THE UNRESOLVED QUEST [ ] LETELIER CASE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP91-00901R000700060092-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 17, 2005
• Sequence Number: 92
• Publication Date: June 29, 1980
• Content Type: NSPR

ARTICLE AP P~E~A1i
ON FAG I C..L. =~
waiters, tiveret,
i
ce
ved an acts
4.O?PEI ATION with "friendly" intelligence; bassador's cable, sent a top' secret- StateDe
11
,.embassies and .saa.CI& abroad, ana:znaG included . of Secretary of State Henry Kissinger .; *_ < t.
anti;ia `visas.-to known agents to conduct intelli:
~" g' b All that; raises a series of disturbing questions:.
gence missions in. the United Mates 'But some" y US. officials at'the highest levels knew i.-advance.:
thing aboutthe; equest`Ambassador George _W about Chile's -undercover mission ~n;n
Landau received'iri late July ;Washingto
x976 from; a Para and. possessed .`photos and passport information. _
gizayan government officialtm Asuncion'arousedfi ;.Was that:information: sufficient.forekriowledge:to
lvs suspicions ,
W, have prevented'the,murders? Once the assassina-
The official, a topYaide to Paraguayan President? Lion occurred, was the-information ;turned; over
Alfreclo.Stroessner, assured Landau that Chilean- immediatelyto.the FBI by the persons and agen-
'resident Augusto Pinochet himself was asking ciespossessingit?, n ~ x
?ar,a favor.-The official said he needed visas ini The pictures: and the advance information oh-
xaediately. for two Chilean Army officers using tamed byLandau and others ultimately provided
Paraguayan passports to travel from .Asuncion to the keys to solving the, case. But, unlikefrictional
Washington-on, ari intelligence mission Tlie xnis spy mysteries, all the pieces of-the puzzle.did not
d
pion, lie salcl, ha been cleared with the CIA- sta = fall into place with the identification of the : guilty,
Instead,' the U S .-agencies. involved in the cas& im
lion' iri $artiago"and the:.twoi men would be irt:
`ouch with CIA Deputy Director_:Vernon Walter Posed. an extraordinary mantle of secrecy over the-
in W h gton F r y~ actions of U S officials before and after the assay-=
Ambassador*cLandau_ -hcrnr~lin t~,'`his pater sination and:overthe.recordsrand files relating to
--,,.-- ~. o'nsW16`Zed him o 4 him. to tak ke of U y S -goverment foreknowledge,:lhe questions
next riarning tut his sus pici
two precautions: He had.he agents':fa Ise- Para we raise~cari. only be partially answered: ,;
guayan passports'photographed, and. he_ sent the ri cardinn to our
reconstruction
photographs t&CIA headquarters with.a.full ac-: y ts, the Letelier assassinat,on.
count of'the affair Just in case the Chilean set motion in late June_]97
agents were--'lying about why tl eyxwexe going to oche t.3 intelligence service had
Washington: , x; t , . rocOived reports of..Letaher'a recen
Landau s action 4vas the;first brush by a US o?~ =.vis o olland. to: lobby aga tlst a
ficial with .Chile's secret peratio ns;leading up tir ;, k p ulIion, investment by a_ butch
the assassination of Orlando Le:teher six weeks, r pany.in Chile and of confiden
l
I
er
`I
e
`
at
.
n th
ings ui Newv York between:
eeks preceding the
assassrnation of'. ries
the leftist former ambassador and foreign miinis hQr and a prominent, leader
ter; a fl urry of cables and official camiiiunicatioxis `r, de's centres, Christian Demo.
went back and forth between the U S :Embassy in. ~, Ckc P tY (congress; lead just' cut
Asuncion; the State: Departinent,;the' Cecand the: ff;Chilea military aid, because' f
Iirimigration.and Naturalization'Serviconcern 3 ; an rights violations,.
mg the two.Chileau agents, whos 'real:iderttitzes: f i3ez'the next;thr~e 0 ntk8;_0L
--bat learned i.mtil almost two years later, were.- uel Contreras chief- of;DINA,;
Michael= Townley and Armando - Fernandez, the Chilean. secret police, dispatched;
Chilean secret police agents who led the operateoii. v8 of tug agents on four separate
kill L
t
l
s
~*
r
o
to
etelier
ee
' _
atsd:.riissions to yYash
4? -11.i x ,.~? #n
CIA Director George Bush and leis deputy a i, g Qiik t4 carry oat the;ozder to ki1P.:
~....,.. X ,etelaQr. Llf the? our
===,that,
a ~.up tie T telier assassiuatlon
Approved For Release `2005/07/01 CIA-RD@'I
THE WASHINGTON POST
29 June 1980
STAT