LETTER TO HENRY E. PETERSEN FROM W. E. COLBY RE "WATERGATE INCIDENT"

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: FOIA Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 01482437
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 28, 2022
• Document Release Date: August 7, 2017
• Case Number: F-2007-00094
• Publication Date: May 10, 1973

Approved for Release: 2017/01/18 C01482437
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE:AGENCY
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20505
OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR
10 May 1973
The Honorable Henry E. Petersen
Assistant Attorney General
Criminal Division
Department of Justice
Washington, D. C. 20530
Dear Mr. Petersen:
In answer to a request from your office, I wish to explain the
language contained in a memorandum dated 28 July 1972, prepared
and given to the Acting Director of the FBI on 28 July 1972. This
memorandum was an attachment to a memorandum from Richard
Helms, Director of Central Intelligence, to the Attorney General,
dated 24 October 1972, subject "Watergate Incident".
The penultimate sentence of paragraph 2 says: "We developed
one roll of film for Mr. Hunt, of which we have copies showing some
unidentifiable place, possibly Rand Corporation." The tentative
assumption of Rand Corporation was derived from other pictures
of commercial Xerox establishments among those developed. Since
CIA had been told the operation related to investigating leaks of
national security information and California license plates were
shown in the photographs, together with Xerox offices, it was sug-
gested that perhaps the unidentified buildings could have been facili-
ties used by the Rand Corporation. This identification of Rand Cor-
poration was an assumption only and was not based on any evidence.
I prepared this memorandum on 28 July 1972 in the capacity
of Executive Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. The
speculative identification of the building as Rand Corporation was
my Own.
Sincerely,
W. E. Colby
Executive Secretar
CIA Management Committee
Approved for Release: 2017/01/18 C01482437