COURT SESSION REPORTEDLY TOLD CHILEAN OFFICIAL IS CIA AGENT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP09T00207R001000030084-0
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 5, 2011
• Sequence Number: 84
• Publication Date: November 14, 1978
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Approved For Release 2011/08/05: CIA-RDP09T00207RO01000030084-0
Court Session Reportedly Told
Chilean Official Is CIA Agent
By Ronald J. Ostrow
Los Angeles Times
A secret court session has been told
of "information" that Hernan Cubil?
los, Chile's foreign minister, has been
a "principal" Central Intelligence
Agency operative, the Los Angeles
Times learned yesterday.
Patrick M. Wall, defense lawyer for
Robert . Berrellez, an International
Telephone and Telegraph Corp. offi?
clal, cited the information in a closed
court hearing Oct. 23, informed soure.
es said.
Wall considered the subject so sen?
sitive that he turned over his copy
of the sealed court record to John T.
Kotelly, a Justice Department prose
cutor, saying he did not want disclos-
ure blamed on him.
Berrellez has been charged with con-
spiracy, perjury and obstructing gov-
ernmental proceedings as a result of
testimony he gave in 1973 to a Sen-
ate Foreign Relations subcommittee
investigating ITT-CIA attempts to
block the 1970 election of Salvador
Allende as president of Chile.
Sources said Wall told the court he
had "seen" Information on Cubillos'
covert role, but did not have physical
access to it. The lawyer was seeking
government documents to bolster Ber-
rellez' defense that he is being prose.
cuted for acts he contends he was in-
duced to do by CIA representatives,
including Cubillos.
Wall's New York office said yester-
day that he was traveling and could
not be reached for comment.
Cubillos and the CIA. For sure, I can
say it's a lie."
A CIA spokesman would not com-
ment on grounds the case is still pend.
ing.
U.S. District Court Judge Aubrey
Robinson Jr. dismissed the jury in the
Bart'ellez case last month rather than
aocept the Justice Department's spe-
cial procedure for protecting sensitive
information in the case.
The Justice Department urged the
U.& Circuit Court of Appeals for the
District of Columbia last Thursday to
direct Robinson to accept the proce-
dures under which prosecutors could
challenge 'the relevancy of defense
material before it is presented in open
court.
Assistant Attorney General Philip
B. Heymann had indicated to re-
porters that the government's chief
concern in the case was over reveal.
ing CIA station locations. But, with-
out confirming Cubillos' CIA tie, he
said yesterday that his earlier state.
ment was merely "illustrative" of the
problems surrounding the case.
"With regard to any people or any
places, I just can't tell you anything,"
Heymann said.
Cubillos had been mentioned in the
criminal information that the Justice
Department filed against Berrellez,
but prosecutors dropped references to
him without explanation on the day
the trial was to begin.
Cubillos, 42, was named foreign
minister, last April 2d, although his
only previous government service had
beep as a Chilean naval officer
. ,
Juan Prado, press officer for the Before dismussing the Berrellez'
Chilean Embassy in Washington}, said jury., Judge Robinson said of the gov-
the information sounded "impossible" ernment's secrecy proposals: "1 just
to him. "It's the first time in my life some there is one name that If It pops
I have heard something about Mr. ' up ebtild blow... I don't know what."
Approved For Release 2011/08/05: CIA-RDP09T00207RO01000030084-0