Evening star., 1941-02-23
Police Reaffirn1
Identification
OF Kriivitsky
Thomas Hits Inquiry,
Wants Dies Probers
To Investigate Case

Local police, answering a Dies
Committee member who was "as.
sailed with doubts" whether it was
really Walter Krivitsky's body which
was found here February 10, said
last night that positive identihca-
ton had been established by finger
prints.
Representative Thomas. Repub-
Ican, of New Jersey, said in Pas
sale, N. j., that Washington police
had done poor job of handling the
case. Although he had viewed the
body and identified it as Krivitsky,
he said yesterday. he had since come
to doubt his Identification.
1t. George Darnall, head Of the
police homicide squad. answered the
Representative by pointing out that
flngerprintS had been taken from
the body and had been compared
with those made by Krivitsky when
he registered last year as an alien.
The fngerprints of the dead man
and those of Krivitsky were identi-
cal. 1t. Darnall said. The detectives
pointed out the body had been iden-
tlf1ed by several persons who knew
the former Russian spy chief init
mately.
Body Found In Hotel
Krivitsky's body was found In the
Bellevue Hotel. He had been shot
through the head and police listed
the case as suicide, before learning
the real identity of the victim. When
It was learned that it was Krivitsky.
further investigation was made
with police closing the case as q
suicide.
representative Thomas made his
charges in speech before a group
at a PaSSaic Presbyterian church,
the Associated Press reported. He
said police investigation of the case
was probably the worst the
Dies Committee ever came in con-
tact with"
He charged police had told COM
mittee investigators they were un-
able TO take fingerprints from the
gun found in the hotel room be-
cause it was covered with blood.
He said committee investigators
told him the blood should facilitate
rather than hinder the taking of
prints.
The Representative also said there
were several discrepancies in the
story of the investigation as told to
the committee by the police.
Wants Committee Inquiry.
He said the committee should
go into the case to the limit" and
predicted that you have not yet
heard the last of the Krivitsky case"
In New York, Louis Waldman,
who was Krivitsky's attorney, said
there was no question about the
Identification. He said both he and
Mrs. Krivitsky had seen the body
and were sure of the Identification.
Il took steps TO settle any dispute
before it might arise" he said. "I
took pictures of the body"
This, he explained, he had done
because he anticipated the dispute.
On one point Mr.. Waldman said.
he agreed with Mr.. Thomas:
Il agree that the investigation of
the case was the sloppiest and most
incomplete ever conducted.
The case was closed" here with
the issuance of a certificate of
suicide by Coroner A Magruder
Macdonald Asked about Mr..
Thomas statements DIR. Mac
Donald yesterday said:
so far as I know, there are no
grounds for reopening the case.
Nothing new has been given me-"
No New Evidence, Thompson SAYS.
Chief of Detectives Bernard w.
Thompson said police had obtained
no new evidence in the case and as
far as they are concerned 1t is
closed.
Mr.. Thomas. in his speech, said
he couldn't find any evidence that
the F. B. l. took any part in the
investigation of the death of this
international figure"
F. B. I. officials said at the time
of the investigation they we're TAX
ing no part in it. Yesterday. S. J.
Tracy. in the Office of Director j.
Edgar Hoover repeated that the
F. B. I. did not and is not going TO
investigate the case"
He said the F. B. I. did not enter
the investigation because the death
did not occur on a Government
reserva tiop