Cryptonym: AMBUD
CRC and Luis Rabel had to disavow any connection with the Covington camp north of Lake Pontchartrain in early 1962 to avoid problems with State Dept and CIA: https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=55465#relPageId=78&tab=page
Jerry Hemming ran it in 1962 instead: https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=55465#relPageId=79&tab=page
In late 1965, JMWAVE asks HQ what should be done with the disposition of the AMBUD files. A long list is provided, with the file numbers apparently redacted: 1994.05.19.15:24:25:280005, or see http://maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=55619&search=%22berta_ferrer%22#relPageId=4&tab=page
In Peter Dale Scott's Deep Politics and the Death of JFK, Scott describes Carlos Bringuier as the CRC minister of propaganda in New Orleans, going back to mid-1962. In 62, CRC/NO closely allied with Ruis Sanchez/AMDIP-3 and Unidad. Ed Rabel is liaison see 104-10227-10295. CRC in New Orleans is tight knit group by Jan 63: (Frank) Bartes, (Jose) Cusco, (Enrique) Bascuas, (Carlos) de la Vega - see 104-10297-10156. In 1978, Ed Rabel is investigating Cuban consul Eusebio Azcue - see 104-10408-10117.
104-10231-10329: CRC files are 19-124-25.
104-10107-10000: FRENTE REVOLUCIONARIO DEMOCRATICO
James Douglass, JFK & the Unspeakable, pp. 247-248: On 6/29/60 (Arcacha) was arrested by the government of Venezuela and charged with plotting to assassinate Venezuelan president Ernesto Betancourt. He was released on 7/14/60. Arcacha apparently got to the US in 1960 by asking the Naval Attache for a visa to the US, according to this ONI report written 7/30/60. See 180-10104-10354, p. 17: ONI memo - naval attache Robert Huse interviewed Arcacha and another Cuban named Rolando Zubizaretta in Venezuela, seeking assistance from the Chief of the US Naval Mission. Douglass writes that the American Embassy came to his immediate assistance, issuing nonimmigrant visitor visas to him and his family so they could depart from Venezuela. Shortly afterwards, Arcacha is working with Banister and Tujague to set up the FDC (a fundraising arm of the CDC), while Banister runs a program to "ferret out moles" from getting inside the CRC. HSCA Report, Volume X, Current Section: V. Cuban Revolutionary Council (CRC): New Orleans Chapter, pp. 126-127. "In late 1960 or early 1961 the CUBAN REVOLUTIONARY COUNCIL (CRC) was forced to coordinate and direct FRD activities and this group was headed by Agency and White House sponsored Dr. Jose MIRO Cardona, assisted by Manuel ARTIME and Dr. Antonio VARONA. Both the FRD and the CRC continued to function until October 1961 when the FRD was completely absorbed by the CRC in order to avoid the confusion resulting from duplication of personnel, activities and funding. The CRC also had direct access to President Kennedy and top White House aides." By 4/29/63, Cuban engineer Henry Ruiz-Williams (aka Enrique) was the liaison between the moribund CRC and the Kennedy Administration. See 124-10287-10073.
Harold Weisberg, Oswald in New Orleans, Chapter 1: http://jfk.hood.edu/index.shtml?browse.php
"On March 18, 1961, at the Skyways Motel in Miami, the CIA ordered an amalgamation between the two major groups, the Frente Revolucionario Democratico and the Movimiento Revolucionario del Pueblo. Six days later Tony Varona of the Frente and Manolo Ray of MRP signed the concord under which Jose Miro Cardona became head of the CRC. From the first there was no pretense. The CRC was the CIA. Tracy Barnes of the CIA circulated the draft of the first CRC 'manifesto' through higher echelons of the government. Arthur Schlesinger, former Presidential assistant, found it 'a document so overwrought in tone and sterile in thought that it made me wonder what sort of people we were planning to send back to Havana.' In A Thousand Days, Schlesinger has lengthy passages on the CRC and its organization, domination and control by the United States Government (243 ff), including his own embarrassment after the Bay of Pigs when he and A. A. Berle (who was American Ambassador to Brazil and who figured in the overthrow of the Vargas government in Brazil) were sent to placate the CRC leaders, held as virtual CIA captives at the abandoned airbase at Opa Locka, near Miami. But for the moment the thing of greatest interest in these documents is that Oswald, when arrested on August 9, had pro -Castro literature on him that bore the identification of his own phony 'Fair Play for Cuba Committee' with a return address that was not his and was that of the anti -Castro Cubans."
104-10308-10024: MEMO FOR: CUBAN REVOLUTIONARY COUNCIL (CRC) ENCRYPTED AMBUD
A unity formation brought together in the weeks before the Bay of Pigs invasion in April 1961. "File smacks of exile disappointment in U.S. government's policy which seemed to abandon plans to liberate Cuba". Also see the book cables 104-10297-10136 & 104-10297-10100, 3/25/61, which assigned the crypts of AMBUD and AMBUD-1 to the Cuban Revolutionary Council and Jose Miro Cardona, respectively.
104-10117-10037: MEMORANDUM CONCERNING DAVID WILLIAM FERRIE
An August 1961 New Orleans police memo states: "Layton Martens is second in command to one Acacha Smith...who is conducting a counter revolutionary movement in New Orleans against Fidel Castro of Cuba. Also connected with this organization is one Captain David Ferrie...who was driven to Smith's residence..." Office of Security commented that "the above reference is believed identical with Sergio Arcacha Smith, OS #523 948" and earlier in the memo that Martens admitted to another source that he was "employed by the FRD" in New Orleans. After the Bay of Pigs, the FRD (AMIRON) was absorbed into the CRC. Also see 180-10106-10014, p. 9 of 17: "(Louisiana state police officer Francis) Fruge asked if (the HSCA) had found that diagrams of the sewer system in Dealey Plaza were found in Arcacha Smith's apartment in Texas. He thinks that Captain Will Smith might have mentioned something about that, but Mr. Fruge was not sure on this point."
HSCA Report, Volume X, Current Section: V. Cuban Revolutionary Council (CRC): New Orleans Chapter
1961-1963: Gaeton Fonzi, investigator, wrote that Arcacha Smith set up a CRC office at 544 Camp Street from 1961-62 and claimed he never met Oswald. Luis Rabel (brother of AMLEO-3) was the CRC delegate from Jan-Oct 1962 and claimed he never met Oswald. Frank Bartes (AMSERF-1) was the CRC delegate during 1963 and briefly met Oswald outside the courthouse in August 1963. See pp. 126-127: Arachca got together Banister to form the Friends for Democratic Cuba, designed to be a fundraising mechanism of Arcacha's wing of the CRC. Banister also helped insert high-ranking Cuban officials into the underground of Cuba, while running background checks on LSU Cuban students that wanted to join the CRC to ferret out any would-be moles. Also see 104-10435-10034, p. 11: Arcacha Smith formed the FDC with Guy Banister in Jan. 1961, with the funds to be channeled thu Arcacha. Oswald's former employer Tujague was also a FDC director.
1994.06.24.13:51:54:310005: Reel 69, Folder I - AMBUD PUBLICITY
Circa 1/62, both Nestor Carbonell Sr. and Nestor Carbonell Jr, as well as Jose Rasco/AMPALM-5 went on an AMBUD trip to Punta del Este, apparently to lobby for strong anti-Castro action. See https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=25645&search=%22punta_del+este%22#relPageId=2&tab=page
1994.06.23.13:18:33:750005: Reel 68, Folder B - AMBUD [DELETION] MEMOS.
Hal Hendrix, Miami News, 3/1/62: "The formation of the (Cuban Revolutionary) Council, headed by Dr. Jose Miro Cardona, was at best a "shotgun wedding", a forced merger of two anti-Castro groups - the Democratic Revolutionary Front (FRD) and the People's Revolutionary Movement (MRP) under pressure by Central Intelligence Agency representative subsequently identified as Frank Bender. Soon after the ill-fated invasion of Cuba last April under the auspices of the Council, the organization began to pull apart at the seams. First, the MRP withdrew in a huff. Later, there were additions and subtractions to and from the Council roster." June 1962: See John Newman, Oswald and the CIA, p. 250": Eleven days after Oswald stepped off the plane in Fort Worth, an anti-Castro group from the Florida Everglades, including Gerry Hemming, came to New Orleans with the help of Frank Bartes, the AMBUD delegate there. AMBUD was the Agency cryptonym for the Cuban Revolutionary Council (CRC), a CIA-funded and controlled organization that had extensive operations in New Orleans."
104-10231-10342: STATION ASSET REPORT FOR GROUPS
3/23/62 Station Asset Report on the CRC, number 3004, from Chief, JMWAVE to Chief, TFW: "(Since the Bay of Pigs) the CRC has been held together principally because of the financial support afforded through (CIA) and the known backings which it has received from the White House and the State Department. In addition to the attached groups actually forming the CRC there are supporting groups such as the FORDC which is submitted separately. The DRE resigned from membership in the CRC on 13 March 1962 and is submitted separately...The CRC in spite of its protests that it represents all democratic anti-communist Cuban elements is criticized for being a Miro-Varona coalition which is not interested in the participation of any leader who would seriously threaten the prestige of the present leadership. The most important rival faction led by Carlos Prio Socarras seems to be growing in strength although it includes former Batista elements...the control exercised over the CRC by Theodore F. Passavoy is not very strong, but is based on very friendly relations established on helping the CRC and Mr. Miro in his many problems. Dr. Miro has been assured of his budget by Mr. Hurwitch and feels he is backed by the State Department as the representative of Cuban unity..." For the CRC local office, FRD, Rescate, MRR, MDC, 30 Nov, Montecristi, AAA, Bay of Pigs prisoners, Anticom Cristiana Group & May 20 Group (the Conte Augero Group), Judicatura Cubana, Special Employees, and Heroes and Martyrs, a complete roster is included, and forty pages of members with dates of birth, addresses, and other information. Also see 104-10227-10297, good list of CRC hierarchy about this time.
Memo, 5/21/62, by FBI agent James J. O'Connor: "JERRY GLUCK heads an organization called the William Morgan Brigade which appears to consist primarily of GLUCK and followers of (former Army Colonel) OSCAR DIAZ (MARTINEZ). MM T-1 subsequently advised that GLUCK was the head of the CRC (in Miami)...(MM T-2 reports) GLUCK operates from an office in the Congress building in Miami and claims to have 7,000 members in his organization, which members are called "Minutemen". GLUCK practices shooting at the Magnum Range in the Everglades and DIAZ has accompanied him there to shoot." It is described as a full-fledged training camp 50 miles out in the Everglades with 25 men there at a time. Americans involved include Roy Hargraves, Joe Gorman, and Steve Wilson. Steve Wilson was described as Hemming's bodyguard. (p. 26 of 30) Hemming thought Gluck was a left-winger, favoring Fidelismo without Fidel. (p. 17 of 30) Another memo shows that Gluck tried to entice HEMMING to join him in shooting practice during July 1962. See 104-10218-10275. Also see 104-10227-10222, which refers to the CRC as the "Consejo".
104-10228-10363: CABLE: REPORTS FOLLOWING RE CUBAN EXILE COMMUNITY
1/24/63: "Many Cubans (in) exile community view establishment (of) Sterling Cottrell and his office in Miami as act (of) US determination (to) 'shunt aside' CRC and take away its authority. Hopefully anticipate this first step (to) achieve overall Cuban unity preparatory to liberation (of) Cuba."
1994.08.11.15:54:51:540028: Reel 62, Folder G - Cuban Revolutionary Council - General
2/21/63 memo from C/SAS/PA-PROP Seymour Bolten to C/SAS: Good capsule history of CRC. Describes how FRD chief Tony Varona became Cardona's deputy after merger. Four chapters: New York, Washington, Miami, New Orleans. 300K each month to distribute to Brigade families. 83K each month for administrative support due to large payroll. 25K for Miro's use to support anti-Castro groups inside Cuba. Remainder to propaganda. See 104-10227-10414, p. 6: During Feb. 1963, CRC representatives included Frank Bartes/AMSERF-1 in New Orleans, Ernesto Aragon in Washington, DC, and Nestor Carbonell Cortina in the DC "auxilaries" as well as others throughout the South and scattered around the nation and overseas. See 1993.07.21.16:32:12:400280 - page 31 - Ernesto Aragon was the secretary to AMBUD-1/Miro Cardona. Aragon was also known as "Bebo".
"All the groups within the CRC maintained their separate identities...the regrouping included the following exile leaders: Chairman, Dr. Jose Miro Cardona; Board of Directors, Antonio de Varona (Rescate), Justo Carillo (Montecristi), Carlos Hevia (former Cuban president), Antonio Maceo (noted Cuban surgeon), Manuel Ray (MRP), Manuel Artime (MRR). CRC committees were organized in key cities in the United States and delegation appointed in Latin American countries...After the Cuban missile crisis in October 1962), the policy of the United States towards Cuba changed drastically...although individual groups received aid from the US government, the effectiveness of the CRC as a unifying organization deteriorated. In April 1963, Jose Miro Cardona resigned his position as president in a clash with the Kennedy administration over policy (invasion vis-a-vis coexistence)...The credibility of the CRC then took a severe blow. In June 1963, the Miami News revealed that a highly publicized commando raid on Cuba, purportedly made on June 21, was actually a hoax...(in the months following) the Cuban Revolutionary Council quietly disintegrated." See Joan Mellen, Farewell to Justice, p. 105: The day before David Ferrie died, on 2/21/67, he saw Orestes Pena on Decatur Street and told him "He must find Sergio Arcacha Smith and Wilfredo Mas.", Mas was with both FBI and CIA; his brother in Miami belonged to the DRE.