[3]104-10170-10145) (2025 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOH
[5]NF. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992 |
[7]ad
[12]| —RYBAT
[14]19 guLi6e7, .
[16]‘MEMORANDUM
[18]SUBJECT: Ramparts:. John Garrett UNDERHILL Jrt,
[19]sO ~ ‘Samuel George CUMMINGS, and
[22]a 1. Ramparts of June 1967, Vol. 5, No. 12, pp- 28-29, contains:
[23]; the following passages about Subjects: 2
[25]_. “The day after the assassination, Gary Underhill left
[27]' Washington in a hurry. Late in the evening he: showed up
[28]at the home of friends in New Jersey. He was very agitated.
[29]A small clique within the CIA was responsible for the as-
[30]sassination, he confided, and he was afraid for his life and
[31]probably would have to leave the country. Less than six
[33]. months later Underhill was found shot to death in his
[34]Washington apartment. The coroner ruled it suicide.
[36]"J. Garrett Unde rhill had been an intelligence agent
[37]during World War I and was a recognized authority on limi-
[38]‘ted warfare and small arms. A researcher and writer on
[39]military affairs, he was ona first-name basis with many of
[40]‘the top brass in the Pentagon. He was also on intimate terms
[41]with a number of high-ranking CIA officials--he was one of
[42]' the Agency's ‘un-people' who perform special assignments.
[43]At one time he had been a friend of Samuel Cummings of
[44]“Interarmco, the arms broker that numbers among its cus-
[45]‘tomers the CLA and, ironically, Klein's Sporting Goods of
[46]Chicago, from whence {sic/ the mail-order Carcano alleg-.
[47]edly was purchased by Oswald. : :
[49]SEORET
[50]“AT
[53]= RET
[54]RYBAT |
[56]“The friends whom Underhill visited say he was sober
[57]but badly shook. They say he attributed the Kennedy
[58]‘murder to a CIA clique which was carrying on a lucrative
[59]racket in gun-running, na rcotics and other contraband,
[60]_and manipulating political intrigue to serve its own ends.
[61]Kennedy supposedly got wind that something was going on
[62]and was: killed beforé he could ‘blow the whistle on it'.
[63]“> Although the friends had always known Unde rhill to be
[64]. ‘petfectly rational and objective, they at first didn't take
[65]‘his account seriously. ‘I think the main reason was,!
[66]‘explains the husband, ‘that we couldn't believe that the
[67]. ‘CIA could contain a corrupt element every bit as ruth-
[68]- lesé--and more efficient--as the mafia.*
[70]"The verdict of suicide in Underhill's death is by no
[71]a means convincing. His body was found by a writing
[72]-. gollaborator, Asher Brynes of the’ New Republic. He ;
[73]Shad been shot behind the left car, and an automatic pistol
[74]* was under his left side. Odd, says Brynes, because ,
[75]Underhill was right-handed, Brynes thinks the pistol
[76]was fitted with a‘silencer, and occupants of the apartment
[77]building couid not recall hea ring a shot. Underhill obvi-
[78]ously had been dead several days. .
[80]. "Garry-Underhill's chilling story is hardly implausible. :
[81]_Ag a spy apparatus the CIA is honeycombed with ‘self- an
[82]contained cliques operating without any real central control... on
[84]2. A check of Agency records has yielded the following information.
[86]about John Garrett UNDERHILL Jr.
[87]a. DPOB: 7 August 1915, Brooklyn. |
[89]b. Attended high school in Brooklyn and was graduated
[90]from Harvard in 1937.
[92]c. Died 8 May 1964.
[94]seCRET
[95]RYBAT
[97]14-0000
[99]Department of State, concerns contac
[101] geenet
[102]nNBAT .
[104]d. Wasa pictorial journalist for Life, 1938-1942.
[106]e. Ordered to active duty-with MIS, Washington, as
[108]_ a second licutenant, on 8 July 1945. Served with MIS ————.. -
[110]for 2-1/2 years, working on technical and photographic
[112], headings for MIS publications, evaluation of intelligence,
[113]and enemy uniforms, insignia, weapons, etc. “On.
[114]“9 October 1945 received a War Department staff ‘citation
[116]for superior workin military intelligence. Left active
[117]duty in May 1946. °. ;
[119]{. CLA memoranda of February and October 1949 _
[121]“ show that there was interest by the New York office of
[123]OO, Contacts Division, in using Subject as a contact for
[124]foreign intelligencé.., Name checks were conducted with
[126]various military. members of the intelligence community,
[128]but these yielded insufficient information, and OO was
[129]advised that contact should bé developed with caution, on
[130]a limited basis, and that Subject was not to receive in-
[131]formation classified higher than confidential.
[133]gy On12 March 1957 national agency checks were
[135]again. requested on Subject because of interest by the
[136]- Office of Security. , :
[138]h. A UP article of unknown date cites an article written
[139]by UNDERHILL for Esquire. The article-described the U.S.
[140]Army as shockingly weak, The UP piece stated that
[141]UNDERHILL served in military intelligence in World War
[142]Il and Korea. UNDERHILL said that he had served as a con- ~
[143]sultant [probably in 1956/ to an Army coordinating group.
[145]i, A report of 6 August 1954. from the Office of Security,
[146]ts between UNDERHILL .
[148]and one Herman AXELBANK, who was trying to acll photo-
[149]graphs of Soviet military subjects. UNDERHILL reported ~
[150]these_contacts to the FBI and to CLA. In November 1949
[152]RT
[153]RYBAT
[155]14-0000
[157]Py
[159]‘tor, ‘Domestic Contact Service, whose office provi
[160]reply. ; a °. . .
[162]. 4 . :
[163]UNDERHILL visited Washington to catl the attention of CLA to
[164]certain ANELBANK pictures and was acvised that Colliers. _
[165]might be interested in some of them for an article on Russia, |
[166]UNDERHILL discussed AXELBANK, with "Ricky" Haskins of
[168]3. On the basis of the foregoing an inquiry was made of direc-|
[169]ded the attached
[171]ut Samuel George CUMMINGS,
[173]4. The following information abo c
[174]ile and from information
[176]201-178343, was compiled from his 201 f
[177]provided by the Office of Security and by CiCLSPG. :
[179]a. His date and place of birth are 4 February 1927,
[180]Philadelphia. “ ye mo ;
[182]b. He entered on duty with CLA a3 a staff employee ,
[183]in December 1950. He was then a GS-% assigned to —
[184]Ground Branch, Weapons ‘and Equipment Division, OSL. -
[186]In January. 1952 he was transferred to the Office of
[187]Procurement and Supply. During 1952/1953 he travelled
[188]abroad extensively, buying foreiga weapons. .
[190]c. He married a German rational acd consequently
[191]resigned in November. 1953, when he Decame a career ;
[192]agent in Guatemala.
[194]4. Cables of the 1951-1952 period siate that
[195]CUMMINGS waé then buying arms for CLA and that
[196]the arms were intended for resistance elements
[198]behind the Iron Curtain..— - .
[200]e. On 17 August 1954 CUMMINGS became the |
[201]he(G1A-owned cormpanies known’ 2.
[202]porarior and Interarmco
[203]Swuserland, and
[205]principal agent oft
[207]as Ynternational Armatnent Cor
[209]Lt, both incorporated in Ganada,
[211]the U.S. CUMMINGS engaged in sharp practises in =
[213]his conduct of business and was 2ls0 extremely diffi-
[214]- eult to control. , :
[216]SECRET.
[217]RYBAT
[219]14-0000
[221]Jal.
[223]s SECRET.
[224]RYBAT
[226]f. A1957 cable states that a business man in:
[227]Panama, an Agency source, knew CUMMINGS. to
[229]- be providing information to the FBI and also knew
[231]him to be "careful about keeping the appropriate ;
[232]U.S. Government agencies informed of his deals."
[233]g.. In early 1958 CUMMINGS assumed sole. ~
[234]ownership of International Armament Corp. and | |
[236]vol. Interarmco. (An Agency audit established the =Y
[237]net worth of these companies as $219, 000. 00.
[239]CUMMINGS bought them with a non-interest bearing
[240]promissory note in the amount of $100, 000,° payable
[242]in four annual inatallments of $25,000, and certain
[243]items of inventory which had 4 cost value of $67, eon
[245]and a market.value of $250,000. These items were
[247]to remain the property of CIA, and their cost was,
[249]to be returned to the Agency after they were sold. oy
[251]‘on 28 June 1961 the West. German publication
[252]Der Spiegel reported that CUMMINGS had been em-
[253]ployed by CIA as an arms expert during the Korean
[254]War. and. that he had cooperated with CLA in » supplying,
[255]arme to various trouble spots".
[257]{. Shortly after. CUMMINGS: left his stafi position
[258]for Interarmco, contact with him was established by
[259]the WH Division. This contact was taken over by
[260]C/CI/SPG iw September 1954. (CUMMINGS knows :
[261]him only by alias.)> This contact is still maintained:
[262]Until recently the principal purpose was to dispose ~\
[263]of arms,(and CIA made.a sizeable profit on these a4} |
[264]tranaactisns.) The current contact is not operational,
[265]It is not based ona project, and no payments are
[266]made to CUMMINGS who volunteers information’ re-
[268]_ sulting from his extensive travels and high-level
[270]contacts. An operational clearance for CUMMINGS!
[271]use by the CI Staff as an informant was granted in
[272]March 1958.
[274]SECRET
[275]RYBAT
[277]14-0000 .
[279]SORT
[280]RYBAT
[282]j. On 4 January 1962 the Rome periodical Vie Nuove
[284]‘stated that.CUMMINGS was hired by CLA as an expert
[285]_in arms and ballistics.
[287]ook in:December 1962 the Office of Security recom-.
[289]. mended ‘against his use by Domestic Contact Service as
[290]a source, and in December 1964 the CI. Staff advised that :
[292]' it had no operational interest in Subject.
[294](Comment: As
[296]wae ‘noted above, this statement is correct, because
[297]Subject's activity is ‘not directed by the © Agency. He...
[299]: volunteers information: }
[301]1. An Interagency Source Register memo to ACSI,
[302]dated 1 June 1965, stated that at that time there was
[303]"Wo record of a current (operational interest in Subject. "
[305]m, An Agency report of 24 February 1966 cited.
[306]CUMMINGS, as trying to procure military equipment
[307]from ‘Communist Bloc countriea on behalf of DIA.
[309]n. Agency reports of February and a May 1967
[310]stated that CUMMINGS had been in close contact with
[311]the BND (West German foreign intelligence service)
[312]for’ a year or more, that he had been given require-
[313]ments by the. BND, and that these included lists of.
[314]Soviet and Bloc arms for procurement. It was also
[316]“reported that he showed a BND representative a copy
[318]of a purchase order for the procurement of a Soviet
[319]T-54 tank, the order having originated with DIA.
[320]BND officials have often stated that CUMMINGS isa
[322]CIA agent.
[324]o. A form dated 1 June 1967 was directed to the
[325]Interagency Source Register by "DA", presumably ;
[326]Department of the Army.
[328]5. Agency records contain numerous references to
[330]INTERARMCO, 5 ;
[331]. 4
[333]“SECRET
[334]RYBAT
[336]14-60000
[338]~ SECRET | -
[339]RYBAT
[341]6. It is noted that UNDERHILL, CUMMINGS, and
[342]INTERARMCO have not appeared to date in any press or
[344]classified reports of the Garrison investigation in New
[345]Orleans, with. the tenuous exception: of the Ramparts article
[347]cited at the outset of this memorandum.
[349]SECRET
[350]AYBAT