Thomas Eli Davis III

[Mathias Baumann]

According to Seth Kantor's book "The Ruby Cover-Up", Thomas Davis was contacted by Jack Ruby in an attempt to sell jeeps to Cuba. It also says that he was involved in training anti-Castro Cubans in Florida. Do we have more information about this? Who did he work with in Florida?

The name "Davis" (without a first name) also appears in John Newman's book "Oswald and the CIA". This "Davis" is member of the "30th of November group". Could the two be one and the some person?

In Kantor's book we also learn that Davis was arrested in Algeria because he was suspected of being involved in assassination attempts against de Gaulle. This I find highly interesting. Does anyone know more about this?

Edited May 23, 2017 by Mathias Baumann

[Paul Brancato]

I wish I could shed some light on your question, but I'm bumping it to keep it alive in case another poster could answer your questions.

[Mathias Baumann]

I think I may have found some more interesting links concerning de Gaulle in Jim Garrison's book. According to Italian press articles PERMINDEX was also involved in the funding of OAS, a French terrorist group opposed to de Gaulle. The problem is of course that the only source here seems to be some left-wing Italian newspaper...

BUT: The Schlumberger corporation (a big French-owned oil Company) was also allegedly involved with the OAS, supplying them with arms (I assume because of the Algerian oil? de Gaulle supported Algeria's Independence from France!). And it was one of Schlumberger's depots where David Ferrie and the exile-Cubans stole explosives from.

So my hypothesis goes like this: Could there be a link between Ferrie, Davis and Ruby? Might they have been in cahoots in secret arms deals?

[Steve Thomas]

On 5/23/2017 at 5:43 PM, Mathias Baumann said:

According to Seth Kantor's book "The Ruby Cover-Up", Thomas Davis was contacted by Jack Ruby in an attempt to sell jeeps to Cuba. It also says that he was involved in training anti-Castro Cubans in Florida. Do we have more information about this? Who did he work with in Florida?

The name "Davis" (without a first name) also appears in John Newman's book "Oswald and the CIA". This "Davis" is member of the "30th of November group". Could the two be one and the some person?

In Kantor's book we also learn that Davis was arrested in Algeria because he was suspected of being involved in assassination attempts against de Gaulle. This I find highly interesting. Does anyone know more about this?

Mathias,

 

I thought your question deserved some kind of response. It's not much, but I'll give you what I've got: (I'm sorry, you'll probably have to cut and paste the url references. My word processor doesn't seem to want to talk to this Forum software when it comes to copying and pasting hyperlinks).

 

From: 

 

The Jack Ruby Connection
by Robert Riversong:
https://riversong.wordpress.com/the-jack-ruby-connection/

“For robbing a bank in June 1958, Thomas Eli Davis III had received a sentence of five years of probation, during which time he went to work for the CIA, helping train anti-Castro units in Florida and at another site in South America. When JFK was assassinated, Davis was in jail in Algiers, charged with running guns to the secret army terrorist movement then attempting to assassinate French Premier Charles de Gaulle. Davis was released from jail through the intervention of the CIA’s foreign agent code-named “QJ/WIN” who was identified by the top-secret CIA Inspector General’s Report as the “principle asset” in the Agency’s assassination program known as ZR/RIFLE.” 

This seems to track back to an allegation by Seth Kantor in his book, Who Was Jack Ruby”

see footnote# 36 on page 540 of the book The Man Who Knew Too Much by Dick Russell.
https://books.google.com/books?id=XJQX-4khd2QC&pg=PA540&lpg=PA540&dq=Davis+"Jack+Ruby"&source=bl&ots=qp7EPDOFWs&sig=Je3cGYqeiK5TMq4fXbyGBVNlewE&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjrwc7HrI7UAhVn04MKHZTPD_8Q6AEIDQ#v=onepage&q=Davis "Jack Ruby"&f=false
 

In one sentence, Russell says Davis was bailed out of jail in Algiers where he was being held by the Moroccan authorities.  I don't know if the error is Kantor's or Russell's. 

I don't know where the Algiers comes from. Algiers is in Algeria. Tangier is in Morocco.

See volume IX of the HSCA Final Report pp 183+
https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=955&relPageId=191&search=Thomas_Eli Davis

This also tracks back to Kantor's book. Accoring to the HSCA, Kantor says that Davis was in jail in Algiers at the time of Kennedy's assassination, but Davis's wife told the consul general (probably in Morocco) that they were traveling between November 2 and November 28. Davis was arrested in Tangier on December 8, 1963.

Contrast this with the account in the book, Oswald Talked by Ray and Mary LaFontaine concerning an aborted coup in Haiti.
See pp. 198 – 202.
https://books.google.com/books?id=ymfQdYoqKyEC&pg=PA201&lpg=PA201&dq=Davis+"Jack+Ruby"&source=bl&ots=8rJfqPxCFs&sig=xS_ERZl3WlL5vCZEVAkW_XisS-0&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjrwc7HrI7UAhVn04MKHZTPD_8Q6AEIGA#v=onepage&q=Davis "Jack Ruby"&f=false

I don't know about the 30th of November group. The LaFontaine's say it was Alpha 66.

 

I had a discussion with someone recently on another Forum about a Davis that Ruby was supposed to have known in New Orleans. Something about shipping. For the life of me, I can't put my finger on it right now, but if I can dredge it up, I'll pass it along.

 

Steve Thomas

 

PS: From what I have learned, if Thomas Davis had been arrested by the French authorities in 1963 because he was suspected of being involved in an assassination plot against Charles DeGaulle, I highly doubt he would have been released prior to the general amnesty in 1968, regardless of the efforts of a QJWIN or otherwise.

[Paul Brancato]

Speaking of QJWIN, Hank Albarelli has a new book coming very soon. He claims to have solved the identity of QJWIN. If so, perhaps he will shed more light on Davis.

[Steve Thomas]

15 hours ago, Steve Thomas said:

 

“For robbing a bank in June 1958, Thomas Eli Davis III had received a sentence of five years of probation, during which time he went to work for the CIA, helping train anti-Castro units in Florida and at another site in South America. When JFK was assassinated, Davis was in jail in Algiers, charged with running guns to the secret army terrorist movement then attempting to assassinate French Premier Charles de Gaulle. Davis was released from jail through the intervention of the CIA’s foreign agent code-named “QJ/WIN” who was identified by the top-secret CIA Inspector General’s Report as the “principle asset” in the Agency’s assassination program known as ZR/RIFLE.” 

PS: From what I have learned, if Thomas Davis had been arrested by the French authorities in 1963 because he was suspected of being involved in an assassination plot against Charles DeGaulle, I highly doubt he would have been released prior to the general amnesty in 1968, regardless of the efforts of a QJWIN or otherwise.

Mathias,

 

see page 6 of this FBI document for a picture of Thomas Eli Davis. 

https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=129677#relPageId=6&tab=page

 

I had always been under the impression that Davis was a big bad scary dude. Now, I don't think so.

Read through the HSCA Subject Files under Thomas Eli Davis

https://www.maryferrell.org/php/showlist.php?docset=1246

 

I mean, who places an ad for mercenaries to engage in a "military operation" in Haiti in the Los Angeles Times?

12 guys show up for a meeting at a motel. They're told if the overthrow of Duvalier is successful, they'll get to split somewhere between $200,00 and $2,000,000.

If the overthrow fails, they'll get $50 and a map to the Dominican Republic.

This is just too funny.

 

Steve Thomas

[Mathias Baumann]

Thank you for that link. Wow, that's an awful lot of documents, that'll keep me busy for a while...

One more thought: I remember reading that George de Mohrenschildt was also cozy with one of the bosses at Schlumberger. Is that true?

Edited May 28, 2017 by Mathias Baumann

[Steve Thomas]

58 minutes ago, Mathias Baumann said:

Thank you for that link. Wow, that's an awful lot of documents, that'll keep me busy for a while...

One more thought: I remember reading that George de Mohrenschildt was also cozy with one of the bosses at Schlumberger. Is that true?

Mathias,

 

This is from Tom Scully in another thread on another Forum:

(Thomas Eli) "Davis's wife was Caroline (first name per Bruce's obit) Hawley.
Her brother Bruce Hawley was married to Josephine Schlumberger who had come from France to live with
her uncle and aunt Eric Boissonnas (aka Boissonais) and Sylvie Schlumberger Boissonnas  in New Canaan, CT. Her 2009 and his 2010 obit are retrievable easily via google. In Bruce's obit Davis's
son Thomas S. is described as a nephew.

Josephine's father, Dr. Marc Schlumberger was Dominique De Menil's and Sylvie Boissonnas's brother!

I did a thread in 2012 on the Ed Forum about Davis's attorney, per FBI document related to Algiers arrest, Thomas Grattan Proctor. His son (Phil Proctor) was a Firesign Theater player,
remember their album's? The thread is titled, Peter Bergman has Died A Founder of Firesign Theater"

 

Steve Thomas

[Steve Thomas]

1 hour ago, Mathias Baumann said:

Thank you for that link. Wow, that's an awful lot of documents, that'll keep me busy for a while...

One more thought: I remember reading that George de Mohrenschildt was also cozy with one of the bosses at Schlumberger. Is that true?

Mathias,

 

This is from the WC testimony of Paul M. Raigorodsky in vol IX of the WC Hearings:

http://mcadams.posc.mu.edu/russ/testimony/raigorod.htm

 

Mr. JENNER. Who is Mr. John De Menil? 
Mr. RAIGORODSKY. Mr. John De Menil is a very close friend of mine. He is the financial head of Schlumberger Co. and when I wouldn't go with George in the deal, he asked me to give him any suggestion as to who may be interested, so I suggested John De Menil because the Schlumberger Co. is a worldwide organization and they deal with every country in the world--you know what I am trying to say? 
Mr. DAVIS. Yes; I do. I am familiar with the name Schlumberger. 
Mr. RAIGORODSKY. And that he might be interested in going in business in Haiti, and at my suggestion he called him and went to see him and nothing came out of it because John De Menil finally turned him down after the investigation. 
Now, I am very sorry that in the past years I have had some correspondence with George but I didn't keep it, but then when things began to pop up and his name appeared in so many different things, I thought I better keep a file on him. 

 

Steve Thomas

 

[Mathias Baumann]

Thank you Steve. George de Mohrenschildt was certainly a very well connected man...

[Mark Wengler]

On Davis take away the beard and the little point of hair sticking down on his forehead. He somewhat looks like Oswald. Remember some people calmed to see Oswald. But records show Oswald was somewhere else at that time.

[Guest]

Thomas Eli Davis.

With thanks to Malcolm Blunt, scans by me.