WAS HORNBERGER WORKING FOR THE CIA?

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP75-00149R000400080005-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: November 11, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 17, 1998
• Sequence Number: 5
• Publication Date: January 8, 1967
• Content Type: NSPR

CPYRGHT
. y GSA ' SAN..." O NT
AK ON BEACON JOURNAL
Sanitized - Apprg%~l gr9peles@IAM
CPYRGHT -
Five months ago onaia
Hornberger - a 22-year-old
rent State University student-
disappeared in the dense jungle i
terrain of eastern Guatemala. l
Since that time a jungle of
misinformation, distortion and
"no comments" has come from
11ornberger's family, Govern-
ment sources and Guatemala
-.about what happened to him
and what he was doing in that
guerrilla-infested country.
The latest . revelation - that
the body' shipped here from
Guatemala last Week probably
is not Hornberger's -- serves
only to deepen tlj6 mystery.
is. that the peo?
ale who know the facts aren't
talking.
The State Department has
told Hornberger's family not to,
talk to the newspapers. Asked,
V ily, the Stete Department",,,'
says "no comment."
Iiornberger's activities were
not so secret in Guatemala,
however. A local amateur radio
o ,orator says Hornberger's ac-
ivities were widely known in
Guatemala.
An investigation into the case
by the beacon Journal reveals
two possibilities. It appears that
Hornberger was either a very
adventurous, very fearless ETA
young man or an agent of the
Central Intelligence A g e n c y
(CIA).
::E IS what the Beacon
Journal has been .able to find
out about Hornberger's activi-
ties and motives just prior, to
his trip.
Hornberger made two trips to
Washington, D. C., during the
for Guatemala in late August.
"British jungle carbine" in hi
suitcase when he started hi
) trip to Guat n;ala.
YOOM t
Hornberger hak
mass circulation n ba , t
contained an article about Gua-
in-?also gnnrrillas when he left.
,e : crave
I
tside'6f Akron where Horn-
rger began his hitch-hiking
p - had this to say about 1
James Obordorfer, 2984 I?Iud s
zr.,>
wkgrourt
Cuy hogs Tans, a former
Army "Green Beret" who
served iii Vietnam, disa p-
pared in September, 1356,
after a mysterious trip to.
GuateinaIa. The U. S.
government a n d GueLe?
malaa authorities h a v e
twice identified bodies as
I1orrnberger's. The second
body was shipped here last
week and is now at the
Cuyahoga County Morgue ';
for tests. however, Cuya-
hoga Coroner Samuel Gen
ber. has said he cannot
positively identify it and
other sources indicate it
s not Hornberger's. itorn-
berger, who lived with his
Mother, Gladys Foley at
1007 Broadway, gave sev-
eral,reasons for his trip,
but _sreciiletior is groti;'ing
that he was on a govern-
ment mission. ,
~e, was . a . ikeabie .g ~. ?y, a friend.'
. F?OIAb3b
PYRGHT^ :
or., .? - , who wor co w i
talked about politics quite,Ilornberger at Goodyear dur-~
ing the Summer, said Hornber-+
ger showed a lot of interest in
ugh ?-I 1:1101I-nu it was pretty LULL
r.-.
in the Army he reused iy
hou said. "To be so far
take Gt Bill money from the? , ' y
away he was really concerned
verninent ? because he consid- ;'.about the Reds in Guatemala.
d that socialistic. He was a
It bothered him very much."
n with 'very, definite Vlew' "I .Roth Wray and nherrdhrfer
Fsaid iney liked noruuerge .
BEROORFER, a senior in L -Said Wray, "I hope he did
ography at' Kent State,' saidi whatever he had to do because
I
I-11berger told 144+t1 h trap 4 a ,n.... t ...,..taro it o d .."-I
ing to , Guatemala to hunt 1 been wrong in any way. He was j
g for jaguar with a carbine. berge~' was a . "good and gen-1
saw that he had one folded erous friend," but added "To
in his suitcase when he left, look at him you would say he's
He was a likable guy and a a nice - fellow,'outgoing, a good
Oberrlnrfer rnn.li Student and so on, but if -you
ued "but I. thought at the wuc lieu a nee ve, something
' ihat went against his,grain, you
,n +l~o+ ho ?rac nrPtiy far n,14'. ~ c
ring the Summer he wanted alIoniberger'sour h end . r s at
jump behinrd the lines j1:,,,
mb
orth Vietnam. But when het neat State re,rieeL iiuu the
came way
out Guatemala, - no, morel for of r rench, said, - ?I liked
orth Vietnam." him very,much personally from
1 what'I knew in class. He was
IirlofinifAly not the type to be a
lend something different. i3ounty Hunter or a fanatic
Terry Wray of 230 West av... although he could be called an
allmadge, said Hornberger auvehturer.
,1 ,1 1him,, he was going to do ai. Mrs. Vella , Pryce, also a
r4.icle about the Reds in Guate? y. tench instructor, agreed.
ialism or things socialistic
"I asked him," Wray said,' --i nixa impresses ay nis
. froront.' brightness and. alertness in
f ih..a..t wasn't n. just
nn;n a g ,n t. class. He never talked about
L and said, "I can't tell you ,
_ aerbger s disappearance cam
fferent than what I told you.' " i Hiram Fisher, ?1177 Jason st.
"Besides that," Wray, continu- Akron..
Set p 4cep y 1 ~ arson U ~`}( E~(aua
is ri ek a e a ,Tiaiso man between a a sea sears
and time getting a gun permit' party looking for Hornberger i