Agency: FBI
Originator: FBI
From: LARSON, ROLF L.
To: DIRECTOR, FBI
Document date: 06/25/1954
Document type: PAPER-TEXTUAL DOCUMENT

## Page 1

124-10208-10425

JFK Assassination System

Identification Form

Agency Information

Date:

4/23/201

AGENCY :

FBI

RECORD NUMBER: 124-10208-10425

RECORD SERIES: HQ

AGENCY FILE NUMBER :

2-1396-5

Document Information

ORIGINATOR:

FBI

FROM:

LARSON, ROLF L.

TO:

DIRECTOR, FBI

TITLE:

DATE:

06/25/1954

PAGES:

16

SUBJECTS :

EB, APPREHENDED, MX BANK POLICE, ESCAPE,

WHEREABOUTS

DOCUMENT TYPE :

PAPER, TEXTUAL DOCUMENT

CLASSIFICATION: Confidential

RESTRICTIONS: 1B; 4

CURRENT STATUS : Redact

DATE OF LAST REVIEW: 06/09/1998

OPENING CRITERIA: INDEFINITE, APPROVAL OF CIA

COMMENTS : INC MEMO

v9.1

NH 50953

DooId: 32292149

Page 1,

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## Page 2

TAL

FÉDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

Form No. 1

THIS CASE ORIGINATED AT

BUREAU

REPORT MADE AT

MEXICO, D. F.

TITLE

CHANGED

EDWARD

Sabatino, John

Browder

Sabatino

DATE WHEN

MADE

6/25/54

PERIOD FOR WHICH MADE

6/1,4,9-

11,16/54

REPORT MADE BY

FO

was.,

Edward

Edward

CHARACTER OF CASE

REGISTRATION ACT

•1, 1A

SYNOPSIS QI

Subject was ápprehended at Mexico, D. F., by officers

öf the Mexican Bank Police 6/10/54 and placed in the

Section of the Mexican

custody of the Investigatlis arrest resulted from

Ministry of Government.

the fact that he had ordered from a small Mexico City

printing shop a quantity of blank "cashiers checks"

on

Classified

Declassity

s. banks.

At the time of arrest, he was at

liberty on bond

as a result of charges of issuing bad

He claims to have sold arms to deposed Cuban

President CARLOS PRIO SOCARRAS and to have recently

conferred with Guatemalan President JACOBO ARBENZ.

He

also stated he has been in contact with the son of

Nicaraguan President Somoza and claimed to be planninge

Ra

the check forms which he had ordered in con-

nection with a plan to blow up the ammunition storage

dump of the Guatemalan Government.: He acknowledged

utilizing the names

JOHN D. MC CORMICK' and EDWARD

SABATINO but claimed he has not violated any U.S.

Federal laws.

Friends of Subject advise he is

COPTES DESTROYED

pathological liar but claim he is useful for his

R207 AUG

Alimagination and resourcefulness.

On afternoon' of

26/16/54,

BROWDER escaped from Immigration Detention

House and present whereabouts unknown.

18614s-99454

anha but at pine

WASTIN

01x: 72-1:5K

BON-FCIM II

2.41

299 hes!

322.

313 88128

80с-

shee

2,4,74 д.

APPROVED AND

FORWARDED:

SPECIAL A

IN CHARGE

COPIES OF THIS REPORTI

Bureau (2-1396,

- American Embassy CI

(circulation)

I - Mexico City (97-12)

At Nor Troncer

SHE

HEREIN

ISSIFIED-

- SIDE FOR

PS NOT WRITE IN

THESE SPACES ACTIONL

×396 -

SE-30

RECORDED 3

CINDE

•9OPERTY OF FBI-THIS CONFIDENTIAL REPORT AND ITS

3Y TO WHICH LOANED.

E FBI AND ARE NOT TO ME DISTRIBUTED: OUISIN

NN 70953

DocId: 32292149 Page 2

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## Page 3

1415/97

date

APPACERTATE A

AND TIFUD O

ADVICTORY T

SEIP(J) OT

DATE

CONFIDENTIAL

Hriten States Hepartutent of Juntice

Heberal Bureau of inuestigation

1-11-95

Classified by

CONFIDENTIAL

Declassify on:

STATE IS INAD

REMAINS

INg.

June 25(4) pte yele

DTD. 12-10-760

1L3

ALL INFORMATION CONTAINED

WHERE SHOTG ASHER EXCEPT ZIEK)

WHESE SHOWN OTHERWISE.

Re:

EDWARD BROWDER, JR.,

with aliases

Edward

• Sabatino, John D. Mccormick,

Edward Browder

Sabatino

I.

BASIS FOR INVESTIGATION

This investigation is predicated on information re

ceived from It, of known reliability, to the effect that one

JOHN D. MC CORMICK had directed a letter to Costa Rican President

group in Mexico which was plotting against FIGUERES and in which

The offered his services to the Costa Rican Government in recruiting

pilots and combatting any possible revolution. Source stated this

letter also made reference to ROSENDO ARGUELLO, JR., as being

en

gaged in revolutionary activitles against the FIGurEs regime.

II.

INVESTIGATION TO IDENTIFY JOHN D. MC CORMICK

GIAT

It had been advised

I-l that in writing to President

FIGURES, MC CORMICK had furnished his retu

address as Calle

Rio Hudson #7, Apartment 4, México, D. F.

Investigation by I-2,

of known reliability, at the fore-

going address, disclosed, that an individual who was known to the

building manager. as JOHN*MC CORMICK was a constant visitor at the

"cabaret artist" named ODETT OLIVIER, who

5668

CLASSIFY ON: 25X

had occupied Apartment 4, Calle Rio Hudson #?, for approximately

eighteen months until she moved from that address in April, 1954,

stating she planned to return to Europe.

T-2 was advised,

however

by the building manager that in early June, 1954, ODETT OLIVIER:

telephoned her inquiring

to whether or not any mail had arrived

at that address for her.

2-1394-

T-3, a representative of another Government agency, ad-

vised of having received information from a confidential source

who resided in the same apartment building as ODETT OLIVIER to the

effect that one JOHN MC CORMICK had intermittently resided with

OLIVIER at that address, and that MC CORMICK and two unidentified

736

CIA HAS NO OBJECTION TO

By

DEO 20190A

3AX9/0R,

CONFIDENTIAD

• Exempt iro

RELEASE OR CIA INFORMATION

"Date of. Declassification,

IN THIS DOCUMENT AS SANITIZE

MAY 2 1 1977 .

GAB 2/12/99 (PG.1.)

5723474 9 1

NH 50953 DocId: 32292149

Page 3

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## Page 4

CONFIDENTIAL

companions in a 1951 Oldsmobile or Pontiac automobile bearing

1953 San Salvador License Plates had assisted OLIVIER when she

moved from that address.

This source further advised

that MC

CORMICK did not appear to be employed and that on several oc-

casions he remained at the apartment continuously and claimed

he was awaiting long-distance telephone calls from Central

America.

7

Information was received independently from I-4,

of known reliability, inLApril, 1954,

to the effect that one

EDWARD SABATINO had been spending considerable time in the

company of ROSENDO ARGUELLO, IR., and that in the latter part

of April ARGUELLO and SABATINO had departed from Mexico City

for Guatemala in the automobile of ARGUELLO, which was described

as a LIst Buick bearing 1953 San Salvador License Plates.

had also advised that SABATINO claimed to be a former U. S. Air

Force pilot who is presently in the business of buying and selling

U. S. Army surplus and to have delivered a substantial quantity

of arms to associates of deposed Cuban President CARLOS PRIO

SOCARRAS.

I-4 stated SABATINO claimed that the agent who handled

the matter for PRIO SOCARRAS had paid him for the arms in United

States currency,

approximately one-half of which turned out to be

fraudulent.

(и)

III. DETENTION OF SUBJECT BY MEXICAN AUTHORITIES

Information was

received from ALFONSO FRIAS, Assistant

Chief of the Mexican Bank Police, to the effect that EDWARD BROWDER,

City on the afternoon of June 10,

in connection with his order for the printing of blank

195 me care tenta focar," calle trustar ters

Checks" on two United States banks.

FRIAS advised that investi-

gation had disclosed that Subject had furnished cliches to the

printing firm and had ordered the checks printed in accordance

with a model which he had in his possession at the time of his

arrest and which are described as follows:

• *

A check-size strip of check paper in

12-1396-5

blank on which was pasted a

of paper on which was printed "City Bank

Farmers Irust Company, Chartered 1022,

Read OffIce: 22 William Street, New York. "

CONFIDEN

-2 =

NH 50953 DocId: 32292119 Page 1

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## Page 5

CONFIDENTIAL

The usual check form had been lined off

in ink with indications in ink for such

items as number, pay

to the order of,

amount, date, and at the bottom there ap"

peared

in handprinting,

"Cashiers Check.

At the very bottom appeared two

lines under-

neath one of which was printed,

"Assistant

Casnter "Countersigned.

and underneath

the bottom line was

printed

No (4)

12.

A second strip of check-size bank paper on

which was prepared a similar type check form

at the top of which was the designation,

"In

the Center of Industrial America,

the

Detroit

Bank, More Than 105 Years of Service." This

form, however, had spaces indicated for sig-

natures of Vice-President and Cashier l) (u)

Subject was questioned concerning the check

forms which

he had ordered

and advised Mr. DEMETRIO FLORES FAGOAGA, Chief of

the Investigative Section of Ministry of Government, that he had

ordered these check forms for "political purposes."

EX (4)

There follows a partial list of documents and material

which was obtained by the Mexican Police authorities incident to

Subject's arrest: C

Iwo metal cliche stamps bearing the above-

quoted portions of "City Bank Farmers Trust

Company," etc., and "In the Center of In-

dustrial America, the Detroit Bank," ete.,

were obtained by the Police at the printing

firm. Ken Cu

2-1396-5

Also obtained were two other metal

stamps

for printing at the bottom of the two checks

mentioned, one being a stamp reading "Insured

and the other reading

National City Bank of New York. "

Various small stamp samples of

the printing

of the above cliches were in the subject's

possession and there was one obviously made

from a cliche but the cliche itself was not

- 3-

GONFIRENTIALI

-112027

NH 50953 DocId: 32292119 Page 5

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## Page 6

CONFIDENTIALI

4.

6.

Lavailable.

It read, "Haynes Stellite

company, a Division

of Union Carbide

and carbon corporation, Uce, General

ifices and works, Kokomo, Indiana.

Sales Offices Chicago - Cleveland

Detroit - Houston - Los Angeles - New

York - San Francisco - Tulsa."

AC-

cording to Subject's later explanation

of this,

this was to

stamp 3 x 5 sheets

of paper to paste on boxes oi amunition ku)

Also in his possession was Tourist card

#348196, issued May. 7, 1954, good for

180 days in the name

Of EDWARD BROWDER,

JH.,: 31 years of age, born at and a resi

Amarillo,

Texas.

The document of

identification which he

presented in order

to get this tourist card was listed as

Guatemalan Tourist Card #60706, issued by

the Consul General of

Guatemala at Tapachula,

Mexico, May 3, 1954. His card was stamped

with the entry date of May 8, 1954, at Mexico

C1 ty Contral Airport. KAlu)

Further noted was a permit to allow certain

articles to leave the Penitentiary of the

. It was issued by Crugia

(Cell Block) G.

Federal District one sweater, one shirt,

one

towel - property of prisoner JOHN MC

CORMICK. "

21214-3

Pass #7236 of the Penitentiary of the Federal

Receipt for a bond issued by Bonding

• Company,

Guardiana,

CORMICK, Bond' #2037y, in the name of JOHN MC

dated February 15, 1954,

in the amount of 2,200 pesos, it being noted

thereupon that MC CORMICK should present him-

self each Monday of every week. at the Adminis-

tration Offices of the Penitentiary #72, Letter

"A. "

- 4-

CONFIDENTAL

5692

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## Page 7

CONFIDENTIAL

8

10.

1.

.2.

An order issued by the 12th Judge of

the Penal Court declaring that JOHN

MC CORMICK in the Penitentiary for

Iraud is bereby placed at liberty

ruary 13, 1954755(4)

inder bond of 2,200 pesos dated Feb

telegram to EDWARD BROWDER, apparently

from his wife in Amarillo, Texas,

Ares tent A Telephone saranda, a7

Apartment #5,

DE. ROSENDO ARGUELLO, HIJOIN(U)

Various newspaper clippings, some of

which merely consisted of a torn-off

headline of an article in Spanish:

"Bomb went off near Palace in Cuba."

There were various other clippings

relating to President FULGENCIO BATISTA

and Ex-President CARLOS PRIO SOCARRAS. JE (U)

An airman's certificate and a pilot

license issued by the Department of

Commerce, Civil Aeronautics Administra-

tion, Washington, D. C., in the name of

EDWARD BROWDER, JR., described as born

weight

signed "D. M. GRETZER.

His pilot's

license was issued July 26, 1948, which

gave his address as 1803 Harrison Street,

Amarillo, Texas.

4-1394-5

In Subject's possession

was a copy

telegram from.

Amarillo, Texas, which had

been directed to him in care of Dr. ROSENDO

ARGUELLO, JR., at Calle Pedro Baranda #17,

Apartment #5,

Telephone 13-66-45. This

very poor Spanish,

a trans-

Lation of which is as follows:

"Please tell

EDWARD to call me immediately

Thank you.

/8/ La Senora (The Mrs.)."(&) (u)

CONFIDENTIAL

SOR

107

NH 50953 DocId: 32292149 Page 7

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## Page 8

CONFIDENTIALI

13.

A copy of a telegram dated May 20, 1954,

at Managua, Nicaragua,

and addressed to

EDWARD BROWDER SABATINO, Hotel Monte Casino,

Mexico CIty follows:

a translation from Spanish of

which is as

"I have instructed

the Ambassador to furnish you permit or

passport (with which, to come

Nicaragua,

/s/ SOMOZA.

The Subject asserted to Mexican Police auth-

orities that the foregoing telegram was from

the son of the Nicaraguan President, ANASTASIO

SOMOZA.

A(4)

14.

Apparently, directly related to the foregoing

telegram was a letter over the signature of the

Nicaraguan Ambassador to Mexico,

Dr. ALBERTO

SEVILLA SECASAS, to which was affixed a photo-

graph of the Subject and which authorized his

entry to Nicaragua. The document carried the

notation,

dated May 20, 1954•

"autor get or rector an"

IV. INTERVIEW OF SUBJECT

Subject was interviewed briefly by I-s, of known

reliability, in the presence of the chief of the

Investigative

Section of the Ministry of Government and while he was not

pletely cooperative, did furnish the following information:*s

Subject prefaced his remarks by stating that while he,

has "very lew moral principles left, he does have one or two and

one of those is that he will not assist the Communists. "B)e

BROWDER freely acknowledged that he is identical with

JOHN D. MC CORMICK and EDWARD SABATINO.

0 or 2-1516-5

BROWDER acknowledged having sold a quantity of arms to

Ex-Cuban President CARLOS PRIO YSOCARRAS, claiming these arms were

obtained by him in Italy. He stated that when he delivered, these

- 6 -

CONFIDENIIAL

HH 50953 DooId: 32292149 Page 8

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## Page 9

CONFIDENTIAL

WATTS

30A00

Relatives

JOE and BILLBROWDER

1803 Harrison Street.

AmarillO, Texas

Telephone 6-8136

(The above address was found

in Subject's possession.)

VII.

ESCAPE OF SUBJECT

Information was received from Mr. DEMETRIO FLORES

FAGOAGA to the effect that on the afternoon of June 16, 1954,

Subject managed to "slug" a guard at the Immigration lockup on

Miguel Schultz Street, Mexico,

Fo, and escaped. FAGAGA

advised that stops have been placed

at all logical points of

exit and that investigation to date has failed to locate Sub-

ject.

I-4 advised that BROWDER had managed to take a taxi

shortly following his escape and had proceeded to an unidenti

fied German Restaurant in the San Angel Inn area of Mexico City

from where he made telephonic contact with ROSENDO ARGUELLO, JR.,

and a lexico City attorney known only aspruIz.

I-4 expressed

the opinion that Subject is still in

hiding in Mexico City.

2-1396-5

CONFIDENTIAN

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## Page 10

CONFIDENTIAL

MINISTRATIVE PAGE

The title of

his case is being shown

"changed" to

record

aliase

BONARD SABATINO, TOEN DEMA DEMONDER, RONARD ROWDER

EDWARD SABATINO, JOHN

JR., and-

ZSABATIN

which he is known to have used.

One copy

to the

Embassy and

i Me roper seen disseminated Localled

mA, Mexico city.

It is

pointed out that an

intensive interrogation of

Subject was not feasible at the outset of his period of incar-

ceration, and it was expected that he would be deported to the

United States where he could be interrogated by bureau repre

sentatives.

SOURCES:

T-1 is Foreign Service Dispatch #668 dated March

2, 1954, from the American Embassy,

Jose, Costa Rica, copy of which was furnished

this office by Bulet dated May 17, 1954.

7-2 10 18X-46)() (4)

I-3 is State

Department Security Officer WILLIAM L.

CARR, U. S. Embassy, Mexico, D. F.

T-4 1

MANUEL CABALLERO, Costa Rican revolutionary.

I-5 is SA ROLE I. LARSON.

LEAD:

THE MEXICO CITY OFFICE

21396-5

At Mexico, D. F.

Will continue to follow and report developments in con-

nection with efforts of Mexican authorities to apprehend Subject.

- 12 m

S0F

NH 50953 DocId: 32292119 Page 10

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## Page 11

REFERENCE:

Mexico City cable to Bureau dated June 11, 1954](5)

Bulet to Mexico City dated May 17, 1954.

- P

CONFIDENTAL

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