CIA AIDING INVESTIGATION OF LE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP99-00498R000100020112-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 5, 2007
• Sequence Number: 112
• Publication Date: October 9, 1976
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Approved For Release 2007/07/05: CIA-RDP99-00498R000100020112-8
2IIU1 LE AP EAR- WASHINGTON POST
ON PAGE 4-19 OCTOBER 1970
-and Timothy S. Robinson
Central Intelligence Agency. director:
George Bush has met with key Justice De-1-
vestigation of the bombing death of former:'
Chilean Ambassador Orlando Letelier here
The CIA director=' conferred` 14londay
with Assistant Attorney. General J. Stan-
pestigation said. =Y ` '
-Although few details'. of-.. their.' discussion
.vestiaation into- Letelier's: death has in-
volved.l participation of officials at the.
highest -levels o# the- CIA: and the- Justice
Department. The. investigation itself is now
being: conducted; largely ,by the Federal
- The CIA's role in- the wide-ranging in-
vestigation poses sensitive ,ethical. and. le-
gal questions accorduig:to._official;a close/
forts- to-overthrow the Chilean, regime. ofi
the..Iate President .:Salvador, Allende in.
which Letelier was a-high official: In addi-
to keep- secret for:"national security" rea
charter and other'-federal . regulations that-
restrict- its :domestic ;activities-~ In, Febru
lines' - -for L?.S. - intelligence -'operations,
fneyinduded- a- broad-prohibition=against:!
?Letelier; - whQ"had been *an- outspoken-
critic-:; of - the: present:,:.Ehilean military-
junta,'was killed .Sept 21-when -a'-bomb
exploded' beneath -his---car -as fie'-; -drove'
through-' Sheridan :.Circle on Massachu-
setts Avenue's - Embassy Row, Ronni K.
Moffit .25,.'a passenger in his:car, also died..
Letelier;? '4? . had--;served .,as Allende's
fo*reign_.minister.and_.iainfster of defense.
as well-, as ;ambassador- to. the JJ.S::. He
.was impri~ongd,for 364-days by they.
Rlnilitary regime-headed by Gen. Au
gusto .Pin Fiet_ which overthrew Al
Iende Sept 7I`-X257,3 r ;y
A charming anci ,.influentiar Leman
with many -friends on -Capitol Hill Le
telier beeaine~-the. 'most ? prominent'.-
Chilean critic-irifth;. tJmted States of.."
C the current Santiago re"rme
Letelier and-Mrs.. Moffitt were on
thei%;'way-, to,tlfe- Instiute -for Policy.-';.
Stud :where
both of them worked ;w;hen'the bomb`
scploded Mrs M'offitts- It u? 'ba n cl=
The :meeting -?Ioiiday =o'f Cl 'a; ands
Jutic Department; ""officiar's.-, was
called 'to ,discuss what"role the CIA'
should play in. the Letelier investing-
tion,1reliabI"e sources said. The deci-
ions . they. `reached could. not be--
learned yesterday -According Co one
source.Busb,,p nmised that the CIA-
':ould.cooperate in..the investigation.-
Ina addition to he meetina-- with'
Bush it is} also- known that federal in-.,
vestigators have had detailed intelli
Bence briefings'and been given access
to highly classified documents by CIA -
officials; The_briefingsand documents
are,'reported 'to,.include accounts of
A ntericam}_terrorist: groups.;
i?ntlyirivolved discussions of-th01;cur
i,ent: political atmosphere in `Chile:
The current Chilean regime-has been,.
denoui ceth by its critics for alleged politiQial;,repre sign; torture' and im-
prisons "it' of its opponents. The CIA
briefings=as welt zs. '.briefings : by.'
State =,Departmeiit_6fficials-are: re-
ported to :have- discounted- these Grit-
`acco oicalunts f: the -Chilean govern
meiitas_distotted and exaggerated.
;ssist."a ,attorneyeneral - Pot
finger.-who -lieauts the.Justice Depart-'
pent s--civil rights division, does not
have,slirect control ove the investiga- ?
boil; accordurg to, government offi-
ctali- In an: unusual development, he
is playing an indirect role in the
pt obi. which officially falls under the
Justicg Departments criminal dnr
Sian; :
?Pottinger-stepped into the investiga
f th-i'largely_because of pressure from
the Institu(e=#orPolicy Studies, where
etelier,,wor'edaccording to reliable
gatlo
' (FBI'
with
'-Prop
Potts
Th
kil lin
Eyre v.
=
mt,y of Cuban and other' Latin Amen
can exile groups, based in Miami; Fla.,
to a'11 ew. York, City hotel ,where: some
Chileans 'found-to have=made a.
series -o? suspicious-, - long-distance
phone - calls ,=. according `to- various
sources. Investigators are also report-
edly -making checks.-in -some-foreign
nations.
The investigation now appears tofo-
cus on possible political 'motives for
the. bombing iiicludiitry assasinatian.
by rightwina Chilean or -other.Latin-
Amei-iean groups.The investigators;
however,.-have not ruled out other mo-
tives-and aiestill checking into Lete
tier's personal and social life
O te? grou'''knownr- to-be ? tinder scru
"tiny by federal investigators is the Pa
Patria'y Libertad group. received -S38
Liberty). movement, a:'rightwing, neo-
fascist.. Chilean orgarization_--Accord-
ing to'a Senate-intelligence committee:
l
staff report issued.. last Decernber,,tlie
rou
r
ceive $38
Lib
rtad
Pat
i
p
,
g
e
r
e
ax
500 from the CIA,- -throughan un
named third party ,-in the' = early..1970s-
"in -an -effort-to create tension and; a:
possiblepretext for-intervention by-,, e'
Chilean. military"-- against ' tile, 4llende_?
government.:. rf
,.Little-.reliable information has been
made-.public about the nature-:9f the-}
bomb -that. killed- Letelier: Accoidina_
trust the FBE partly?because theinsti to.informed ,'sou ices,: -analysts Df the
Lute hag in the':?past been- one of; the bomb by the FBI's -laboratory- -has'.so'
> BI's targets of investigation =Poi, far, partly incondusice, and
tln,.f 2? is now supervising the Justice ? -further lab studies are under way ,' _
Department's investigation of. illegal The 'explosive is known- tohave--
breal.~ms and o,1 ei improper acts by been, placed beneath- the area of.-thy`
FBI officials driver's seat. tThe 'blast"is believed by-
Becatfsev` i''the,.'institute's concern investigators to have been intended to
oyez tie hives figation 'they- are-being kill. the driver.., rather than to destroy.
representeCt. by ?Michael -.E Tigac a. ( the entire car. fhe farm ofexplosive.
latvyeT do an ?inteceview;.tli.s week, T~ ,1 used and the:mean?by whicfi it vial
;
mac laic Jiffs arm. was to'help govern-
menK'-.aeries; In thee imeatigatlo-i
al}tl to j*otec-k.;institute=oftlcrals from.
irrtp:ol'ei actip~s-b,~ governrl nt.of
detonated are. as t'et unclear. Investi--
gators found the 'face- of a- watch -or, clock, according to informed sources,-
and have'examined it to determine`
ave
nves
ga
ors
me
mb
or tha b
Despite%ttie institute's Sk~pticicr?T _ 1
8bout t#ic? `1'I3I 'and wCT~, Tigar< ee=
clue, but other sources aay~it is stiI
atisfaction- with the invests "
ss
l.
s
rhre
ec
t: ,:;.. ; ? .~: _l under examination >r -.
CONTINU E D-
'~'? Approved For Release 2007/07/05: CIA-RDP99-00498
whether it was part of a timing -device
1
ti
t
h
i
So
o
f