“… BOX# 437-23 MEMORANDUM SEL COM SENSITIVE FILE: TO: F.A.O. Schwarz, Jr. FROM: DATE: Greg Treverton July 2, 1975 AcopY 3 OF 3 SUBJECT: Trujillo Assassination: Missing Documents 1. May 11, 1960. State Department Memorandum after debriefing of Ambassador Farland. 2. July, 1960. State Department documents with respe …”
“assassination of Trujillo had been known in the State Department at the level of the Assistant Secretary of State for Inter- American Affairs, and by senior officials of the CIA, including the DCI. Yet the memorandum supplied to. Under Secretary Merchant, which at HW 50955 ”
“-9- C-IX-28 Letter, Dearborn to Mann, October 27, 1960 C-IX-29 Memorandum of conversation re assassination, May 3, 1961 C-X Trujillo II (3) C-X-1 Transmittal letter/Knoche to Gray re: CIA documents concerning Dominican Republic, June 17, 1975 C-X-2 Agency Memorandum:”
“FIUAL DRAFT 6% 341:) E&hAW% No R948 TRUJILLO Agreed to by drafting subcommittee on Summary August 28, 1975* Rafael Trujillo was assassinated by a group of Dominican dissidents on May 30, 1961. Trujillo was a brutal dictator, and both the Eisenhower and Kennedy Ad”
“-47- Immediately following the assassination, all CIA personnel in the Dominican Republic were removed from the country and within a few days Consul General Dearborn was back in Washington. The State Department cabled the CIA station in the Dominican Republic to destroy a”
“the risk of associ- ation with political assassination, since the U.S., as a matter of general policy, could not condone assassination. The cable * Copies of CIA cables, including the March 20, 1961 cable describing the plan to assassinate Trujillo in the apartment of his m”
“U.S. must not run the risk of associ- ation with political assassination, since the U.S., as a matter of general policy, could not condone assassination. The cable * Copies of CIA cables, including the March 20, 1961 cable describing the plan to assassinate Trujillo in the ”
“FINAL DRAFT 1.5 6 GAa7• to w.s, A KS R948 TRUJILLO Agreed to by drafting subcommittee on Summary August 28, 1975* Rafael Trujillo was assassinated by a group of Dominican dissidents on May 30, 1961. Trujillo was a brutal dictator, and both the Eisenhower and Kennedy”
“-47- Immediately following the assassination, all CIA personnel in the Dominican Republic were removed' from the country and within a few days Consul General Dearborn was back in Washington. The State Department cabled the CIA station in 'the Dominican Republic to destroy ”
“-2- 8. Any paper or document used by Mr. Dulles and Mr. Bissell in the briefing they gave to new members of the Special Group at the meeting on 14 February 1961. The Minutes state: "Mr. Dulles, assisted by Mr. Bissell, then summarized for the benefit of the new members of th”
“ople if such activities become known. In our judgment event ual disclosure is inevitable. Th e proce dures of the CIA should be modified to re- quire the concurrence of the Department of State before weapons, ammunition, explosives, and similar items are transmitted by diplomatic”
“5-27-; 5S' 8s ^Nemo J arms (i.e., a paramilitary or revolutionary implementation as opposed to a specifically targeted assassination use). (Bissell, 7/29, p.80). Concerning the briefing paper, Bissell testified that: "... it is perfectly clear that I was aware at the t”
“the required coordination, NW 66000 Docld:32112922 Page 3 -72- ! 7 There is no evidence of any Both consumed about two weeks. effort during this period to recover the weapons or other- wise interfere with the assassination plans. The policy statement was cabled to the Dominican R”
“i; Why didn’t we also say stop it, tell these people not 4JP Parts %voot. % € . 22 ji to proceed further, in light of the fact that they may have 23 1 thought, because of previous history, that their efforts to 24 assassinate Trujillo had our blessing? In other words, ther”
“. ‘ I "-‘-*** as TOP SECRET 4 44 Phone (A rea 2 0 2 ) 5 4 4 -6 0 0 0 161 1 Y to the Domincan Republic, either two or three days prior to the ” Lameness 2 actual assassination of Mr. Trujillo? 3 Mr. Bundy, I have no recollection of it, and when I saw ‘t those”
“reflecting President’s views with regard to the Dominican Republic. 9. May 25, 1961. Minutes of the Special Group meeting, this date. 10. June 5 or 6, 1961. CIA Memorandum for J.D. Esterline entitled "@DACID (State Department)views on passage of arms. ft 1(B) 11. June 7, 196”
“OTO COPY FROM ANDR FORO LIBRARY ১ E2 IMPDET CL BY 000276 1 NW 66000 Docld:32112910 Page 3 1 COUPETAL 150 5 A-I(K) (Q) 1-I(G) (0) Document No. Description Memorandum for the Record. Subject: Meeting at the White House 7 April 1964, Subject: Review of Covert Program Directed Agains”
“detailed plans, by the dissidents to assassinate Trujillo. There is no evidence that this information was passed to the White House or to any member of the Special Group NW 50955 Docld: 32423539 10 Page 412”
“APA.7 0 L. CEY gun parts entered the Republic in specially-marked .food, cans, which were later turned over to the conspirators. Plans for the intended assassination were worked out during the same period in which the abortive assault on Cuba was being prepared. However, ”
“d they did the detailed planning. They were never subject to American erican supervision or control, NW 66000 Docld:32112922 Page 2 -71- On the other hand, CIA and State Department officers in the Dominican Republic were in regular contact with the plotters before the assassinati”
“members of the 19 20 staff and shown certain documents that the staff believes will: 21 Ibe pertinent to your testimony? Mr. Goodwin, I have been shown documents connected with 22 23 the Dominican Republic and the assassination of Trujillo today. © The Chairman. And d”
“ters because of last-minute State Department objections. PHOTOCOPY FROM THE GERALD R. FORD LIBPARY : White House officials first learned guns had been provided to . It appears that high-level State Department and potential assassins some six weeks after the transfer, and about tw”
“TOP SECRET 1230n 1 #, -8 0 0 9 pestrot verulsunus 15 1 wanted — in order to carry out an assassination, they thought 2 they needed transfer of additional weapons, of submachine guns. 3 I don't remember any indication that anyone thought that 4 carbine or a .38 was adequa”
“to train a member of the group in the use of explosives to ki ll Trujillo. As a gesture of Ame rican support, three revolvers and three carbines, along with limited supplies of ammunition, were passed to the plotters about two months before the assassination. One of the carbines ”
“12922 Page 10 -79- PHOTOCOPY FROM THE-GERALD R. FORD LIBPARY™ In March matte rs took an active turn. In a cable on March 4, a letter on March 16, and an airgram on March 22 the Consul General in Ciudad Trujillo reported that plans : - for Trujillo's assassination were coming to a”
“A-II (D) A - Momo from Knoche to Gray - 17 May 75 SECRET B - M/R ~ 20 June 62 SECRET EYES ONLY C - Cable 32127 - 29 Mar 61 SECRET D - Cable IN 20613 - 17 Mar 61 SECRET ■ E - Memo for Chief, WHl Div - 28 June 60 w/attachment SECRET F - Memo - Subj: CIA Covert Activities”
“% ; -45.- fact, we feel that the transfer of arms would serve very little purpose and expose the United States to great danger of association with assassination attempt." The cable, as revised by Goodwin and approved by President Kennedy, was sent to Dearborn on May 29, ”
“the dissidents to assassinate Trujillo. There is no evidence that this information was passed to the White House or to any member of the Special Group, 1R9 9 9U. NW 50955 Docltl:32423525 Page 51”
“TOP SECRET 38 enono Areo 2071 $44-soce Trujillo with a .38. I wouldn’t have thought that, if I thought N about it. President Kennedy went to Paris a week or two later. When 4 the assassination actually occurred, we were all taken by 5 surprise, so that Dearborn had deta”
“y. *sw S ? 2 ; it. r M a. % * s.2iteGWsh,” G -2123 USLY . Cole 1 wit ^ ; in Ciudad Truxillo on 30 May but were not received ia Washington . until the early morning hours of 31 May—about eight hours after the assassination took place. Excerpts follow.) 31 ”
“-145.- ,E y. idM fact, we feel that the transfer of arms would serve very little purpose and expose the United States to great danger of association with assassination attempt.” The cable, as revised by Goodwin and approved by President Kennedy, was sent to Dearborn on Ma”
“-5- TRUJILLO "I am sure there was no discussion with EISENHOWER about the assassination of TRUJILLO." "I don't see how the DCI and the Department of State could have approved arms shipments without going up to the Special Group. The DCI should have taken a suggested cours”
“1-27-- INAft 6 % arms (i.e., a paramilitary or revolutionary implementation as opposed to a specifically targeted assassination use). (Bissell, 7/29, p.80), Concerning the briefing paper, Bissell testified that: 18 ... it is perfectly clear that I was aware at the ti”
“TERO ^T EN I"36107% 67 -34- 29 The Committee concludes that the failure clearly to inform policymakers of the assassination effort against Castro was grossly improper. The Committee believes that it should be incumbent upon the DDP to report such a sensitive operation t”
“/ .. 4 11 j - 45 - fact, we feel that the transfer of arms would serve very little purpose and expose the United States to great danger of association with assassination attempt." The cable, as revised by Goodwin and approved by President ■ Kennedy, was sent to Dearbor”
“FROM GERALD & FORD LIBRARY E2 IMPDET CL BY 000276 GOAFIESTAL NW 66000 Docld:32112909 Page 3 Document No. Description 5 A-I (K) (Q) Memorandum for the Record. Subject: Meeting at the White House 7 April 1964, Subject: Review of Covert Program Directed Against Cuba. Classified Secr”
“- 18 - %; k the man's fears were well-founded and had promised to seek a * pistol. Although there is no direct evidence linking any of these pistols to the assassination of Trujillo, a June 7, 1961, CIA memorandum, unsigned and with no attribution as to source, state”
“on May 29, the d ay before the successful assassi natio n attempt. the Consul General and the CÍA St ation Chief in Ciudad Trujillo promptly protested this change in the policy which they had followed in the belief it had been approved by appropriate authority. Before these cable”
“14100000 7 p-rn n’t V: 0— DID) Jil 31 May 1951 Received in Headquarters Signal Center at 0341 hours, Washington time: FLASH SECRET CRITIC CIA CIUDAD TRUJILLO NUMBER 1. APER 2. SOURCE DISSIDENT IN DIRECT TOUCH WITH DISSIDENT ACTION GROUP (c). X SOURCE AT 2330 HOURS L”
“SECRET -2- In Department's considered opinion, former objective cannot, repeat not, easily override latter. For this reason you should not, repeat not, inform trusted op position leaders at this time of draft document which you now hold nor deliver copy to them. If you ”
“ir own; and they did the detailed plan ning. They were never subject t o American erican supervision or control, NW 66000 Docld:32112922 Page 2 -71- On the other hand, CIA and State Department officers in the Dominican Republic were in regular contact with the plotters before the”
“-14- These events are discussed below under subheading A. Evidence reflecting the degree of knowledge of those events possessed by senior American officials is treated thereafter. As used herein, "senior American officials" means individuals in the White House or serving ”
“4-00000 ,104-10214-10034, 2025 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992 C ?• J J Extrot. TABLE Or CON ENZS tag? The assassination -............................................................................................. 1 Ove”
“-4- Documents indicate that consideration was given within the CIA to airdropping rifles into the Dominican Republic. At a June 21, 1960, meeting with Nesiolmamof the CIA Western Hemisphere Division, Ambassador Farland reportedly suggested possible sites for the drops. J ”
“-3- CONFIDENTIAL PHOTO COPY FROM PARALAR. FORO LIBRARY NW 66000 Docld:32112909 Page 5 i COMPOSITIAN Document No, Description (H) 31 TRUJ 0398 (IN 46419) dated 15 February 1961. Classified Secret. (L) 32 HDCA 2380 dated 14 March 1961. Subject: EMDEED. Classified Secret. 33 AFTER (”
“14-00000 5002 cis? CROFT Lalu U-Js.za i There were reports in Ciudad Trujillo as she time that the U.S. Consulate had been in some way involved with the plotters. Eventually, after the surviving plotters were granted amnesty. many of the details care cut. Norman Call,”
“(0) (1) Classified Secret. -3- PHOTO COPY FNOM SERALER FORO LIBRARY NW 66000 Docld:32112910 Page 5 ! Document No. Description (H).31 TRUJ 0398 (IN 46419) dated 15 February 1961. Classified Secret. (L) 32 HDCA 2380 dated 14 March 1961. Subject: EMDEED. Classified Secret 33 (G) 34 ”
“the U.S. Government generally supported these dissidents and some Government personnel were aware that they intended to kill Trujillo. Three pistols and three carbines were furnished by American officials, although a request for machine guns was later refused. There was c”
“-14- These events are discussed below under subheading A. Evidence reflecting the degree of knowledge of those events possessed by senior American officials is treated thereafter. As used herein. "senior American officials'' means individuals in the White House or servin”
“19 1 learn? : 2 Mr. Goodwin. On the 13th of May when we requested from 3 the White House a briefing paper on all covert activities in 4 the Dominican Republic, that had been conducted in the 5 Dominican Republic. 6 Mr. Schwarz. Now that briefing paper was requested fr”