WATERGATE - FRANK A. O'MALLEY
Originator: CIA
From: FRED N. EVANS & LAWRENCE J. HOWE
To: THE RECORD
Document date: 02/21/1974
Document type: PAPER - TEXTUAL DOCUMENT

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2022 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992

I6 Felo 12, Tul54

21 February 1974

MEMORANDUM FOR THE RECORD

SUBJECT: Watergate--Frank A. O'Malley

1. At 3 p.m. on the afternoon of 19 February 1974,

Frederick N. Evans and Lawrence J. Howe interviewed

Mr. Frank A. O'Malley at his residence, 6419 Lakeview

Drive, Falls Church, Virginia. Mr. O'Malley retired

from this Agency in June of 1972.

Prior to retirement

Mr. O'Malley was an officer in the External Employment

Assistance Branch, Retirement Activities Division of

the Office of Personnel.

It was Mr. O'Malley's function

to assist personnel retiring from this Agency in finding

post-retirement employment.

In this capacity Mr. O'Malley

had been instrumental in the placement of Mr. E. Howard

Hunt in the Robert R. Mullen public relations firm.

The

purpose of this interview was to attempt to determine if

additional information could be developed from Mr. O'Malley

with regard to the placement of Mr. Hunt with the Mullen

Company.

2. Mx. O'Malley began the interview by recalling

the nature of his past Agency associations both with Mr.

Hunt and the Mullen Company.

Mr. O'Malley stated that

prior to assuming his responsibilities in the Office of

Personnel he had served with Central Cover Staff In the

area dealing with the funding of covert action projects.

In this capacity he had become faniliar with the acti-

vities of Mr. Hunt while Mr. Hunt functioned on the Covert

Activities Staff primarily in the propaganda field. Mr.

O'Malley stated that he first came in contact with the

Mullen Company when he was attenpting to find an organi-•

zation to handle the public relations effort of a covert

Agency activity known as the Free Cuba Commitzee. Mr.

O'Malley related that he had arranged this cover through

the Christianform Organization and that his duties in-

volved all aspects of the funding of this activity.

O'Malley described the nature of his working relationship

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with Mr. Robert R. Mullen as being close and cordial.

Mr. O'Malley stated that. Mr. Mullen was in the habit

of confiding to him information concerning other Mullen

business contacts and projects. In response to a

specific question, Mx. O'Malley stated that during the

period of his contact with the Mullen Company dealing

with the Free Cuba Committee, Mr. Mullen told him the

Howard Hughes Organization was a client of the concern.

3. MI. O'Malley reiterated his previous statements

that Mr. Hunt was referred to his office for placement

assistance through the Office of the Executive Director,

then Colonel L. K. White. Mr. O'Malley stated that in

view of Mr. Hunt's interests in the public relations

field, it was thought advisable to put Mr. Hunt in touch

with Mr. Robert Mullen for the purpose of gaining the

benefit of Mr.. Mullen's guidance. Mr. O'Malley recalled,

after the initial meeting, Mr. Mullen mentioned having

net MI. Hunt some years previously in Paris, trance.

ir. O'Malley's offica arranged interviews with various

organizations including Reader's Digest and the Kennecott

Copper Company. Through the offices of the Mullen Company

an interview was arranged with the General Foods Corpora-

tion, a Mullen client. Mr. O'Malley stated there was

disappointment that Mr. Hunt had been unsuccessful in

"selling himself" during any of these interviews and that

no job offers had resulted.

In response to a question

to whether or not executive level interest was still

shown in Mr. Hunt's post-employment placement,

Mr. O'Malley recalled that MT. Richard Helms, then

Director of Central Intelligence, was listed

as a charac-

ter reference on Mr. Hunt's resume and that Mr. Helms

signed a letter of recommendation to the Kennecott Copper

Contacted a month Me Male recy let teedy

Mr. Mullen, who stated that a decision had been made to

expand their operations.

In view of this expansion, Mr.

Mullen had decided he would himself offer MI. Hunt a job.

Mr. Mullen had stated

Hunt begin work immediately. However, Mr. O'Malley re-

called that Mr. Hunt completed retirement formalities and

actually started work for the Mullen Company approximately

a week to 10 days later.

2.

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Mr. O'Malley stated that contact was maintained

with Mr. Hunt while at the Nullen Corpany on a continuing

basis, because Mr. O'Malley was interested in Mir. Hunt

for possible referral of other Agency retirees.

FiX.

O'Malley also understood that there was Cover and Com-

nercial Staff interest in the Mullen. Company, and that

Nr. Hunt became instrumental in discussing several aspects

of the cover operations in his capacity as an officer of

the company•

Mr. O'Malley recalled referring various

Agency officers to Mr. Hunt for guidance when these indi-

viduals expressed an interest in entering the public

relations field.

Mr. O'Malley did recall disappointent

in feeling Mr. Hunt had generally been less helpful on

these occasions.

5. Mr. Hunt contacted Mr. O'Malley on several occasions

requesting referral of retiring Agency employees with

specific qualifications.

These instances occurred apparent-

ly after Mr. Hunt had assumed his responsibilities with

the White House.

In one instance Mr. Hunt requested re-

ferral of a recently retired Agency secretary.. As in

previous memoranda and discussions, Mr. O'Malley was unable

to recall the name of this individual.

He did, however,

state that he is quite certain Mr. Hunt turned down the

individual whom he referred. As a point of clarification,

Mr. O'Malley said that this individual had not previously

been known to Mr. Hunt, nor had she previously worked

for him in any capacity.

Mr. O'Malley also recalled a

request from Mr. Hunt for an individual having skills in

the area of locks and

surreptitious entry. A resume of

Mr. Thomas C.6 Amato was provided to Mr. Hunt at that time.

It is MI. O'Malley's recollection

stated that a person with Mr. LAmalo'S qualifica sons fically

needed in connection with a requirement of the Howard

Hughes Organization in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Nix. O'Malley

stated the opinion that it was his impression that the

duties involved would include the monitoring of a listening

device in an undisclosed location..

Mr. O'Malley reiterated

his understanding that Mr. Anatoldid not accept MI. Hunt's

offer of employment.

6. Mr. O'Malley then recalled request from Mr. Hunt

for a recommendation of a security service organization

to carry out an electronic countermeasures "sweep." MT.

O'Malley recommended the Wackenhut Corporation.

MI.

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•O'Malley recalled that Mr. Hunt expressed dissatisfaction

with that suggestion in part because of what Mr. Hunt

viewed as that firm's political orientation.

Nt. O'Malley

did not elaborate further on that remari..

Nr. O'Malley

securIty.

Mr. O'Malley stated that insofar as this

organization was advertised in the yellow pages and that

Mr. Hunt could be assured of the reliability of the ser-

vices, he felt this to be a reasonable suggestion. Mr.

O'Nalley stated that during a subsequent phone

call when

Mr. O'Malley asked how his suggestion had worked out,

MT. hunt responded

"Yes, they had done a fine job."

At this point Mr. O'Malley was asked whether or not fron

his associations with Mr. Hunt he felt Mr. Hunt was in

the habit of making glib comments which were not neces-

sarily accurate in order to pass over a subject. Mr:

O'Malley stated

that this was categorically so.

He said

he was sure that Mr. Hunt had lied to him on a number of

occasions and that, therefore, he was in no position to

• be sure that Mr. Hunt had actually, in fact, used the

services of Anderson Security Consultants.

Mr. O'Malley

volunteered the opinion that he suspected

the electronic

countermeasures "sweep" was to be carried out in the offices

of the Committee to Re-elect the President..

f. In response to a question as to whether he had

ever referred anyone to McCord Associates, fir: O'Malley

replied that he remembered having referred Walter Brayden.

Nir. Brayden for a time acted as bodyguard to Mrs. Martha

As an aside Mr. O'Malley mentioned that Mr.

Brayden had refused to carry a firearm in spite of the

fact that Mr. McCord told him he could do. so on the author-

ity of the Attorney General. Asked specifically if he had

ever referred either William Shea or Teresa Shea to Mr.

McCord, Mr. O'Malley stated that he did not recall specif-

ically referring Teresa Shea and that he was sure that he

had not referred William Shea to him..

So, contrary to

previous statements, it is now Mr. O'Malley's belief that

in all probability Mrs. Shea was not referred by this

Agency to Mr. McCord.

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ning to Mr. O'Malley's

-vious responsibilities

in coordinating funding for the covert action activities

Of HI. E. Howard Hunt, the issue was

raised as to whether

or not the funding of Mr. Hunt's projecis continued between

July 1965 and September 1966 while Mr. Hunt was a contract

employee stationed at Madrid

that at the time of MI. Hunt, spain.

Mr. O'Malley recalled

s assignment to Madrid the

statement disseminated for consumption within the Agency

was that Mr. Hunt was retiring. Mr. O'Malley stated that

this was not

generally believed. Mr. O'Malley was quite

certain that during this period

his office handled no.

project funding for Mr. Hunt.. In response to specific

question Mr. O'Malley stated that on Mr. Hunt's return to

staff employment the projects and funding which stopped in

July 1965 were again resumed. Mr. O'Malley was not aware

of any project names. or funding mechanisms or post-assignnent

accountings in connection with Mr. Hunt!s activities in

Madrid.

Frederick N. Evans

anne four

Lawrenc

J. Howe

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