178-10004-10148 AGENCY: DAVIS RECORD NUMBER: — 178-10004-10148 RECORD SERIES: GENERAL SUBJECT FILE AGENCY FILE NUMBER: INTEL. INVESTIGATIONS--MISC. B, OCT.1975 (3) Document Information GRIGINATOR: Whi ' FROM: RATLIFF, ROB ROY TO: SCOWCROFT, BRENT TITLE: JUSTICE DEPARTMENT REQUEST FOR MAIL INFORMATION DATE: 10/14/1975 PAGES: 3 SUBJECTS : DOCUMENT TYPE : CLASSIFICATION : RESTRICTIONS : CURRENT STATUS : DATE OF LAST REVIEW : OPENING CRITERIA : COMMENTS : v9.1 JFK Assassination System Identification Form Agency Information OPERATION MONGOOSE MEMORANDUM Secret ic Redact 08/09/1993 No attachments. HY 50955 Docld:321053870 Page 1 Date: 8/27/201
178-10004-10148 : TOP SECRET/SENSITIVE Attachments wate VEU . ’ | \ MEMORANDUM EYES 0°. \ THE WHITE HOUSE OUTSIDE SYSTEM WASHINGTON INFORMATION TOP SECRET/SENSITIVE Attachments _ i4 October 1975 MEMORANDUM FOR: GENERAL SCOWCROFT \ FROM: ROB ROY RATLIFF SUBJECT: Justice Department Request for Mail Information Jeanne Davis transmitted to me a request from the Department of Justice to survey 40 Committee and predecessor group files to determine any information of a list of subjects focused on operations involving mail. She asked that I transmit my findings directly to you... I assume that Justice is interested in illegal use of the mails. As I understand CIA's admitted activity in this field, it was an intelligence collection operation and therefore would not be subject to review by the 40 Committee or its predecessors. We find no record that mail intercept operations were discussed by the 40 Committee or predecessors; however, there are references to mail operations in Committee records. , Jeanne Davis said Justice wanted material on "any use of mail techniques." These are representative items: TAB A--Reports which indicate general mailings of propaganda and related material. There is nothing sinister in this--you put a book or pamphlet in an envelope, address it, put on postage and drop it in the mail. TAB B--Letters were test mailed inside a denied area to see if they come out, or individuals mailed spontaneous letters to CIA-supported enterprises. Again, there is nothing unusual about this--regular use of the mail system. TAB C--Special covert operations which make use of the mails, including: C-1--A forged letter mailed in| | C-2-~-Mailing of | | However {see page 5 of 9 May 1972 item), some of these letters may have been inserted into the mail system ostensibly as having originated in the denied area. classifica py _oigmer Ne = EXEAIS?  F qrenct rag hon oe; CO EYES b.... "Alo p vs Swe Won, Peay Opp Db; op py HY 50955 Docld: 32105870 Page 2?
; EVES ONLY TOP SECRET/SENSITIVE Attachments -2- ke he Ut Noté that the last item in this group (17 and 10 January 1972) refers to "letter-insert mechanisms.’ I can find no elaboration of what this means, but it might represent ; of the mail, es ~ ; C-4--National Intelligence Estimates and other reports of intelligence may refer to information, some part of which was gleaned from mail intercepts. On the basis of protecting sources and methods these would not normally be identified in a document. However if the question were asked at a meeting, the source might be orally identified as a mail intercept (or SIGINT or whatever). 4 irst item shows DOD ‘“Semaiiig- Tetwers OsStensiply Tron groups in North Vietnam to other countries. The second shows | | ne ike 5 feb) Fi) pee — poe bs or o be] oO to ch oO ® + 0 oe peta ° +] € Hi pte oO a € ie) e, a. 7 =] Os io C-6--Here are two cases where the Committee was informed that mail intercepts were the source of information used in support of covert operations. With regard to MONGOOSE files--which Mrs. Davis said Justice also wanted us to check--I find only the references at TAB D which suggest the possibility that mail intercept operations were a part of the response to intense pressures for more ''hard'' information on what was going on in Cuba. !yg, TOP SECRET/SENSITIVE Attachment” ane Op “Roy, Ph HY 50955 Docld: 37105870 Page 3
TOP SECRET ‘SENSITIVE Attachments ~3- Mrs. Davis also said that Justice made reference to Walt Rostow's recollection of a general survey of all ‘lintelligence programs country by country" made by the 303 Committee. I assume he means the general beginning -of-a-new-~ President's-term roundup (similar to the ones given Mr. Nixon and Mr. Ford). We find references to covert action reviews, but these appear to have been oral and we find nothing in writing, and no references to mail operations. In summary, we have made a review of our files, with special reference to the general index of minutes and the country files deemed most likely to include references to 'any use ‘of mail techniques. "' Representative findings are cited above. We find no record of ‘illegal'' mail operations being a subject of dis- cussion or consideration within the 40 Committee and predecessor organizations (December 1958 to the present). However, there is evidence that the Committee was informed that mail intercept operations were conducted (TAB C-6), Please advise if any additional material or presentation is desired. Attachments TABs A-D wae ee TOP SECRET/SENSITIVE Attachments EYES ONLY BW 50955 Docld: 327105670 Page 4