'm "afraid" that this forum is not only failing to apply scrutiny evenly, it is being manipulated by unseen forces. I refer you to my own experience here, and specifically to a 'review' of Coup posted here by Greg Doudna just nine days after CID hit the stands (did he actually read this tome in nine days?). Doudna chose to focus solely on a datebook, not its content, but the instrument he had never laid eyes on while failing to acknowledge the statements on provenance made by the (deceased) author who had put his professional reputation on the line. Re. the Haveerstick book that you contend must be credible because forum members seem to think so: Can you address my bullet points one by one? June and Jerrie never closely resembled one another other than height. Hair color and style, as well as scars, can be manipulated but not skeletal features, or ears, mouth, eyes. June was not a licensed pilot. June was in the Amazon a decade before Jerrie. Did June's doctor not realize he was sleeping with a well-known pilot who would soon pursue a role in the NASA programme, rather than a woman who returned ill from the Amazon who eventually went to work for him? Did his staff know the difference between a woman they likely came across in the media vs. a virtual unknown? June, not Jerrie the Pilot, befriended Albarelli. Are you convinced June (or Jerrie) Cobb was THE QJ/WIN reporting directly to Harvey, overseeing hardened brutes like Harold Meltzer, Otto Skorzeny, or Pierre Lafitte? In the 1960s? Seriously? Taaffe was an arms dealer, married to an AF captain and known to some very rough characters. Could she be effectively and persistently impersonated by Jerrie Cobb, let alone the distinctly feline June? Was the AF captain on board?

@Sandy Larsen like the Babushka Lady thing, That's a pretty significant thing, as are the physical identities thing (June and Jerrie were the same height and occasionally the same weight, that's it.); the impersonation of arms dealer Taaffe thing (were Jesse Vickers alive we could ask him if he was fooled); the rare disease/scar thing (no one has answered how Jerrie could have fooled June's doctor, or did she and June share attributes in bed?); or the "THE" QJ/WIN thing (this shouldn't warrant comment but it's apparent some on the EF fail to recognize the absurdity of the claim). Any one of the aforementioned should sound alarms. Setting aside Haverstick's dismissal of Otto Skorzeny (based apparently on a reference to his allgeged unsuitability for a specific op — whatever that means), what percentage of AWIK do you think should be taken seriously? It is incomprehensible to me that active members of this forum have bought into Haverstick's innuendo and supposition (Babushka Lady? seriously?) — albeit woven within credible document research presented in AWIK — in spite of my having presented facts and photos that bely Haverstick's subjective assertions; yet these same members have virtually blackballed Albarelli's investigation because the primary source material hasn't been officially authenticated, a process btw described by several professionals in the field as ultimately subjective when considered in a court of law. A paranoiac might wonder if there is an agenda in play. Even Jeff Morley, long respected for his conservative approach, has provided space on his sub stack for what a number of informed researchers have concluded is (bottom line) Haverstick's wild assertions; yet to my knowledge, to date, Jeff has not penned a word — favorable or not — about Coup in Dallas. Does June Cobb — NOT Jerrie Cobb The Pilot — in MC while Oswald was spotted demand the investigation go in another direction? Doesn't it lead to Tom Davis in Madrid along with June's acquaintance from the Iroquois Hotel Thomas Proctor (seen below in full Sieg Heil), then Davis' arrest and rescue in Tangier by QJ/WIN? If Gibson is significant to Haverstick's hypothesis why then didn't she more thoroughly pursue North Africa? Might it expose MC COS Win Scott's history as chief of the Western European division of the Office of Special Operations while Otto and Ilse Skorzeny set up shop in Francoist Spain in 1952? Was Scott responsible for discrediting June Cobb in MC? Why did Haverstick dismiss the Skorzenys as bit players on this stage when in fact they played a pivotal role in the coup in Dallas? Considering Hank's friendship — well-known to most who follow the June Cobb saga — did Haverstick fail to at least peruse CiD? Surely a ten minute phone call some six years prior wasn't sufficient reason to ignore Albarelli's broader work? Should hers be categorized as misinformation, disinformation, or simply the work of a sincere amateur to this field of inquiry?

David Atlee Phillips indicated (testified in fact?) that June Cobb was a licensed pilot. Albarelli and Newman, both of whom interviewed June Cobb at length, contest his claim. I think your question, and similar questions on this thread, indicate that EF members who have actually read AWIK are unable to succicintly sum up the claims made by Haverstick simply because the foundation of the hypothesis is fatally flawed and from there, the presumptions make no sense whatsoever, ergo summation is impossible. As I've stated previously on this thread, uncovering the agency employed 'doppelgängers' is hardly a revelation, yet Haverstick approached Hank in her initial (and only) phone call with, "did you know that the agency used doppelgängers?" That she was taken aback by his abrupt reaction is naive at best. Did she actually expect him to engage beyond her amateur question? Did he suspect an agenda behind her phone call? Had June already told him that someone was hounding her for interviews? Did he know that by then June distrusted a certain research professional who Hank realized immediately was known to Haverstick? He leaves several clues in ASO that the Jerrie Cobb the Pilot theory was already percolating.

I pursued this years ago, and to a tenant, the publishing companies' boards included one, and in several instances two, retired military brass. Nathan Twining jumps to mind.

I should have been precise: vague as to date of the encounter.

Then is it not also ridiculous to even be discussing 'him' at this late date?

Was the REAL Lee Harvey Oswald designated as such by consensus, and if so, when? If not, which records are relied on to prove the REAL Oswald wasn't in MC? As far as I know — and assuming these deliberations are intended to lead to Nov 22 in Dallas — there is nothing to establish where the Oswald-who-served-as-perfect-patsy-in-the-TSBD was on September 27, other than Odio's vague recollection? Did Hoover identify the Oswald he was referring to in his January 18 note, "I can't forget CIA withholding the French espionage activities in USA, nor the false story re. Oswald's trip to Mexico City, only to mention two of their instances of double dealing." -- Dir. Hoover, 1-18-1964 This was just weeks before Hoover received the chain of communication from the Paris Legat regarding Souetre/Roux/Mertz and the expulsion from Dallas on November 22. Does anyone see any reason to avoid asking why both "the French" and "Oswald" are heavy on Hoover's mind in mid-January? Suspect assassins AND the patsy? Hoover received his first correspondence weeks later from Frenchman Paul Gluc who corroborated to a degree what his own Legat was reporting on; had he pursued the leads, he might not only have solved the crime of the century, he could have inflicted a pemanent wound on his archenemies within THE CIA.

As noted, I'm aware of Leonov. I'm asking whether Pavlotsky has been studied at all?

Leonov is very persuasive in the 1998 documentary, The Secret KGB JFK Assassination Files. I haven't pursued in earnest, but I'm curious why there is so little readily available on Ilya Semyonovitch Pavlotsky, the ranking member of the KGB unit investigating the assassination. Other than Mark Bridger's article in Dealey Plaza Echo, 1999, which appears to rely on the documentary which was later advanced in the O'Leary / Lee publication, The Deaths of Cold War Kings (2000), nothing has jumped out about Ilya. Is there more to that documentary than meets the eye, particularly the misidentification of Michel Mertz? Who funded it other that those named in the credits? Those following through lines from Dallas to our contemporary political crisis might look closely at Bradley O'Leary and the NRA.

Whether intentional or not, you dismiss Garro's eyewitness testimony at the expense of details of Thomas Eli Davis in MC at the same time with Oswald. They were scheduled to meet at Luma on September 27. Garro = Davis, so ignoring or deflecting from Davis while focusing exclusively on "the KGB" witnesses suggests to me you want to avoid any discussion of Madrid or North Africa? You're not the only one in "the community," for what that's worth.

I think you've answered my question: These witnesses are not "red-haired Negroes," or honeypots who never existed, or who briefly brushed by LHO in MC. The five eyewitnesses to LHO's presence in MC are credible witnesses. but to clarify, "honeypots" is reference to Garro?

@Benjamin Cole Is there any particular reason you ignore the eyewitness testimony of Elena Garro de Paz? Or the reports supplied by state department official (and likely CIA agent) Charles William Thomas to whom Garro not only supplied information but had befriended? Why does the KGB angle dominate contemporary deliberations over the Mexico City sightings of Oswald? Why not consider the confusion was always meant to distract and that Oswald was in MC for reasons other than have been uncovered to date, possibly having nothing to do with "THE" KGB?

David, you drive home a significant point. Why would individuals who had access to one another in New Orleans be sighted in Mexico City at the same time at the same party. Tom Davis indicated in a statement made upon arrest in Tangier that he and wife Carolyn maintained a permanent residence in MC as well as the US. Perhaps Oswald had an invitation to join them? Lafitte's datebook indicates Oswald and Tom are to meet at Broglie's Hotel Luma on Friday, September 27. That same entry includes the names "Algur — Mex. City Ilya —." The following day, September 28, Lafitte makes a note "Bowen - Hudson Mex school cover — wife Spain ..." and on Sunday, September 29, Lafitte notes, "Tom at embassy — done." September 30, Lafitte writes "—— Money from Dallas" and "Davis — Mx City — Where next week?" This string of Mexico City-related entries closes with "Cable to Madrid — all ok — Tell Tom D. O says come to Madrid." On October 3, Lafitte indicates a meeting with "Caretaker 10:30." We have ample reason to argue that Caretaker is based in Dallas, for example the Lafitte entry of October 6, "Oswald — issue (!)" followed by "check with caretaker . . . " On November 2, Lafitte notes, "Runner / Runner" (FBI) w/T. 4 P.M."* Within days, a classified ad appears in a Dallas paper which pleads with running man to contact Lee. Fundamentally, the purpose of Oswald's trip to Mexico City which has been speculated about for decades has yet to be resolved. We argue that Lafitte leaves many clues, including the August meetings held in New Orleans that refer to MC and Joannides, and the entries that mention Mexico City earlier in the year, particularly May 10, "T. says tail LO — no direct contact calls? No. report to Angleton + not here [wife] Rene says A looks like cadaver — Mexico City?" Is this indication that one of Oswald's alleged earlier trips to MC occurred in May, and does that not conflict with his job at Reily Coffee? @David JosephsIn addition to your thorough examination of documents, particularly those focused on the Russian elements in MC in Sept/Oct, you have effectively posed the question of "which" Oswald traveled to MC in late September, prompting us to explore "which" Oswald is Lafitte dealing with throughout 1963. *a potential document examiner flipped through the datebook and paused on the November 2 entry. Within a few minutes, he closed the datebook, handed it back with words to the effect, "I don't think this is my project." His official bio indicates he is a contract examiner for government agencies including the bureau.

David, do you know the date Oswald was removed from watch list and who issued it?

Deliberating scars, which can be produced on demand, is kicking the can and keeping alive the false assumptions drawn by Haverstick. In my conversation, H. said she only took a peak at a Jerrie scar and only by accident. There is testimony that June was hospitalized for the rare condition and in fact had a romantic relationship with her doctor. Are we to believe that was Jerrie and not June? Was he oblivious to news coverage including photos of Jerrie The Pilot? Are there records that Jerrie was treated for the disease, and when? My understanding is that June's case occurred years if not a decade earlier. Has anyone tracked the number of cases, worldwide, that occurred over that time span? This is ridiculous.

Respectfully, @Michael Griffith, would you please confirm that it is your contention Jerrie The Pilot was author of the October 5, 1964 report under the alias Joyce H. Pineinch that begins, Mexican communists who had contact with Oswald, as has not appeared in Warren Commission write-ups in press. All weekend, Elena Garro de Paz, Elena Paz (the daughter) and Debra Garro de Guerrero Galvan sat around recalling details of having been in a group with Oswald here last fall during the days that he was in Mexico. . . . Please provide evidence that (skilled pilot) Jerrie Cobb and not sometimes agency asset (Viola) June Cobb (not a trained pilot) produced this report. If you insist on ignoring my requests that you provide detail specifics from my posts you've publicly alleged are inaccurate, I can only conclude you haven't thought this through, and that you have fallen prey to masterfully presented misinformation in AWIK. Otherwise, Michael, I ask that you retract your accusations. @Sandy Larsen @Mark Knight

@Michael Griffith I find it incomprehensible you would continue to promote this work without publicly respondung to the discrepancies being brought to your attention. Please provide the members following this thread the specific inaccuracies you allege I've made challenging Haverstick's speculation and innuendo.

‘ . . . Interesting to note here is that Edward Lawton Smith who came to the United States sometime in the early 1950s, was reported to look similar to Lee Harvey Oswald. Smith, who frequently traveled to Mexico City in the early 1960s, had been in the Canadian army during World War II, serving in Germany, France, and Belgium. Smith was recruited in 1953 by Jean Pierre Lafitte, a “special employee” of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and contractor for the CIA to be undercover, paid informer reporting to the Bureau’s George Hunter White and Garland Williams. In 1959, Smith had mysterious dealings with June Cobb and Warren Broglie in New York City, thought perhaps to have been related to a drug trafficking ring in New Orleans that both Smith and Cobb were knowledgeable about.’ —pg 230-231, A Secret Order. The name “Smith” appears early in the year in the 1963 datebook maintained by Pierre Lafitte. @Michael Griffith, do you have any reason to contend that Jerrie the Pilot knew Broglie or Lawton Smith, or Pierre Lafitte?

I was struck by the assertion that Cobb’s agency payouts are identical in amounts and dates with those of [a] QJ/WIN, yet the graphic doesn’t support the claim. Admittedly, the numerous discrepancies might be viewed as minor, but “identical,” by definition, the amounts and dates are not.

Gary Shaw weighed in recently (and with his blessing), “This lady pilot named Jerri was married to Joe Truhill, a pilot who was running guns with Ruby and Tommy Davis.” He is referring to Jerri Sloan Truhill. from wiki . . . In 1961 she got a call from her friend Jerrie Cobb, asking for her interest in a secret government project, which would turn out to be the Women in Space Program run by Dr. William Randolph Lovelace . . . Albarelli picked up on Lovelace in A Secret Order, noting his role in the CIA’s Project Oxcart in 1954, but one of the medical experiment programmes Hank had been tracking since the Olson case. He also notes the association between Harold Meltzer and Tri-Cities Flying Service owned by Evelyn “Pinky” Brier, former wartime Women’s Auxiliary whose clients on the West Coast had included DCI John McCone. Note that Albarelli does NOT mention Jerrie Cobb. Had Haverstick not rejected Albarelli’s ASO allegedly* because he provides no direct quotes from June Cobb, she might have been compelled to acknowledge that he makes not one reference to Jerrie The Pilot even in context of Lovelace’s Albuquerque NM programme. She might have also realized the significance of Happy Meltzer who was slated by the agency as a QJ/WIN spotter. Meltzer was acquainted with two brothers who were notorious as Columbia’s up and coming young drug traffickers, one of whom would later fall head over heels in love with Viola June Cobb. Meltzer, based in LA, was not only a sometime hit-man for Johnny Roselli, but he had been engaged in a semi-legitimate business with one Jean Pierre Lafitte. When Mary Haverstick opined that it was a pity Hank wouldn’t engage with her (for even one second) about her theory Jerrie and June were one and the same, and how important it is for ‘the community’ to work together, I thought, ‘but look at your missed opportunities?’ Hank’s coauthor of Coup in Dallas, was a phone call away months before the final draft of AWIK. In addition to setting the record straight — that Hank befriended June Cobb, not Jerrie —- we might have pursued in tandem Meltzer then Lafitte who leads straight to QJ/WIN in North Africa/Otto Skorzeny in Madrid, and possibly pilot and acquaintance of Jerrie Cobb —Jerri Sloan Truhill and husband Joe who ran guns with Tommy Davis (who met Skorzeny in Madrid in November 1963) and Jack Ruby. So many opportunities missed. *A Secret Order had been in the public domain since 2013 yet Haverstick didn’t phone Albarelli until May of 2015.

Some might suggest that was to be expected. I’m not a subscriber to Jeff’s substack so I’ve been unable to review Voskamp’s take. Maybe Jeff would give you dispensation to copy paste on EF as a gesture of good faith? Also, are you willing to respond to the concerns about AWIK I presented earlier, and or provide details of my alleged inaccuracies so that I might rebut or retract?

You can zoom to see June’s left facing ear. Speaking independent of my association with Albarelli who knew June well, and perhaps being female influences my subjective photo analysis, but I cannot see the slightest resemblance in these two women, not in their youth nor well into their 60s-80s. Aside from the obvious attention to grooming, June’s being meticulously feminine in every photo available v. Jerrie’s far more casual and tom-boyish approach, note that Jerrie’s teeth are prominent and her mouth is significantly wider than June’s. Jerrie maintained her blonde hair into her 6th or 7th decade; June’s perfectly coifed naturally gray hair is in distinct contrast. Jerrie’s ears appear sizably longer in relation to her skull than June’s. From a woman’s perspective, the most obvious distinction is their general demeanor, their countenance when captured on film. These are two different woman.

Macaskill states that Mary is convinced. She doesn’t offer her own subjective opinion in the piece. Chapter Eleven notes, A Secret Order — Contrary to Internet mythology, June Cobb did not have a twin sister (she did have two brothers [seen in a photo I shared recently on EF] nor was she a trained aircraft pilot. — H. P. Albarelli Jr. John Newman is on record stating same. By 2013, Both Newman and Albarelli had interviewed Viola June Cobb extensively. Albarelli was planning a biography of her which obviously would not include exploits as a pilot. It was my understanding in conversation with Haverstick that she was never granted an interview with June Cobb. I’m prepared to be corrected. I’m also anxious to have clarification whether Jerrie the Pilot, who died in 2019, had two brothers named Jasper and Tom as did Viola June who died in 2015.

Michael, while I await your specifics, Grace Macaskill of The US SUN writes that “Mary is convinced Jerrie and June are the same person.” I’ve come across this general takeaway in a number of reviews, and it’s apparent you are convinced as well. But the fact is, Jerrie and June Cobb were NOT the same person. June passed away Oct 17, 2015. Jerrie passed away March 18, 2019. I would like to think you’re acting in good faith here so will you at least acknowledge the two women left this earthly coil as distinct individuals? Further, THE SUN captions for relevant photos read: “A woman named either Jerrie or June Cobb is speculated to have been a potential getaway pilot for Oswald” and “She may have worked as a secretary to Cuban dictator to Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.” Viola June Cobb, born 1927, friend of investigative reporter Hank Albarelli Jr. and godmother to his first grandson, was NOT a licensed pilot. If you refuse to acknowledge these fundamental inaccuracies in Haverstick’s book, how are you in a credible position to judge the accuracy of anyone’s challenge to this obliviously flawed account of events in Dealey? In her own words, when challenged about a particularly wild speculation, Haverstick laughed and said that she can’t control the conclusions drawn by the reader. I would posit that the confusion sown by this book, timed deliberately for the 60th, is the responsibility of the author and her editor. If you want to chase behind and attempt damage control, that’s your choice, friend.

Michael, respectfully, can you be specific? I will retract inaccuracies but you will first need to identify them in detail.