CONVERSATION WITH MANUEL ARTIME AND MANOLIN HERNANDEZ 1 APRIL 1963.
Originator: CIA
From: HOWARD HUNT CHIEF DO/OPRP
To: MFR
Document date: 04/02/1963
Document type: PAPER - TEXTUAL DOCUMENT

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

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- Anebuddy 1- dil.

2 April 1963

1: EZIORANDUM FOR THE RECORD

SUBJECT:

Conversation with Manuel Artime and

Manolin Hemandez • I April 1963

The evening of 1 April 1963 I received a telephone

call from Artime saying that he was in town and desired to

felicitate my wife on the occasion of her birthday.

course, invited him to come to my home and he arrived in due

course with Manolin Hemandez, his onc-time jeputy in the MRR.

Artine said that he had just returned from a long trip

through the countries of Central America, that he was bringing

a nessage from Luis Somoza for Attorney General Robert Kentedy,

• and had an appointment to see the latter on 2 April. Artime

said also that he was scheduled to appear on a nation-wide

Television Program on the morning of

4 April from New York City -

the "Today" show, I believe - and after he bad seen the Attomey

General he was leaving for New York to prepare for the program.

He remarked appreciatively that he had bech gratified

• to find his barracks bay intact and said that he was wearing

the shoes that he had put into the barracks bag when he last

packed it in my operational quarters in Coconut Grove. The fact:

that he had been able to regain his possessions from us after

his long imprisonment impressed Artime with the thoughtfulness

RETURN TO CIA

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Do Not Reproducel

Le the base reneat es on we a 0. a cocaine co

ve very interested in materially assisting any undertaking

against Castro.

Irtine said he had heard that (Jin Koell was non

In Madrid and I said that if Artime wanted to check, all he had

to do vas to call the Eubassy in Madrid upon arrival.

Artime

was hopeful that his parents would be permitted to leave. Cuba

and has had some dealings

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So

Referring to the just-announced capture of 17 raiders

at Norman Cay, Artine indicated that he was not particularly

exercised over then as individuals,

but hoped the U.s. would

not be tricked into the position of being "inat Castro

escribed as a protector of russia and Cuba azainst exile

caiders." Of the exiles restricted to the Jade County area,

our only mutual acquairtance was Pedro Diaz Lanz whom we

agreed had for some time been so uncontrollable as to raise

serious doubt's as to his mental stability.

for his part,

Artime said, he hoped that he would not be served with a

restriction notice since, if he was, he would depart the

Uos. permanently with an attendant blast of publicity.

б.

I asked about Jose Perez San Roman and learned from

Artime that Pepe had suffered a nental breakdown,

Robert Kennedus had rented a home for pene:

that the

his wife and two

children in the McLean area and that Artime had been with

them during the day when MrS. Kennedy nad coge to the San Roman

home and seen A-time.

Artime learned

that the San Roman

children were driven to and from

Blvd., so it is not unlikely that ?epe's children will seek

mine

school.)

When I asked Artime what nad brought about San Roman's

breakdown — he Indicated that it was the result of conflicts

arising from narital unhappiness and pressures on him by the U.S.

Govt. to persuade the Brigace to enlist in the U.S. Arny. San

Roman apparently feels in retrospect thai he should have

evacuated the Brigade from the beachhead rather than sacrificing

Artime said that San Rouan was somewhat resentful over

the fact that his psychiatric hill was being paid by Miro Cardona,

regarding it a way of making him indebted to Miro.

(In the

context, I judged that Pepe viewed Miro as a symbol of the CRC.)

Artime also said that he had seen Idigoras Fuentes and

Roberto Alejos in Guatemala and he suggested that Peralta's

coup had been amicably arranged with loigoras.

I inferred

that Artime had also seen Peralta on his just-completed trip.

Manolin Hemandez asked be about a certain "Col. Earl

I Brernan" who,

he said, was living or had lived at the Sheraton-

Park Hotel and who was moving through the Cuban exile community

looking for dark-skinned Cubans to be used in Haiti against

CROJP I

Exall a tram tutomatic

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Duvaller.

ccording to Hernandez,

Brennan asserts that his

activity is backed by the White House, his link being via

Ambassador david Bruce.

Brennan's cone-on apparently, is

to tell former Brigade members that if they held overthrow

Duvalier,

Haiti will be at their disposal for whatever

action they care to take against castro.

In answer to their question, I said that I had not

known Brennan in OSS in his self-described role, although

Hernandez coumented that since the first of the year

he had been queried by both Jose Miro Cardona and Jose Ignacio

Rasco (MUC) as to whether I ("Eduardo") was still in the U.S.

and had denied any knowledge of my whereabouts.

12.

By this time it was 2 o'clock in the moming, the

three of us had downed a fifth of Scotch and we regrouned in

the kitchen where I prepared breakfast for all.

Before leaving,

Artime said he would call me after he had seen

the Attorney

General.

ward Aunt

HOWARD HUNT

Chief

DO/OPRP

Distribution:

orty = C/SAS

• C/WH

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