(UNTITLED)

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP33-02415A000800300019-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: November 17, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 15, 2000
• Sequence Number: 19
• Content Type: PREL

AS p STATI NTL
UPI DIY LE pForr~^ReI se 2000/08/25: CIA-RDP33-02415A000800
EDITOR'S NOTE: EARLY THIS YEAR, IN THE MIDDLE OF A BRIDGE
LINKING WEST BERLIN WITH COMMUNIST EAST GERMANY, THE UNITED STATES
AND RUSSIA EXCHANGED TWO COLD WAR PAWNS--U2 PILOT FRANCIS GARY
POWERS AND CONVICTED SOVIET SPY COL. RUDOLF ABEL. FOLLOWING IS THE
FIRST PERSONAL ACCOUNT OF THE DRAMATIC %tlw6
BY WILLIAM J. EATON
UNITED PRESS INTERNATIONAL
WASHINGTON, APRIL 20 (UPI)--A CATE SWUNG OPEN ONE COLD NIGHT
LAST FEBRUARY AND A CAR SPED AWAY FROM THE BLEAK WALLS OF ATLANTA
PRISON.
ONE OF THE PASSENGERS WAS A GAUNT, BALDING MEAN IN A NEW SUIT.
THE OTHERS CALLED HIM "THE PACKAGE." HALFWAY AROUND THE EARTH,
MEN WERE PREPARING FOR A RENDEZVOUS WITH THIS PACKAGE.
THE SPOT WAS A WIND-SWEPT BRIDGE CONNECTING THE EAST AND THE
?WEST IN BERLIN. "THE PACKAGE" WAS THE HIGHEST RANKING RUSSIAN SPY
EVER CAUGHT IN THE UNITED STATES.
THE DETAILS OF HOW SOVIET MASTER SPY RUDOLF ABEL WAS SMUGGLED OUT
OF PRISON AND SWAPPED FOR AMERICAN U2 PILOT FRANCIS GARY POWERS
LAST FEB. 10 WAS DISCLOSED TODAY BY ONE OF THE LEADING PARTICIPANTS.
THE STORY WAS TOLD BY FRED T. WILKINSON, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF
THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF PRISONS AND ABEL'S CHIEF AMERICAN ESCORT ON
HIS JOURNEY TO FREEDOM.
WILKINSON'S ACCOUNT IN THE PRISON BUREAU'S NEWSLETTER SAID PRESIDENT
KENNEDY COMMUTED ABEL'S 30-YEAR SENTENCE ON CONDITION THAT HE
NEVER RETURN TO THE UNITED STATES.
JOKES ABOUT HAT-SWAPPING AND LAWYERS' DELAYING TACTICS HELPED
REDUCE TENSION ON THE BRIDGE DURING A LAST-MINUTE HITCH IN THE
EXCHANGED WILKINSON SAID.
THE POWERS-ABEL SWAP WAS HELD UP FOR SOME MINUTES UNTIL WORD WAS
RECEIVED THAT A SECOND AMERICAN PRISONER--YALE STUDENT FREDERICK
L. PRYOR--HAD BEEN RELEASED BY THE EAST GERMANS AT ANOTHER BORDER-
CROSSING POINT.
WILKINSON RECALLED HOW THREE AMERICANS AND ABEL FACED THREE
RUSSIANS AND POWERS 15 FEET AWAY:
"THIS WAS ONE OF THE MOST TENSE TIMES IN THE WHOLE PROJECT;
I THINK, ALTHOUGH I WAS ARMED AND IT DIDN'T SEEM TOO IMPORTANT. AT
FIRST WE WERE A LITTLE FORMAL.
"BY PRE-ARRANGEMENT WE WALKED ACROSS AND THE RUSSIAN IDENTIFIER
ASKED TO HAVE ABEL TAKE HIS GLASSES OFF. THE SAME THING APPLIED TO
MR. POWERS. HE WAS QUICKLY IDENTIFIED.
"BUT WE WERE NOT YET READY TO MAKE THE EXCHANGE. WE WERE WAITING
FOR A SIGNAL ON THE RADIO THAT OUR SECOND MAN HAD BEEN RELEASED AT
CHECKPOINT CHARLIE.
"THE RUSSIANS KEPT TELLING US IT WAS OK. I FOUND ONE BIG
RUSSIAN IN CHARGE HAD A GREAT SENSE OF HUMOR. WE STARTED A LITTLE
BY-PLAY AND FINALLY DECIDE WE WOULD LET THE MEN CHANGE SIDES.
"WE LET ABEL GO OVER TO THE OTHER SIDE AND POWERS CAME TO OUR
SIDE WITH HIS IDENTIFIER BECAUSE FROM OUR POINT OF VIEW HE WAS NOT
A PRISONER.
"THE SECOND RUSSIAN LOOKED AT MY HAT. HE SEEMED TO LIKE IT
AND I TOLD ABEL TO TELL HIM I WANTED TO TRADE IT FOR THE FUR TURBAN
THL RUSSIAN WAS WEARING BUT THE OTHER RUSSIAN WOULDN'T PERMIT IT.
"WHEN WE WERE ABOUT TO TRADE THE SECOND MAN SCOWLED DEEPLY AND
SAID 'NIX, NOXI' THIS BY-PLAY WENT ON FOR QUITE A WHILE. I AM
SURE TH f#11 aG ~ 0W/$5T:OCT P33 rADAA8BA36t TMDOD.
"Fit A O iES NAL THAT THE OTHER EXCHANGE HAD BEEN MADE.
MY GOOD-HUMORED RUSSIAN FRIEND SAID HE WOULD BET THE EXCHANGE OF
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 ARGUING ABOUT. HIS CAPITALIST FEES!
"I TOOK OUT THE PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENT WHICH THE RUSSIANS WANTED;
WE NOT EApp v 'FoA Iiii?eWMQ9/2 '1: L -FW ' 590241YAO0o8O0 OO649-9
AND TURNED ~~ OVER TO ABEL. THE DOCUMENT COMMUTED HIS SENTENCE PROVIDED
HE DOES NOT RE-ENTER THIS COUNTRY.
"WE LEFT THE BRIDGE AND MR. POWERS WAS PUT INTO A CAR THAT HAD
BEEN WAITING AND WAS TAKEN AWAY."
WILKINSON GOT TO KNOW ABEL WHEN HE WAS WARDEN AT ATLANTAS AND
SAID HE FELT HE HAD A MEASURE OF ABEL'S CONFIDENCE.
THAT MAY HAVE BEEN WHY WILKINSON WAS CHOSEN FOR THE SECRET
MISSION. HE AND NOAH ALLDREDGES SUPERVISOR OF CUSTODIAL SERVICES
ACCOMPANIED ABEL FROM THIS COUNTRY TO BERLIN FOR THE EXCHANGE.
ABEL WAS FITTED WITH NEW CLOTHES ON THE PRETEXT THAT HE WOULD
CONFER WITH HIS ATTORNEY AND FEDERAL OFFICIALS IN NEW YORKS
WILKINSON SAID.
THE SOVIET AGENT WAS REMOVED FROM ATLANTA PENITENTIARY SHORTLY
AFTER MIDNIGHT ON FEB. S AND FLOWN TO NEW YORK CITY ON A 2 A.M.
JET FROM ATLANTA.
THESE PRECAUTIONS WERE TAKEN BECAUSE THE FEDERAL OFFICIALS DID
NOT WANT OTHER PRISONERS--TWO IN PARTICULAR BUT WHO WERE NOT
IDENTIFIED--TO KNOW THAT ADEL HAD LEFT THE PRISON.
THE SOVIET SPY WAS HELD IN NEW YORK OVERNIGHT BEFORE BEING FLOWN
TO WEST BERLIN ON A SECRET AIR FORCE FLIGHT.
ABEL WAS KNOWN AS THE "PACKAGE" IN A SYSTEM OF CODES THAT HELPED
TO PRESERVE AIR-TIGHT SECRECY ABOUT THE MISSIONS WILKINSON SAID.
WILKINSON AND ALLDREDGE OBTAINED EMERGENCY PASSPORTS AND TOOK A
TRAIN TO NEW YORK FROM WASHINGTON TO KEEP THEIR RENDEZVOUS WITH THE
"PACKAGE."
DURING THIS TIMES WILKINSON SAIDS HE WAS IN CONSTANT TOUCH WITH
ANOTHER AGENCY WHOSE EMPLOYES CALLED EACH OTHER BY FIRST NAMES AND
LAST INITIALS.
AFTER SEVERAL UNEXPLAINED DELAYS IN DEPARTURE HE SAIDS
THEY LEFT TO PICK UP ABEL ON A CORNER NEAR 11TH ST. IN MANHATTAN.
WILKINSON ADDED:
"ABEL LOOKED A LITTLE PUZZLED UNTIL HE SAW NES AND THEN HE
STMIILED....I ASKED HIM IF HE WAS READY TO MAKE A LITTLE TRIP AND HE
SAID 'YES.' THEN I TOLD HIM I WASN'T IN A POSITION TO TELL KITH
WHAT THIS WAS 7 BUT THAT WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO HELP HIM. BUT HE
WAS PRETTY SHARP AND CAUGHT ON. HE SAIDS 'WELLS I WOULD LIKE TO
GO HOME.'"
THE PARTY DROVE TO A NEW JERSEY AIR BASE AND ABEL WAS "PRETTY
WELL TOLD" DURING THE TRANS-ATLANTIC FLIGHT WHY HE WAS BEING TAKEN
ON THE TRIP.
BUT SECRECY WAS MAINTAINED AND DRAPES WERE DRAWN AROUND THE
PASSENGER COMPARTMENT AT ONE POINT WHEN A RADIO REPAIRMAN WAS CALLED
TO FIX THE PLANE'S RADIO AT WIESBADEN, GERMANY.
THEY ARRIVED IN BERLIN ON THE AFTERNOON PRECEDING THE FEB. 10
EXCHANGE AND BEGAN TALKS WITH ARMY OFFICERS ON DETAILS.
"THERE WAS STILL A LOT OF UNCERTAINTY ABOUT THE POINT OF
EXCHANGES" WILKINSON SAID. "WE WOULD HAVE IT ALL SET UP AND THEN
SOMEONE WOULD CHANGE IT--PROBABLY THE RUSSIANS I"
BY MORNIING S HOWEVER, THE GLEINICKER BRIDGE ON THE ROAD TO
POTSDAM WAS SELECTED AS THE PLACE FOR THE EXCHANGE.
WILKINSON SAID THE AMERICAN PARTY AND ABEL MOVED OUT TO THE
BRIDGE ABOUT 7:30 A.M. AND SAT ACROSS THE ROAD FROM A GROUP OF
EAST GERMAN GUARDS CARRYING RIFLES.
AT S A.M., ON SIGNALS WILKINSONS STATE DEPARTMENT REPRESENTATIVE
ALLAN LIGHTNER AND ANOTHER AMERICAN WHO WAS TO IDENTIFY POWERS
WALKED OUT ON THE BRIDGE WITH ABEL.
THREE RUSSIANS MARCHED FROM THE OTHER SIDE WITH POWERS AND
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