TESTIMONY OF WALTER ELDER
Originator: SSCIA
From: ELDER, WALTER
Document date: 08/13/1975
Document type: PAPER, TEXTUAL DOCUMENT

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157-10002-10046

2022 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 19925. 455

Date: 08/15/92

Page: 1

JFK ASSASSINATION SYSTEM

IDENTIFICATION FORM

AGENCY INFORMATION

AGENCY : SSCIA

RECORD NUMBER : 157-10002-10046

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TRANSCRIPT

AGENCY FILE NUMBER : R-779

DOCUMENT INFORMATION

ORIGINATOR : SSCIA

FROM :

TO :

TITLE :

TESTIMONY OF WALTER ELDER

DATE : 08/13/75

PAGES

: 98

SUBJECTS :

ELDER, WALTER

ASSASSINATIONS

CASTRO

MCCONE

KENNEDY, JOHN F.

GIANCANA, SAM

MAFIA

HARVEY

BAY OF PIGS

OPERATION MONGOOSE

WIRETAP

BALETTI, ARTHUR

HOUSTON, L.

GRAY, GORDON

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

HAITI

DUVALIER

DOCUMENT TYPE : PAPER, TEXTUAL DOCUMENT

CLASSIFICATION : T

RESTRICTIONS : REFERRED

CURRENT STATUS : P

DATE OF LAST REVIEW : 09/29/93

OPENING CRITERIA :

[R] - ITEM IS RESTRICTED

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walter Elder,7018 redd Drive, talls Church.

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WARD

& PAUL

410 First Street, S.E., Washington, D.C. 20003

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Mr. Elder.

Yirginia 22042.

Mr. Schwarz.

Are you today employed by the CIA?

Mr. Elder.

I am.

Mr. Schwarz.

When were you first employed?

Mr. Elder. 10 September, 1951.

Mr. Schwarz. Could you recount what your duties were

at the Agency between 1959 and 1965 in just summary form?

Mr. Elder. In 1959 I was a senior intelligence duty

officer in the Office of Current Intelligence. On & February,

1960 I became Assistant to the Director with the specific

assignment as Executive Assistant to the Deputy Director who

was then General Kebble.

Cilbel

I continued in this capacity until General Kobble retired

at the end of January, 1962. MI. McCone became Director on

29 November, 1961.

On 1 December I was assigned an added responsibility as

his briefing officer.

Mr. Schwarz. 1961?

Mr. Elder. Yes, sir. This job grew in responsibility

and on 3 May, 1962 I became his Executive Assistant and served

with him until he left, 28 April, 1965.

Have you kept in contact with Mr. McCone since then?

Mr. Elder. I have.

Mr. Schwarz. In both a personal and professional sense?

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Phone (Area 202) 544-6000

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410 First Street, S.E., Washington, D.C. 20003

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part of his time?

Mr. Elder. That is correct.

He made one extensive trip

in the accompaniment of Mr. Dulles to visit not only Chiefs

of Station in Europe but also to visit with the heads of

friendly liaison services. He made a trip to the Far East.

The principal point of it was a meeting of the Chiefs of Station

from the Far East area

ac Baggeo, where, of course, he was

briefed extensively.

He also received extensive briefings at headquarters between

the period, I think he became a consultant technically on

the 13th of October.

Mr. Kirbow. Did you accompany him on these trips?

MI. Elder. No, I did not.

Mr. Kirbow. But Mr. Dulles did accompany him, at least

on the European trip?

Mr. Elder. The European trip, Mr. Helms and Mr. Bissell

accompanied him, among others.

Mr. Kirbow. Would you give us some idea of about how

much time you would estimate he spent alone with Mr. McCone

on this trip to the Far East, and them tell us about how much !

time he spent collectively with the briefings by the various

Chiefs of Station?

Mr. Elder. I am sorry, who spent time? Mr. Dulles did

not go on the Far East trip.

Mr. Kirbow. Mr. McCone and Mr. Dulles, the time they

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spent together on the European trip and MI. McCone with Mr.

Bissell and Mr. Helms on the Far East trip?

MI. Elder. I believe the Far Eastern trip lasted about

10 days. The trip to Europe was about two weeks. They

travelled together. They were not necessarily quartered together.

But they were together for the full working day and there

were usually evening business sessions.

Mr. Kirbow. Do you of your own knowledge know if they visits

both the

busemboug and the

Munichy stations during that

trip?

WARD

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410 First Street, S.E., Washington, D.C. 20003

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Mr. Elder. No, I do not know that precisely.

Mr. Kirbow. Do you have any reason to think that they

would have avoided those two stations?

Mr. Elder. I can think of no reason to avoid those

two stations except that they are not major stations.

Mr. Kirbow. Were there any records in Mr. McCone's

files of the details of the briefings or of other meetings

of importance on either of these trips?

Mr. Elder. There are records but they are skimpy because

he felt that he had no official capacity and no official

need for those records.

Mr. Kirbow. Would you give us some idea about how deep

within the structure at headquarters agency he contacted

people for any material briefings?

Mr. Elder. He contacted all the deputy directors and

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Mr. Schwarz. Did you send it and did you do anything

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about it?

Mr. Elder. Yes, I did. It's addressed to Colonel

J.C. King.

Mr. Schwarz. How do you know that?

Mr. Elder. I remember it very well. I had the weekend

duty with Mr. Dulles. We shared it. He would say I want

this done, I want this done.

I related to Colonel J.C. King. I also remember right

here that he relayed to Mr.

Ned. Hun 1man

man, Chief of Cuban

Branch.

MI. Shwarz. Your memory, Mr. Elder, is unbelievable.

It is fantastic, is a better way of putting it.

Mr. Elder. Is it a curse or a blessing?

Mr. Schwarz. Have you always had that amazing memory?

Mr. Elder. Yes, I have. It's just a gift.

Mr. Schwarz. What were the circumstances?

Mr. Elder. He had reviewed a paper.

Mr. Schwzrz. He, Dulles?

MI. Elder. Mr. Dulles had reviewed a paper on the

weekend. He would line them up like this (indicating). We

would go through, take notes and relay them, his assistants,

his views on these things.

You will note the date on this, 10. April, 1961. All

right, the next weekend, he knew then was the action against

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said and the record of the cable is before the Committee and

it says, do not get the Agency involved in this kind of

recommendation in so many words in that last sentence.

It does not say that the actions that were being proposed

by the coup group out there that were made well aware to

overthrow him of to take the brother and the ruler out of

action, so to speak, at that time in no way contemplated

assassination except forwhat the remark had been to the

Ambassador, do not overlook this as a possibility.

Did it?

Mr. Elder.

My recollection is, Mr. Kirbow, the acting

Chief of Station, Dave Smith.

pointed out that among the

plans of all the myriads of reports that we were getting, that

there was a proposal that assassination of Diem and Nu

would remove the problem.

(Discussion off the record.)

MI. Elder. This was a proposal:

MI. Kirbow. Excuse me.

I think in all fairness here we have digressed to the

point where Mr. Elder may wish to refresh his recollection

from the documents that we have offered everybody else because

I believe that you and I are in agreement this may not be

exactly what the document is.

I think we have put you in the position of going from

one end of the world to the other, and that may be unfair at

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