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Silvia Odio and “Maurice Bishop”

Two Cuban exiles say they saw Oswald with men who wanted Kennedy dead

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The visit

Three men, one called Leon Oswald.

Odio, from a prominent anti-Castro family, said two Latin men calling themselves “Leopoldo” and “Angelo” came with an American introduced as “Leon Oswald”. The next day Leopoldo phoned. He said the American was “kind of nuts” and had said Kennedy should have been assassinated after the Bay of Pigs. [1]

Her sister Annie was there and also identified Oswald. Odio fixed the date as 26 or 27 September, before 1 October. [1][2]

What we can’t tell you. Who the men were has never been established.

The sources

  1. HSCA final report, part I-C: conspiracy findings ↗

    Soviet, Cuban, anti-Castro, organized-crime and agency allegations, one by one.

  2. HSCA staff report: the Odio incident, volume X (AARC mirror) ↗

    The staff found Silvia Odio credible and the Warren explanation inadequate.

How the Commission handled it

“The Commission will look bad if it turns out that she is.”

Commission lawyer Wesley Liebeler wrote in 1964: “Odio may well be right. The Commission will look bad if it turns out that she is.” The FBI work the Commission asked for did not reach general counsel J. Lee Rankin until September. The report then cited a mercenary, Loran Hall, who said he had been one of the visitors. Hall later said that was a fabrication. [1]

The committee was “inclined to believe Silvia Odio.” If she was right, Oswald was in Dallas in late September, and he had no car, so he needed someone to drive him. [1]

What we can’t tell you. The Commission’s report appeared before the FBI’s work was finished.

The sources

  1. HSCA final report, part I-C: conspiracy findings ↗

    Soviet, Cuban, anti-Castro, organized-crime and agency allegations, one by one.

  2. Warren Commission report, chapter 6: investigation of possible conspiracy ↗

    The Commission’s review of the Soviet years, Mexico City, Cuba, New Orleans, Ruby’s associations and rumors; it found no evidence of a conspiracy.

Veciana and “Maurice Bishop”

A handler, $253,000, and a meeting in Dallas.

Veciana said a man he knew as “Maurice Bishop” directed his anti-Castro work from 1960 to 1973, met him more than 100 times and paid him $253,000 at the end. He said that in late August or early September 1963 he saw Bishop in Dallas with a young man he later recognized as Oswald. [1]

Committee staff suspected that Bishop was a retired CIA officer, David Atlee Phillips. Phillips denied it. Veciana said Phillips was not Bishop but had a “physical similarity.” The committee suspected Veciana was lying about that. [1][2]

The committee could not credit his story. It cited his 10-year silence, no proof of payment, no witnesses to any meeting, and his limited help. [1]

What we can’t tell you. The committee had only Veciana’s word, and his 1978 denials about Phillips.

The sources

  1. HSCA final report, part I-C: conspiracy findings ↗

    Soviet, Cuban, anti-Castro, organized-crime and agency allegations, one by one.

  2. HSCA staff report: Antonio Veciana and “Maurice Bishop,” volume X (AARC mirror) ↗

    The claimed handler, the suspected David Atlee Phillips identification and Veciana’s denials in 1978.

WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT THIS FILE

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