1241028410404) JFK Assassination System . . Date: —-5/11/201 Identification Form “Agency Information AGENCY: FBI RECORD NUMBER: = 124-10284-10404 RECORD SERIES: HQ AGENCY FILENUMBER:. 2-1566-16TH NR 1 Document Information ORIGINATOR: FBI FROM: DIRECTOR, FBI TO: DOS TITLE: DATE: — 10/26/1959 ‘PAGES: 9 SUBJECTS : PDL, CUBAN GOVERNMENT, REQ, EXTRADITION, ACA, POLIT, AGENTS, EXAMINE, AIRCRAFT, WEAPONS A/O EXPLOSIVES DOCUMENT TYPE: PAPER, TEXTUAL DOCUMENT CLASSIFICATION: — Secret RESTRICTIONS:  1A;4 CURRENT STATUS: = Redact DATE OF LASTREVIEW: 05/26/1998 OPENING CRITERIA: INDEFINITE, APPROVAL OF CIA COMMENTS : INC LHM /  yOd 6 | HY 50953 Doctld: 32303892 Page i
Ae CHEER MEEA T,- . - 1 - Liaison ~ 1 ~ Nasca 109-504 Date: October 26, 195% : To: Office of Security Department of State From: John Edgar Hoover, Director ~ Subject: ANTI-FIDEL CASTRO ACTIVITIES INTERNAL SECURITY ~ CUBA KH 2-¢-4Y October 23, 1955, with enclosure, which transmitted !°/KSé information concerning Pedro Luis Diaz Lanz, former  #-17-4 y chief of the Cuban Air Force, and his participation in (Jr FK) @ leaflet-dropping raid over Havana on Uctober 21, 19506 fieference is made to my communication dated ‘Enclosed for each recipient is a copy of a memorandum containing additional information. . ; 2-5 ; Any additional pertinent data will be furnished the recipients. oo see. YSGF . Enclosure BOT a vo 1 - Director (Enelosure)... pn : — Central Intelligence Agency i = Attention: Deputy Director, Flans i - Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence (Enclosure / Department of the Army Attention: Chief, Security Division . i - tffice of Special investigations (Enclosure) Air Force ie L ~ Lirector of Naval intelligence (Enclosure, I ~ Havana; Emelosure } - FLT --205af26I0-( Pedro Luis Diaz Lanz) (SEE NTE PAGE 2), 7 HW $0953 Docld: 3230352 Page 2
Gora st aor WES. ao canes gk iP a Sab flee oot Cat Rn eR hao OR A ED 2 UE Rc BEET He ee Bests oh eet bt . j aot i a ae oe i Raa Cantsd ied Oy ee Et ae AS Looe etal Sitio St er sergeant of his office as a B-25 and C47, No B-25 is known to be in Cuba and only one is known to be in Florida. This is the property of Frank Anthony Sturgis, also known as Frank Fiorini. His plane was last based at North Perry Airport, Miamie The (C-47 reportedly had yellow stripes painted on its tail. No aircraft so marked was known to be based in Cuba. The planes flew over the _ Hilton Hotel, headquarters of the American Society of Travel seers Convention, dropping leaflets. Their purpose ‘allegedly was to show that thé present Cuban Government is incompetent to Umaintain law and order. No bombs were dropped. There was no oGUstrafing from the air, but some Cuban planes were damaged by “3 misdirected Cuban Army and police ground fire. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION ** > : CLA "October: 265 | POSINGN FO EXTEN 9597: REAS! ° FC i ae OIG paige nT. Gee D LAS SSE he! erotic. advised the United States Air Attache repoetad. that the aircraft WKH dropping leaflets on October 21, 1959, were identified by a 2O- GF BY Sees An informant with whom insufficient contact has been had to determine his reliability, on October 23, 1959, learned that the Cuban Air Force had instructions to have two fighters ready to intercept any returning invaders. 4 With reference to the B-25 mentioned above, our Miami ria Office advised on October 23, 1959, that the B-25 flown by Diaz Lanz, according to Diaz Lanz, was owned by Sturgise Miami i / sources had no information concerning the C-47. United States A. Border Patrol] representatives in Miami advised that there were . very few C-47's in the Miami area and none were knoun to have gone to Havana on October 21, 19596 The Border Patrol suspects | that the C-47 mentioned above is based in Mexico but has no evidence to substantiate this belief. furnish reliable information advised that at about 3215 Demos October 24, 1959, Jose Ramos, Vice Consul acting in charge of the Cuban Consulate, Miami, stated that the Cuban Government wanted to file extradition proceedings immediately against a Cuban exile in Miamie The informant surmised that the subject of the extradition proceedings would be Pedro Luis Diaz Lanz. These data were orally furnished to Mr. Charles Hammond, Department of States Major Lopes Department of 6 AR On October 24, 1959, a source who is in a position to | i i i é } tars ACEMCTES oF 0 aD: Pl A ET gS hae i mei GE . DATE OR ASSIFICAT QO TEESE: ff -5 + : we Jape ba 50953 Docld: 32303892 Page 3
: ma ANTI ~PIDEL CASTRO ACTIVITIES. . aie a Commander R. Lyon, Department of the : i.De Ko Harrélson, Department of the Air Force; and Mr. the Central * intelligence Agency Py Ure Te Je Ore onnor 0 7S Bureau on October 24, 1959. It is noted that the press on October 25, 1959, reported that Cuban Foreign Minister Raul Roa publicly stated that the Cuban. Government was asking the United States for the provisional arrest of Diaz Lanz and would request his extradition. In this connection the above source, on October 255 1959, advised that Ramos had . consulted an attorney in Miami and had brought data alleging two- charges against Diaz Lanz. The first charged Diaz Lanz with murder | ‘and the second charged him with attempted murder and were based on two cases, allegedly pending in Havana. The first case allegedly is pending in the Fourth. District, Court of Instructions, Case Number 4482. The second case is allegedly pending in the Sixth | District, Court of. instructions, Case Number 3007. Reportedly, the Court_of Instructions is similar to a magistrate's court where | original complaints are filed. No dates or details were furnished LL | by Ramos covering the circumstances surrounding the alleged ad _ offenses. _The attorney reportedly drew up the necessary extra= _aition papers including a warrant for the arrest of Diaz Lanze. “3 However, the attorney is_ uncertain as to whether he should continue with this matter since it is obviously a device seeking to return Diaz Lanz to Cuba for political reasons. fant eens oat pam ee ee On October 24, 1959, the informant mentioned on page two of the enclosure to the referenced communication and who has Surnished reliable information in the past reported that a leaflet in the ‘Spanish language was being distributed in the Cuban colony | ‘in Miami. The recipients of the leaflet were invited to attend a meeting at @ peme, October 25, 1959, at the Circulo Cubano (Cuban Circle), Miami, Florida, a social club, to protest and condemn. . the activities which occurred over Havana on October 21, 1959. It was indicated in the leaflets that the meeting was being __ sponsored by the July 26 Movement (Castro's movement), Miamie The informant learned: that individuals representing various anti~Castro groups in Miami were planning to attend the meetings some of whom indicated they would carry guns, thus giving rise to bloodshed between the pro= and anti-Castro factions. The iiamt. Police Department and the Dade. County Department of Public Safety ‘have been notified and these agencies plan to take whatever steps are necessary to insure that no violence will be carried out. ne err pet «he de oe The informant mentioned in the foregoing paragraph | _  jearned that, because of the furor raised in Cuba during the | ‘’ past-few days, the air sabotage which had been scheduled to Pan ry eer ,  é 3 Ce ORE 4 u % 4 % See! Bee Sacer a ies e at HY 50953 DBoctd: 32303892 Page 4
(0 ANTI-FIDEL CASTRO ACTIVITIES Sr ee x r\ a ne Cae! Seen Ball | 1% Caen Gu continue through October 30, 1959, had temporarily ceased. These — data, as well as the data in the preceding paragraph, were o urnished to Mr. Herbert Lampe, Department of State, and Mr. Ventral intelligence Agency, by Mr. G. W. Hall of this réau. It was also furnished to Major Cyrus Timmons, Department of the Air Force; Major Gains Hawkins, Department of the Army; and Lieutenant Commander Francis fT. Reardon, Department of the Navy; by Mr. C. B. Peck of this Bureau and to Mr. Chester A. Emerick, Bureau of Customs, by Mr. J. F. Wacks of this Bureau. All the disseminations were made on October 24, 1959. wae . On October 23, 1959, Deputy Al Tarabochia, Public Safety Department, Dade County, Miami, advised our Miami Office that Jose Ramos, Vice Consul, acting in charge, Cuban Consulate, Miami, claimed to have received information from a source whose reliability is unknown that a two-engine gray airplane was scheduled to drop leaflets and probably bombs over Havana on October 24, 1959, and that possibly Diaz Lanz or his plane would be involved... Reportedly the same plane was to fly over Havana on October 26, 1959, and drop | leaflets and generally try to disrupt a large Castro rally planned for October 26; 1959. Diaz Lanz, according to Ramos, may fly the | leaflet-dropping mission on October 26, 1959. The United States Border Patrol and United States Customs in Miami were advised. These data were orally furnished to Mr. Charles Hammond, Department of State; Major Cobb, Department of the Army; Commander hk. Lyon, Department of the Mauu: Cantain D. K. Harrelson, Department of the Air Force; and Mr. By the Central Intelligence Agency by Mro Jo Je O'Connor reau on October 24, 1959. . On October 25, 1959, our Miami Office advised that on October 24, 1959, Pedro Luis Diaz Lanz; his brother, Marcos Diaz Lanz, former Inspector General and.Pedro’s assistant in the Cuban i Air Force; Ricardo Lorie Valls, former July 26 Movement under- ground leader in Miami; Frank Anthony Sturgis, also knoum as Frank Fiorini, a United States citizen and former underground ~ member of the July 26 Movement in Miami; and Carlos Echogoyen, former member of the Cuban Air Force, were interviewed. Pedro Diaz Lanz. confirmed the data he furnished on October 22, 1959. He stated in addition that the leaflet-dropping flight of October 21, 1959, was a joint enterprise of the above~ named persons under his leadership in behalf of the July 26 Anti- Communist Movement, but without the specific knowledge of the - movement. Diaz Lanz stated he planned the incident. The receipt | i of the data concerning the arrest of Hubert Matos, Castro military leader in Camaguey, caused Diaz Lanz to move up the date and change the target from Camaguey to Havana. The purpose of the } | 50953 Daoctd: 32303092 Page 5
ae . + , , ok ‘ wee ANTI =FIDEL CASTRO ACTIVITIES Os once been in and out of the plane on n erous oceasions and had never noticed any arms or explosives. (Y) 1 oo An informant who has furnished reliable information in the past has provided the following data: In September, 19595 the informant, learned. that. Fernando Coba,.a Cuban police sergeant in Havana, had. been given Bl, 000 by his chief, Efigenio Almejeiras, — for his part in enticing Rafael del Pine to Cuba from the United States. It is noted that Del Pine, a publicly admitted anti-Castro leader in.Miami, was seized by Cuban authorities on July 25; 1959; after his plane had landed near Havana wh phy yes apparently planning to smuggle someone out of Cuba. ae) . The above-mentioned informant has also learned that Almejeiras was attempting to find someone who would lead an armed LOO-man expedition to Cuba from Miami and then turn the members of the expedition over to Cuban authorities in much the same fashion as William Alexander Morgan, American soldier of fortune, and Castro official, had done in. August,. (1959, when he acted as,a double Le agent for Castro in exposing a pilot. against. Castro from. bases in the Dominican Republice According to the informant, Raul Castro, newly named minister of the Cuban armed SOrcesy approved of this venture and was greatly interested in seeing it carried oute Reportedly haul Castro and Almejetras expressed an interest in the possibility of the assassination or kidnapping of Esteban Ventura Novo,- former member of the Cuban National Policey in exile in Miami. The informant also. learned. of the interest of Cuban authorities in having Evelio Alpizar Perez, ormer Cuban Atr Force pilot in exile in Miami, delivered. to Cubae 4) in October, 1959, the informant learned that Almejeiras ‘and Coba were interest ed in enticing members of the anti~Castro ~ faction in Miami to send a@ bomb=laden piane to Cuba for the purpose of . bombing Havana. , According to the informant, he conferred with Almejeiras and Coba on October 2}, 1959. Almaejetras propused that source - approach Rolando Masferrer, prominent anti-Castro leader in Miami,- or somé other leading anti~Castro leader in the United States and volunteer to undertake a bombing attack against Havana from the. United § States. Cw SC y According to the plan outlined by Almejeiras, the informant would procure bombs with United-States Government . wl) in a markings and would deliver them to Almejeiras after landing tetyeeenrntsnenncsnla 5 N teed OO HY 50953 DBoctd: 32303892 Page 6
prearranged landing strip outside Havana. Tt was indicated that Cuban authorities would then issue a press release ¢laiming that — a Miami-based plane had drepped bombs on Cuba, offering as proof. one or more of the bombs with United States markings which ° supposedly had failed to explode as well as fragments from other bombs which the Cubans would explode. Almejeiras told infcrmant this hoax would enable the Castro regime to ‘propagandize against - the United. States State Department in order to force United States action against _anti~Castro elements in this country.- Almejeiras said he wanted this ruse to take place on October 26,. 1959; and described the. operation as "highly important” to the Cuban: - Government. The informant will endeavor to develop additional formation concerning this proposed plot Ww The informant. aiso learned that Almejeiras reportedly _ stated that several hand grenades were’ dropped from the plane that . a@ropped leaflets over Havana on October 21, 1959. Reportédly ae Almejeiras stated that another plane flew over Havana on October ely 1959, but that the Cuban Government did not have any descriptive data’ concerning this planes ‘ Ww it is requested that no further dissemination be made | of the information furnished by this informant because to do so .. - might: place his life in jeopardye (u) HY 50953 DBoctd: 32303892 Page 7