21: Dictating to Dictator Trujillo

Pawley’s entrepreneurship and bilingual skills led to global success and wealth that gave him easy access not only to U.S. presidents but also to Generalissimo Trujillo, the dictator of the Dominican Republic, who profited so much from the Pawley family’s thriving businesses that William believed he could dictate the course of the country. In 1955, Trujillo asked Pawley to help him write laws to attract U.S. investment in oil and minerals. That same year, Vice President Nixon was criticized for embracing the dictator.

On January 20, 1960, Jane Atherton Roman, who served as liaison between the CIA and FBI as a senior aide to CIA counterintelligence head, James Jesus Angleton, received a document that listed Edward Pawley as the subject. One who read it wondered if it was actually about his brother, William. The document noted that following trips to Florida and Cuba, “Catherine Taaffe, whose activities are well known to the intelligence community” advised that “there was a widespread belief among Cubans that the United States Government, and specifically CIA, was sponsoring anti-Castro plotting” and, according to former Havana lawyer Francisco Rodriguez Couceiro, Edward Pawley was working with the CIA on the effort. The document had a handwritten note: “Probably Wm D. Pawley Miami.” Mrs. Roman wrote beneath it: “Or his brother, Edward, who represents the Pawley business interest in the Dom. Rep.”

An English major graduate from Smith College, Jane Atherton worked in advertising then served in the OSS in 1944. A decade later, she married CIA co-worker Howard Edgar Roman who became a researcher for two books written by CIA Director Allen Dulles. Ten weeks before reading about the Pawleys activities, Jane Roman had opened the CIA's first file on Lee Harvey Oswald, a U.S. Marine Corps radar operator who, after learning Russian and monitoring U-2 flights over Russia, defected to Russia. By the summer of 1963, William Pawley and Lee Harvey Oswald would both interact with the CIA-funded Cuban-exile group DRE.         

In February 1960 an article appeared in the Miami Herald, titled “Smathers at Conference: Miamian Pawley Had a Part in Trujillo’s ‘Free Vote’ Vow.” While it mentions that Edward Pawley lives in Cuidad Trujillo and manages the Pawley mining and oil interests, the article notes that William Pawley is a longtime friend and an informal “economic advisor” to the Dominican Republic Dictator Rafael Trujillo, who accepted his advice and promised “to hold free multiparty elections within a year.”1

At the Dominican Republic press conference, Senator George Smathers was joined by William Pawley who stated that he had recently sold all of his investments in the country, while assuring the media that Trujillo was not in trouble, even though he recently had broken up a plot to overthrow his regime. Pawley “told The Herald from Washington his motives were ‘patriotic—to keep another Communist regime from forming in the Caribbean.’” He claimed that Smathers and Trujillo “each recognized that the Caribbean is entering a new period. A revision of regimes unacceptable to democratic nations has to be made,’ Pawley added.”2

In his autobiography, Pawley stated that he sold off his assets in the Dominican Republic under the belief that President Eisenhower was about to appoint him to an important post advocated by former Ambassador to Cuba, Harry Guggenheim. “It would increase the prestige and importance of Latin America in our foreign policy by establishing the post of Under Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, including Canada ... I strongly urged the nomination of either Walter Donnelly or Henry Holland for the new Under Secretary. The President, however, responded to Pawley: ‘The reason I called was to offer the post to you.” Eisenhower insisted that Pawley must first “dispose of your mining interests in the Dominican Republic. We don’t want any conflict of interest.’”

Pawley arranged to dispose of his stock with an option to repurchase 60% at the same “price at which it was sold.” Pawley later wrote that “Trujillo accommodated me by taking over the stock on my terms, knowing that the Canadian firm of Falconbridge was making an enormous investment in the Dominican Republic.”

When Pawley returned to Washington, he learned that too many people in the State Department had objected to his appointment. In his setback he refocused on trying to improve Trujillo’s power because “Trujillo had been the main bulwark of anti-Communism in the Caribbean.” Pawley hoped Trujillo would “initiate a transition from dictatorship to democratic rule without further delay” noting that “the one-man rule of Trujillo had brought the nation impressive economic and social benefits. But it had also involved the ruthless destruction of political opponents, the suppression of such basic freedoms as those of the press and speech, and the creation of vast personal fortunes by Trujillo and his immediate family.”3

On March 18, 1960, Roy Rubottom, Jr. Assistant Secretary, drafted a memorandum regarding a conversation at the State Department with Senator Smathers who expressed concerns about Cuba and the pressures being placed on the Dominican Republic’s Trujillo who was “clearly anti-communist and had always been friendly toward the United States.” Rubottom noted that Senator Smathers had been criticized in his home state of Florida for painting a rosy picture of the Generalissimo and “his willingness to hold free elections in a year.” The Senator “acknowledged that he might have been mistaken in making such a declaration, adding that he had visited the Generalissimo with former Ambassador William Pawley, who had encouraged him to do what he did.”4

The Senator’s concern about his political career being damaged by his assertions that Trujillo was going to abandon his old ways was grounded in the reaction to his February 8, 1960 meeting with Trujillo. Even though Smathers questioned Trujillo about the recent imprisonment of some dissidents from well-to-do families, Smathers was criticized by the Miami Daily News as a “blind man.” George H. Salley, who had practiced law in Miami since 1936 and was a good friend of Pawley, wrote a rebuttal letter to the newspaper.5 At the time of Salley’s death following an automobile accident in 1991, his wife commented, “‘He loved his work and was still working with the sugar industry.’” An industry in which the Pawleys had also cultivated a money-making interest in.

Salley’s defense of Smathers was quite a reversal from a letter Salley had written in the 1950s to the Miami Herald denouncing Rep. George Smathers and his campaign director, ex-FBI agent Dick Danner, for “maligning an unfortunate victim of wartime hysteria”—a reference to Salley’s client, Baron Fritz Von Opel of the German automobile and rocket family. Opel had been arrested in 1941 in Palm Beach on suspicion of being a Nazi “‘enemy alien.’”

George Smathers had tried to smear Claude Pepper’s 1950 senatorial campaign by pointing to the fact that Pepper had introduced a bill to clear Opel’s name. A closer look would have found that the majority of the impressive Opel automobile operations had been acquired by General Motors a decade before the U.S. and Germany went to war.6 (Several decades later, General Motors—which had fallen from its position as the largest industrial corporation in the world—failed in an attempt to sell a majority of its Opel holdings to raise cash to stave off bankruptcy following the 2008 financial crisis; U.S. taxpayers involuntarily rescued GM.7)

In April of 1960, Pawley invited two FBI Agents to his office for a conversation about Cuba and the Dominican Republic. Pawley disclosed “he had been a personal friend of Generalissimo Rafael Trujillo for many years, that he has had considerable financial interest in the Dominican Republic in the past, but that he has recently liquidated and withdrawn all of his investments in the Dominican Republic. He explained that he has done this because he and Senator George Smathers of Florida, have been working out a plan with Trujillo to democratize the Dominican Republic by an orderly procedure. He said that he feels that he has sold Trujillo on the idea of being the first dictator to successfully step down and turn his country over to a democratic type of government, without bloodshed or disorder. Mr. Pawley said he is keeping the State Department and CIA closely advised concerning his efforts in this field.” Pawley advised the agents “that if the Bureau desires more detailed information concerning the plan that Mr. Pawley and Senator Smathers are attempting to work out with Trujillo, that such information can be obtained from Mr. Pawley.”

Pawley also told the Miami FBI agents that his personal friendship with Generalissimo Trujillo keeps him “well informed concerning activities, within the Dominican Republic. He said that there are presently about three thousand mercenary soldiers in the Dominican Republic of whom approximately 130 are Cubans exiled from Castro Government of Cuba.” Trujillo was “in the process of closing out this operation, and that within thirty days most of these mercenaries, who are from European countries, will be shipped back to Europe by boat.”8

An internal review done by the U.S. government a year after the Trujillo assassination was declassified in November 2017 (with numerous redactions). Page 18 of the 64 pages revealed that Dearborn “used the code name DELTA in correspondence with the plotters.” On page 6, CIA “activities aimed at replacing the Trujillo regime were assigned the cryptonym EMDEED. One segment of EMDEED was known as [REDACTED] the cryptonym for the operation to remove Trujillo by violent action.”

Many of the EMDEED documents were kept in Colonel J.C. King’s private file—ones that eventually went missing. “It is pertinent to note that King and Esterline attribute U.S. and CIA involvement with the plotters in the Dominican Republic to Ambassador Farland.”

Joseph S. Farland was “a former FBI employee who considered himself quite a clandestine operator” and “had direct dealings with a number of the key plotters.” A July 1, 1960 memorandum for Charles P. Cabell addressed the request for “12 sterile, U.S. rifles, Model 1903 (Springfield), with telescopic sights together with 500 rounds of ammunition.” The memo noted this procurement had the approval of “Assistant Secretary of State Roy Rubottom, who requests that the arms be placed in the hands of the opposition at the earliest possible moment.” It was “signed by Rudy Gomez for Chief WH Division; was concurred in by Richard Helms as Acting DD/P [Deputy Director of Plans]; and was approved by C.P. Cabell” as acting Director of the CIA the next day.

This was five months before Eisenhower asked Pawley to see if he could convince Trujillo to step down. Another who tried to persuade the Generalissimo to give up his lucrative dictatorship and grand lifestyle in the Caribbean was General Edwin Norman Clark who had conducted an economic study of the Dominican Republic for Ike in 1953, and like Pawley was unable to persuade the dictator to embrace democracy.

When Pawley testified before a congressional committee in September 1960, he expressed in his testimony that he felt that William Wieland had shaped the U.S. policy of cutting diplomatic relations with the Dominican Republic’s dictator Generalissimo Rafael Trujillo without realizing a communist uprising might follow in the country. Pawley believed his own knowledge of the Dominican Republic was deeper than the State Department’s Wieland because Pawley not only had frequently traveled to the country starting in 1916 and had exploited a number of business opportunities there including his undisclosed family business dealings with Trujillo. In his Senate Subcommittee testimony, Pawley questioned how the U.S. could “condemn Trujillo” but support Yugoslavia’s communist dictator Marshall Tito. He also pointed out Truman’s “all out” effort to discredit Spain’s fascist dictator Generalissimo Francisco Franco which was offset by Pawley himself successfully negotiating the installation of U.S. Air Force bases in Spain at the behest of General George C. Marshall.9

Impatience with Trujillo was growing in Washington. On January 12, 1961, Livingston Merchant told all of the members of Eisenhower’s Special Group that the Department of State felt “that limited supplies of small arms and other material should be made available for dissidents inside the Dominican Republic. Mr. Parrott said that we believe this can be managed securely by the CIA” to arm the anti-Trujillo forces.10

The actual arms provided by the CIA were not used when Rafael Trujillo was shot to death in his 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air on San Cristobal Avenue in Santo Domingo, on May 30, 1961. Four M-3 submachine guns that were pouched to the CIA station in the Dominican Republic were never given to the dissidents. When the Dominican Republic’s Military Intelligence Service examined the assassination, “Ortiz, the SIM investigator, told the FBI that the assassins who were apprehended and interrogated spoke only of the firing of a sawed-off shotgun, revolvers, and pistols.11

Only a faint CIA connection could initially be traced to some of those involved— General Antonio Imbert Barrera who drove the vehicle carrying Antonio de la Maza, Salvador Estrella Sadhalá (aka “El Turco,”) and Amado Garcia Guerrero to the scene of the ambush. Others implicated in the plot by Trujillo’s feared police included Modesto Díaz Quezada, Luis Manuel Cáceres Michel, General Juan Tomás Diaz, Manuel de Ovín Filpo, Salvador Estrella Sadhalá (a.k.a. "El Turco"), Huascar Antonio Tejeda Pimentel, Luis Amiama Tio, Roberto Pastoriza Neret, and Pedro Livio Cedeño Herrera.

“We do not know the motivations of men such as [REDACTED], Amiama Tio, and Antonio Imbert” a post-mortem review by the CIA reported. “Most of them were seeking vengeance or personal gain.” General Roman “admitted he had no intention of permitting free elections. He planned to establish himself as the new Dominican ‘strongman’ replacing Trujillo. General Juan Tomás Diaz was bitter over having been publicly disgraced by Trujillo and then cashiered from the army. Antonio de la Maza’s “brother, Octavio, had been killed by the Trujillos to conceal his and their participation in the slaying of Gerald Murphy in the Galindez case. Most of the others also had personal reasons for wishing Trujillo dead.”12

Twelve days after Rafael Trujillo’s demise, Pawley revisited the Dominican Republic. He then reported to the Secretary of State his observations. “Pursuant to conversations had in Washington at the Department of State with Mr. Coerr and J.C. King, and subsequent conversations had with Allen Dulles, Richard Bissell and J.C. King, I proceeded as scheduled to the Dominican Republic on Sunday, June 11, 1961, accompanied by my brother, Edward P. Pawley, who lives in Ciudad Trujillo.”

William and Edward were “met at the airport by Mrs. Edward Pawley and a businessman, Fernando Viyella” who drove William to the city. Viyella claimed that there was a change “in the view expressed to me [Pawley] several weeks earlier that all of the Trujillos would have to absent themselves from the country for at least a year and a half or two years if there was to be any chance of rebuilding the country under some limited form of democracy ... He stated that a ‘miracle’ had taken place, that young [Ramfis] Trujillo upon his return to the country had acted with statesmanship, courage and ability, that he had immediately backed the President [Balaguer], declared he had no political ambitions of any kind, and would remain in the Dominican Republic to help only so long as it was felt that his services would contribute to the stabilization of the country.” Ramfis Trujillo, “an uncle, Hector Trujillo (who is generally liked by everyone) and the President, were able to prevent a complete disintegration of the armed forces and the country in general.”

Pawley’s memorandum noted that some members of the Trujillo family met with him at Ed’s residence for several hours. “We arrived at Ed Pawley’s home out on Washington Boulevard close to the Country Club, several miles from the city, and we were soon joined by Flor Trujillo and her cousin Garo Trujillo. Garo is an extremely intelligent girl. She worked in the Palace for some time and is more familiar with government activities and personalities than Flor.”

Flor expressed her opinion that the entire family would have to leave the Dominican Republic and noted that “there are a large number of extremely mediocre and unattractive Trujillos that would contribute nothing to the stabilization of the country.” In fact, “Dona Maria, the mother of Ramfis, Rhadames and Angelita Trujillo, had most of her trunks and bags packed and on the yacht and she was trying to persuade all of her side of the family to leave without delay.”

Pawley and Flor discussed “if it would be wise for Ramfis to leave immediately and she said that she had some doubts as to the advisability of creating a vacuum in the  military establishment at this time.” Flor “was very proud of her brother (Ramfis), that he had left the Dominican Republic as a spoiled boy and had returned after her father’s death as a man capable of assuming some responsibility, extremely kind and generous to all of the family, and very aware of the wellbeing of the country.” Flor then arranged a meeting the next day between the Pawleys and Ramfis at the air base.

“My brother Ed and I went together. Ed was to say “hello” and then withdraw to give me an opportunity to speak privately with Trujillo, but upon arriving at his office, we found that his younger brother, Rhadames, and his brother-in-law (husband of Angelita) were in the room and remained there during the conversations, although they did not participate and remained at the far end of the room.”

The Pawleys “talked with Trujillo for thirty minutes. I explained that my visit was prompted by the death of his father and as his father’s friend, I would like to be of whatever assistance he and his family felt might be useful. I congratulated him on the steps he and the President had taken to avoid widespread unrest, and said that the economic and political measures had seemed to be of great value judging by the reaction of the people of the country. The deactivation of SIM, the arrest of Espaillat, the immediate removal of Abbes and his appointment to a post in Japan, were all excellent moves. The headquarters to which most prisoners were taken in the past and which was considered as the torture headquarters, has been completely done away with and turned into a school.”

Ramfis assured Pawley “that all exiles would be permitted to return immediately, and freedom of speech and press were guaranteed.” Pawley took it with a grain of salt and reported “I was not at all impressed with the attitude of the younger brother. He seems completely sour and, from everything we hear, untrustworthy.”

Pawley’s memo to the Secretary of State lamented that “a few days after my talk with the Generalissimo suggesting that he leave the country” there was a backlash. “It seems that everyone friendly to me at that time was removed from office.” This included Dr. Temistocles Messina “formerly with the Foreign Office, in charge of United Nations affairs for the Dominican Republic” who “had been our company lawyer for five years. He was relieved of his government post and his son, Milton Messina, was relieved as President of the Banco de Reserves a few days after my talk with the Generalissimo suggesting that he leave the country. It seems that everyone friendly to me at that time was removed from office.”

The Pawleys and Dr. Messina discussed who would be the best “head of the armed forces should young Trujillo either leave or something happen” to him. Pawley then “sent President Balaguer a telegram asking for an interview, and within fifteen or twenty minutes I had a telephone reply that the President would receive me at five o’clock that afternoon.” They met in a waiting room and whispered to each other fearing that the conversation was being taped. Balaguer stated that he knew I had been a friend of the country for a long time and that he had found from experience that he could trust me and that he desperately needs someone to whom he could confide and someone whom he could seek advice from insofar as it dealt with U.S. matters.” William Pawley “quickly stated to him that, as a private citizen visiting the country with no official status of any kind, the only help I could offer would be of a personal nature.” They then discussed the need to establish a diplomatic relationship with the U.S. to counterbalance the Trujillo family’s power and avoid “a bloodbath and disorder which might result in a Castro-type communist takeover” which neither country should want.

William Pawley told Balaguer that Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Henry Dearborn was being replaced by John Hill whom Pawley knew “quite well and that he was an extremely capable man.” While Balaguer “was very glad to hear this” he felt it was essential to have “an older man of higher government position, as an offset to the influence of the Trujillos.”

Balaguer repeatedly reiterated that he considered “it was almost a miracle that Trujillo could be assassinated and that a revolutionary upheaval had been avoided” and asked Pawley to make himself available to him for further talks as the matter developed. I told him I would be happy to return at any time that he needed me and that if he did not object, I would convey that portion of our talks having to do with a U.S. representative to officials of the U.S. government.” Balaguer requested Pawley “not to communicate with him by letter or telegram or even by telephone; that any communication between us would be through my brother Ed, who would either telephone me to come over; or he would send word by messenger.”

After hearing the Foreign Minister express concerns “that if the Dominican Republic were permitted to devolve into a bloodbath, not only the Dominican Republic would be lost but Haiti as well,” Pawley returned to his hotel and spoke for a half-hour in the lobby to “Dr. Arce Medina, a prominent lawyer and an old friend” and “then called Ambassador Gerry Drew to say ‘hello’ and he and John Hill invited Ed [Pawley] and me to go to the embassy residence at 6:30. I reported fully to Ambassador Drew all of the conversations that I had had, and to Mr. Hill, and I left the residence at 8:30.”

Pawley also reported to the Secretary of State that he had surveyed the clerks, secretaries and other employees at Ed’s office and learned “without exception they were all surprised that order had been maintained” in the country. He also reported on what rumors were circulating about the assassination and the lack of a coup.13

The departing General Consul Henry Dearborn had good reason to leave the country. Upon arriving back at his residence on May 30th from a charity funding-raising “party at a country club outside Ciudad Trujillo”—hosted “by the Nationalist Chinese ambassador”—Dearborn received a call confirming the assassination of the Generalissimo from one of the hitmen. Dearborn “had been in contact with them for months.” Only two of the plotters survived retaliation by Trujillo loyalists.14

Henry Dearborn, who lived to be over 100, passing away in 201315 was interviewed in 1991 for an oral history of the period. He stated that “William Pawley was a nuisance. He had a brother who was in charge of their family interests in the Dominican Republic and they had been cozy with Trujillo.” When “Senator Smathers (Florida) was coming to the Dominican Republic and wanted to talk with Generalissimo Trujillo about our relationship, etc. He wanted me to go with him to see Trujillo—the last thing I had any desire to do.”

Upon Smathers arrival, he informed Dearborn that he didn’t want Pawley to be in the meeting with Trujillo, but Pawley insisted on coming, and Smathers “didn't want to say no to Pawley I guess because Pawley had influence in Florida.” Pawley brought along banker Charles “Bebe Rebozo, a friend of Nixon's in Florida,” as well as Smathers. The group listened as Smathers exhorted Trujillo to give up his three decades as head of the nation by emphasizing the point “‘you have the opportunity to be a great hero in this hemisphere’” as “‘one of the only dictators, who was ever able to turn his country into a democracy during his lifetime.’” Trujillo dismissed Smathers’s proposition by asserting that he held no public office and that the structure of the government was not unlike that in the U.S. Trujillo then asked Smathers, Pawley, Rebozo, and Dearborn to join him in the National Palace Chapel and witness one of Trujillo’s mass baptisms where he becomes “godfather to all these little kids.”16 The group then posed for photos.

Two weeks after Trujillo was assassinated, J.C. King at the CIA received a call from Pawley in Miami, details of which King wrote in a memorandum. “Pawley strongly supported President Balaguer’s request that the U.S. send a distinguished and able senior man in addition to John Hill. The presence of this man will strengthen Balaguer when he takes a firm position in favor of reform. This will eventually include the departure of all of the Trujillo clan. On this point Balaguer and others felt that Ramfis was doing a better job than had been anticipated, and was, for the short term, a stabilizing influence.”

Pawley had already picked out three individuals “who conceivably could replace Ramfis successfully, as Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.” They were “Col. Jose Joaquin Hungria Morell, Col. Rhadames Hungria Morell, Col. Ferrer Lopez Guzman.” The Balaguer-Ramfis team “emphasized to Pawley their intention of cleaning up and probably eliminating the hated SIM. This would include the cleaning out of those places where tortures were practiced.” The team had already cancelled Trujillo’s monopolies of “meat, coca, bananas and milk, as well as others. They reportedly were the source of eighteen million dollars a year additional income.” Indeed, Trujillo owned over 70% of the Dominican sugar industry, which Ed Pawley also found profitable.17

Pawley promised J.C. King a complete written report of his conversation with President Joaquin Balaguer who been vice president under Rafael’s brother, Hector Trujillo, and rose to the presidency. Balaguer then served two more separate terms over the next two decades, a period that saw the free election of Juan Bosch, a coup against him, U.S. intervention, and the assassination of political opponents.18

“The following is a summary of information on William D. Pawley from the files of the FBI from January 1963 to August 1963. Since it is a compilation of all relevant references in the file, reliability of any one account cannot be guaranteed.”

January 1963 – Ref. to FBI memo captioned “Unknown Subjects” (possibly U.S. Congressman & government officials—Bribery and conflict of interest in Dominican Sugar Lobbying activities). Information in this memo from 3rd agency but dissemination note makes reference to George Smathers; Igor Cassini and William D. Pawley.*

February 1, 1963 – Ref. Airtel re Igor Cassini—Inter-American Public Relations, LTD.; RA Dominican Republic. FBI obtains documents which reveal commercial matters between Dominican Republic and Pawley. These documents were not reviewed by staff but we were told that these 3rd agency materials were letters from Trujillo to Pawley discussing commercial matters only. (28 letters)

February 26, 1963 – Newspaper article reveals Juan Bosch taking over the government of the Dominican Republic. Critical of Pawley as “one of the most blatant critics of President Kennedy on Cuba,” who conducted various deals with Trujillo.19 [This was Drew Pearson’s column “Sugar Diplomacy in the Caribbean” which also suggested that Gov. Nelson Rockefeller’s friends in the Senate “seem hell-bent for war with Cuba” should learn from Bosch’s peaceful election after 32 years of Trujillo dictatorship.]20

Igor Cassini was a Hearst newspaper syndicated gossip columnist published under the moniker “Cholly Knickerbocker” who gained fame for coining the trendy phrase “jet set.” As the brother of Oleg Cassini, a fashion designer for first lady Jacqueline Kennedy, Igor occasionally was an invited guest to White House events with his wife at the time, Charlene Wrightsman, the daughter of Oklahoma oil millionaire Charles B. Wrightsman, a Palm Beach, Florida friend of Joseph P. Kennedy. Two months after her father cut off communications with her upon learning that Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy had indicted Igor for failing to register as an agent for Trujillo, Charlene overdosed on sleeping pills and died the following day on April 7, 1963.21 Igor pleaded guilty in the autumn.22

In April of 1963, the FBI noted that Pawley provided a personal reference on the visa application for Generalissimo Trujillo’s oldest daughter Flor de Oro Edesma Trujillo. Flor had been married to and divorced from international playboy Porfirio Rubirosa Ariza who counted among his wives five of the richest women in the world including tobacco heiress Doris Duke (while still seeing his ex-wife Flor). Following her father’s assassination, it became obvious that she needed to leave the country. After obtaining her visa with Pawley’s help, Flor moved to the U.S. where she lived until her death in 1978. Her grave is in the Dominican Republic.23

In an odd twist to the Nixon-Pawley-Trujillo relationship, after the death of Trujillo--who like Rubirosa was a constant womanizer who fathered many children--six of them in Miami hired former Vice President Nixon's law firm to sue the Trujillo estate. They won some money but not all they wanted.24   

* A January 15th memo from the FBI’s W.C. Sullivan is redacted to the point of being meaningless to researchers.

FOOTNOTES:

1 Anthony R. Carrozza, William D. Pawley: The Extraordinary Life of the Adventurer, Entrepreneur, and Diplomat Who Cofounded The Flying Tigers (Washington, DC: Potomac Books, 2012). Page 270.

"Richard Nixon at the National Press Club, May 21, 1958." National Press Club website. Page 2

NARA 104-10049-10351 ~ 1/20/1960 Office Memorandum. “Subject: Edward Pawley.” To: Chief, CI Staff. ATTN: Mrs. Jane Roman. From: Chief, Contact Division, OO. 

1. In mid-December 1959, Mrs. Catherine Taaffe, whose activities are well known to the intelligence community, upon returning from a trip to Cuba and Florida, told us there was a widespread belief among Cubans that the United States Government, and specifically CIA, was sponsoring anti-Castro plotting. She said she would let us know if she acquired more information.

2. On 17 January 1960, Mrs. Taaffe, upon her return from another trip to Cuba and Florida, said on those responsible for this belief appeared to be Edward P. Pawley who, according to her Cuban informants, encourages the belief that CIA is backing anti-Castro plotting and that he, Pawley, is working for CIA in this effort. She indicated one of her informants was Francisco Rodriguez Couceiro, former Havana lawyer now in exile in Miami.

3. This information will also be disseminated to the office of Security.

4. Any further inquiries pertaining to this memorandum should be directed to Mrs. Shirley Stetson on Extension 2775.

        [Signed by Peter Liniss for E.M. Ashcraft]

>> Liniss appears to be the reader who wrote the "William" comment.

*Taaffe’s name appeared when document was declassified in 1999. An earlier declassification, indicated she was an “American tourist.” Point number four was redacted with statement: Internal instructions [which was to contact Mrs. Shirley Stetson].

"Jane Roman Obituary." The Berkshire Eagle, December 6, 2007.

"Howard Edgar Roman, 72, Former CIA Officer, Dies." Washington Post, December 10, 1988.

"November 14, 1963: CIA Aide Signs for an FBI Report on Oswald." By Jefferson Morley, JFK Facts substack. November 14, 2023.

JFK Assassination Archive Declassified Documents:

1/20/1960 Memorandum “Re Edward P. Pawley.” To: Chief, CI Staff. From: Chief, Contact Div. Subjects: Pawley, Edward; Cuba; Anti-Castro.

01/20/1960: Memorandum “Re Edward P. (Prob. William D.) Pawley [Probably is Edward]. Subjects: Memorandum; Pawley, Edward; Cuba.

1/20/1960: Dispatch “Report of Contact with Rudy Fernandez, 16 Jan 60.” To: Chief, WH Division. From: [CIA] Miami WHD Representative. Subjects: Fernandez, R. Pawley, W.

1/20/1960: Office Memo. Subject: Edward P. Pawley. To: CIA Component. From: Chief, CIA Component. Subjects: Pawley, E.; Cuba.

2 NARA 1993.08.04.18:16:39:120006 ~ “Smathers at Conference: Miamian Pawley Had a Part in Trujillo’s ‘Free Vote’ Vow,” By Leo Adde. Miami Herald, February 13, 1960. HSCA Segregated CIA Collection, Box 51.

3 Pawley, Russia Is Winning, Chapter 20.

4 “Memorandum of Conversation, Department of State, Washington, March 18, 1960.” (Drafted by Roy Rubottom, Jr. Assistant Secretary; Other participants The Secretary and Senator George A. Smathers). Foreign Relations of the United States, 1958-1960, Volume VI: Cuba. Page 864.

The Senator was equally concerned with the appearance of our exceptionally tough policy toward the Dominican Republic. He said ... it was clear that the Dominican Republic, as well as Trujillo personally, were clearly anti-communist and had always been friendly toward the United States ... The Senator said that he had been under criticism in his home state [Florida] because of statements he had made following his recent trip to the Dominican Republic in which he had reported the Generalissimo’s willingness to hold free elections in a year. He acknowledged that he might have been mistaken in making such a declaration, adding that he had visited the Generalissimo with former Ambassador William Pawley, who had encouraged him to do what he did.

5 Pawley, Russia Is Winning, Chapter 20.

6 “George Salley, Longtime Lawyer for the Sugar Industry.” Miami Herald, April 24, 1991. Page 3B Local

“Pepper Admits Aid for German Alien,” The Evening Independent, April 21, 1950.

7 “Germany is talking to possible Opel bidders: economy minister.” Reuters, March 21, 2009. http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE52K15W20090321

8 NARA 124-10221-10094 ~ 4/29/1960 FBI Memorandum from SAC, Miami to FBI Director. Subject Anti-Fidel Castro Activities IS-Cuba. 

>> Full document is available for reading in next chapter in Footnote 2.

4/29/1960: [No Title] Subjects : Deb, Assoc, INTV, Pawley, William D., B/F INT, ACA, Meetings, Plane Sale, Dominican Government. Originator: FBI. From: SAC, MM. To: Director, FBI

“Miamian Pawley Had a Part in Trujillo’s ‘Free Vote’ Vow - Smathers at Conference.” By Leo Adde and David Kraslow. Miami Herald, 1960

William D. Pawley...played a major part in the apparent agreement between Dominican Republic Dictator Rafael Trujillo and Florida Sen. George Smathers on a “transition to democracy” for the Caribbean nation.

Strongly disclaiming credit for the idea, Pawley admits, however, that he sold both Trujillo and Smathers on the idea before the two met in Ciudad Trujillo on Tuesday....

“...Each recognized that the Caribbean is entering a new period. A revision of regimes unacceptable to democratic nations has to be made,” Pawley added.

Smathers urged Trujillo, now 68 and his 30th year as Dominican Boss to make certain he succeeded by democratically chosen, freely elected government....

Pawley has had substantial investments in the Dominican Republic. He was president or major stockholder in mining and an oil company there.

“I do not now have a nickel invested in the Dominican Republic, nor in Cuba, nor in Mexico,” Pawley stated. “I have sold my Dominican interests recently, within weeks.”

Pawley’s appearance...did not surprise officials in Washington.

Pawley has long been Dictator Trujillo’s friend and adviser.

And Pawley is also close to Smathers.

Pawley attended Smathers’ press-conference in Ciudad Trujillo and told reporters that recent press reports of Trujillo’s difficulties were not true.

Pawley’s brother, Edward lives in Ciudad Trujillo and managed the Pawley business interests. Their drilling for oil brought in only one small well.

Pawley was described in Washington as an economic adviser to Trujillo – “on an informal basis.”

....There is only one political party in the Dominican Republic and Trujillo has had – and exercised – dictatorial control for 30 years....

Trujillo recently broke up a plot to overthrow his regime by arresting many [123 to 137 individuals] of the alleged participants, including members of some of the country’s leading families....

But Washington sources put the figure between 1,000 and 2,000.

9 Executive session testimony of William D. Pawley September 2 and 8, 1960 to the Committee of the Judiciary’s Subcommittee to Investigate the Administration of the Internal Security Act and other Internal Security Laws, Report (December 20, 1960). Pages 745 and 742.

10 Church Committee: Interim Report – Alleged Assassination Plots Involving Foreign Leaders, Section 5, Page 196.

Livingston Merchant died fourteen years after the Trujillo assassination at the time when Senator Richard Schweiker said the key to the JFK assassination lay in Oswald’s contacts with Cubans. Merchant’s death also coincided with the release of newly declassified documents relating to the Trujillo assassination.

11 Untitled 64-page review of the Assassination of Rafael Trujillo (begins on Table of Contents page). Released by the National Archives with JFK Assassination files mass release in November 2017. https://www.archives.gov/files/research/jfk/releases/104-10214-10034.pdf

Stephan G. Rabe, Eisenhower and Latin America: The Foreign Policy of Anticommunism (University of North Carolina Press, 1988). Page 156.

12 Untitled 64-page Review of the Assassination of Rafael Trujillo (begins on Table of Contents page). Released by the National Archives with JFK Assassination files mass release in November 2017. https://www.archives.gov/files/research/jfk/releases/104-10214-10034.pdf

13 6/14/1961 Memorandum “Handwritten note QDDALE File Pawley 201.” To: The Secretary of State. From: William D. Pawley. Pages 12-19 of 267.

6/15/1961 Memorandum “Pawley, William; Dominican; Pawley, Edward.” To: The Secretary of State. From: William Douglas Pawley.

6/15/1961 Memorandum “re Conversations and Contacts in the Dominican Republic.” To: The Secretary of State. From: Pawley, W.D. Subjects: Pawley, W.D.; Dominican Repub.

6/15/1961 Memorandum “Pawley, William.” To: Secretary of State. From: W.D. Pawley.

Ed and I drove to the office, where we invited Dr. Temistocles Messina to join us. Dr Messina was formerly with the Foreign Office, in charge of United Nations affairs for the Dominican Republic and had been our company lawyer for five years. He was relieved of his government post and his son, Milton Messina, was relieved as President of the Banco de Reserves a few days after my talk with the Generalissimo suggesting that he leave the country. It seems that everyone friendly to me at that time was removed from office.

Young Milton Messina has since received a good job at the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington. Dr. Messina is a senator and I believe this is the only source of income. Dr. Messina, who has not been pro-Trujillo for some time and who some years ago was a very prominent oppositionist, has felt that sooner or later all of the Trujillos would have to leave the country in order to secure the desired results. On this occasion, however, he stated that he has changed his mind because he believes the present arrangement of Balaguer as President, young Trujillo as head of the armed forces, and Hector Trujillo lending moral support because of his popularity with all sectors of Dominican life, is the reason that the stability of the country has been maintained and a bloodbath did not occur... He stated that Arismende Trujillo might try some power play...He feels that young Trujillo is ready to arrest any member of the family who interferes with Balaguer.

... Ed Pawley, Messina and I agreed that the three following names have some possible merit as head of the armed forces should young Trujillo either leave or something happen [Col. Jose Joaquin Hungria Morell, Col. Rhadames Hungria Morell, and Col. Ferrer Lopez Guzman] ...

... I sent President Balaguer a telegram asking for an interview, and within fifteen or twenty minutes I had a telephone reply that the President would receive me at five o’clock that afternoon.

Flor Trujillo telephoned to say that her brother had been extremely pleased to receive me and hoped that through friends in the U.S. I might be able, in some small measure, to help them through this difficult period.

... it is important to note that during the conversation he stated that he was very anxious to normalize the connection and the government’s relations with the Catholic Church. He asked me whether I was acquainted with Bishop Reilly. I replied that I knew him only slightly but that I was acquainted with Cardinal Spellman...Upon inquiry later, I found it was a three-hour drive each way to see Bishop Reilly and I therefore decided to postpone it until some future trip.

I called Balaguer at the Palace at five o’clock. I was shown to a waiting room and within a few minutes he joined me in the waiting room rather than bring into his office. I had prepared myself for a conversation which might have been taped, but as he came to the waiting room and sat on the sofa next to me and our entire conversation was carried out in almost a whisper, I wondered if he, himself, thought that that maybe the room was tapped and therefore wanted his private conversation to be secure.

He stated that he knew I had been a friend of the country for a long time and that he had found from experience that he could trust me and that he desperately needs someone to whom he could confide and someone whom he could seek advice from insofar as it dealt with U.S. matters.

I quickly stated to him that, as a private citizen visiting the country with no official status of any kind, the only help I could offer would be of a personal nature...obviously I had friends in the U.S. with whom I could talk ...

He said he was extremely pleased that Hector and Ramfis had been so helpful...however, in his judgment the Trujillos would soon have to go, but this could not be done unless first the U.S. was willing to extend him a friendly hand ... He said that he would sincerely hope that the U.S. would consent to send to the Dominican Republic an American of ambassadorial rank even though he not be accredited as an Ambassador, a person known to be a friend of the President of the U.S. and/or the Secretary of State, a man of sufficient stature that it would be a counterbalance to the influence of the Trujillo family and their supporters.

He said he wanted very badly ... that the U.S. did not intend to permit the Dominican Republic to be subjected to a bloodbath and disorder which might result in a Castro-type communist takeover; that to create this type of vacuum would not be in the interest of the U.S. or in the interest of the Hemisphere ...

I told President Balaguer that John Hill had just arrived in substitution for Henry Dearborn and that I knew Mr. Hill quite well and that he was an extremely capable man. Balaguer stated that he was very glad to hear this but that he would feel that for the purposes above-mentioned an older man of higher government position, as an offset to the influence of the Trujillos, was almost an essential ...

The President several times reiterated that it was almost a miracle that Trujillo could be assassinated and that a revolutionary upheaval had been avoided ...

... As I was taking my leave, President Balaguer said that he would greatly appreciate my making myself available to him for further talks as the matter developed. I told him I would be happy to

return at any time that he needed me and that if he did not object, I would convey that portion of our talks having to do with a U.S. representative to officials of the U.S. government. He asked me not to communicate with him by letter or telegram or even by telephone; that any communication between us would be through my brother Ed, who would either telephone me to come over; or he would send word by messenger.

... I met the Foreign Minister and ... He expressed his gratification at the lack of disorder as a result of Trujillo’s death ... he felt that if the Dominican Republic were permitted to devolve into a bloodbath, not only the Dominican Republic would be lost but Haiti as well.

I returned to the hotel and there found Dr. Arce Medina, a prominent lawyer and an old friend. We talked for a half hour in the hotel lobby ...

I then called Ambassador Gerry Drew to say “hello” and he and John Hill invited Ed and me to go to the embassy residence at 6:30. I reported fully to Ambassador Drew all of the conversations that I had had, and to Mr. Hill, and I left the residence at 8:30.

While in the Dominican Republic, I talked with everyone with whom I came in contact—the clerks and secretaries in Ed’s office, the driver who has worked for the company for the past five years, etc. and without exception they were all surprised that order had been maintained and they all felt that this condition should not be disturbed now. Most feel, however, that in due course, the Trujillo clan must leave the country for at least a couple of years, but none feel that trouble could be avoided if the change were made immediately.

Among the rumors circulated are that:

1) The Secretary of War (who is under arrest) did not follow through as per plan and therefore the effort to overthrow the government failed.

2) A telephone call made to Hector Trujillo, President Balaguer and Abbes to come to Fortaleza in the city for a meeting immediately following Trujillo’s disappearance. Abbes, through his intelligence service, found that they were being invited to Fortaleza to be assassinated. He rushed to the President’s home, found him changing clothes to keep the appointment. They advised Hector Trujillo by telephone, and, of course, none kept the appointment. I am told that it is for this reason that Abbes was not summarily dismissed, but instead, was offered the post in Japan. The above-mentioned call was supposed to have been made in the name of the Minister of War.

3) [SIM military intelligence Chief, General Arturo] Espaillat was driving along Washington Boulevard at the time that Trujillo was assassinated and he was present at the time it occurred. He turned his car around and fled, and when they arrested him and accused him, he admitted that he was there by accident and that he only had a side arm and could not have participated in trying to save Trujillo’s life without practically committing suicide. This obviously, is a very bad situation for Espaillat. No one seems to know what the charge is against him or what will be the finding.

Biaggi Messina website:

In 1924, Licenciado Temistocles Messina and his brother-in-law, Vetilio Matos, formed Messina & Matos. Political pressures eventually forced it to close. It reopened in 1967 as Milton Messina & Asociados. Dr. Milton Messina, former Ambassador of the Dominican Republic in Washington D.C., later became a representative of the country before the Interamerican Development Bank.

14 “A Dictator’s Death: U.S. Role on Trujillo Examined.” By William Greider. The Washington Post, March 16, 1975.

15 Mr. Dearborn was Charge d’Affaires in the Dominican Republic in August 1960, when the United States severed diplomatic relations with the country. He remained as Consul General, which position he held until shortly after the assassination of Generalissimo Trujillo in May 1961.

“Henry Valpey Dearborn, January 30, 1913—April 9, 2013.” Dignity Memorial Obituaries. Robert E. Evans Funeral Home, Bowie, MD.

Henry Dearborn, age 100, a retired Foreign Service Officer and specialist in Latin American Affairs, died on April 9th, 2013. Mr. Dearborn was born in Lawrence, Massachusetts. He graduated from Dartmouth College (1936) and received a Masters degree from Yale University (1938). He also was a graduate of the National War College in Washington DC, class of 1959. After two years with the Washington Office of the Foreign Policy Association, he joined the Foreign Service. Beginning in 1941, his posts included: Barranquilla, Colombia; Manta and Guayaquil, Ecuador; Lima, Peru; Santo Domingo (then Ciudad Trujillo), Dominican Republic; Bogota, Colombia; and Mexico City, Mexico. He retired in 1970.

Mr. Dearborn was Charge d’Affaires in the Dominican Republic in August, 1960, when the United States severed diplomatic relations with the country. He remained as Consul General, which position he held until shortly after the assassination of Generalissimo Trujillo in May, 1961. Fourteen years later he appeared in executive session before the Senate Select Committee investigating allegations of U.S. Government involvement in assassination plots against foreign leaders (July 28, 1975).

Mr. Dearborn was a member of the Foreign Service Association, DACOR (Diplomatic and Consular Officers Retired), the Dartmouth and Yale Clubs of Washington, and the Kappa Sigmas fraternity.

16 “Interview with Mr. Henry Dearborn, The Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training Foreign Affairs Oral History Project.” Interviewed by: Charles Stuart Kennedy. April 24, 1991 Library of Congress. Copyright 2009 ADST.

Interview with Mr. Henry Dearborn http://www.loc.gov/item/mfdipbib001539

“Nixon’s Winter White House Razed.” CBS News, July 23, 2004

“Victim Drawn to Politics.” By Robert D. McFadden. The New York Times, July 20, 1969.

“The Mysteries of Chappaquiddick.” Time, August 1, 1969.

17 Michael R. Hall, Sugar and Power in the Dominican Republic: Eisenhower, Kennedy, and the Trujillos (Contributions in Latin American Studies, 13, Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2000). Page 5.

“Our Man in Havana, William D. Pawley.” By John T. O’Rourke. The Washington Daily News, February 20, 1961.

18 6/14/1961 Memorandum for the Record. From: J.C. King, Chief/WH.

At 10:45 on 14 June 1961, Mr. William D. Pawley called me from Miami to report on his conversations in the Dominican Republic. They were in substance the same as those in State message No. 1396 from Ciudad Trujillo of 13 June.

Pawley strongly supported President Balaguer’s request that the U.S. send a distinguished and able senior man in addition to John Hill. The presence of this man will strengthen Balaguer when he takes a firm position in favor of reform. This will eventually include the departure of all of the Trujillo clan. On this point Balaguer and others felt that Ramfis was doing a better job than had been anticipated, and was, for the short term, a stabilizing influence.

Mr. Pawley attempted to identify individuals who conceivably could replace Ramfis successfully, as Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. The following three names were mentioned:

Col. Jose Joaquin Hungria Morell Col. Rhadames Hungria Morell Col. Ferrer Lopez Guzman

Both Ramfis and Balaguer emphasized to Pawley their intention of cleaning up and probably eliminating the hated SIM. This would include the cleaning out of those places where tortures were practiced.

One of the encouraging steps taken by the Balaguer-Ramfis group has been the cancellation of all of the old monopolies exercised by Trujillo. These include meat, coca, bananas and milk, as well as others. They reportedly were the source of eighteen million dollars a year additional income.

Mr. Jerry Drew, the American OAS delegate, said that every time his Committee asked by name for a Dominican reported to be held as a prisoner, the individual was produced. A number of these people were rumored to have been murdered.

Mr. Pawley promised to write up and mail to me a complete report of his conversations.

Similar memos include:

6/14/1961 Memorandum for the Record. “Subjects: Memorandum; Pawley, William.”

6/14/1961 Memorandum for the Record “William Douglas Pawley.” Subjects: Pawley, William. Dominican.

6/14/1961 Memorandum for the Record. “Re Pawley reports on conversations in the Dominican Republic.” Subjects: Telecon; Dominican Repub; Pawley, William

6/14/1961 Memorandum for the Record. “Subject: William Douglas Pawley.” Subjects: Pawley, William; Dominican Repub.

19 Staff Memo House Select Committee on Assassinations. Summary of information on William D. Pawley from the files of the FBI from January 1963 to August 1963. NOTE: The staff member’s original memo actually extended into September. David Cannon rearranged the events to provide chronological order of events. Other portions of the memo appear later in this chapter.

George Volsky, “Manuel Artime Dies; Led Invasion of Cuba; Castro Foe, 45, Had Close Ties to Bay of Pigs Operation, The New York Times, November 19, 1977.
Artime died of cancer. E. Howard Hunt was his children’s godfather.

January 15, 1963. FBI Memo. Subject: Unknown Subjects (Possibly U.S. Congressman and Government Officials – Bribery and Conflict of Interest in Dominican Sugar Lobbying Activities). From: W. C. Sullivan. To: W. R. Wannall

Previous memoranda is captioned matter, have highlighted information contained in documents [REDACTED] The documents are presently being translated on an expedite basis. Additional translations have been reviewed and the following information pertinent to the captioned matter has been noted.

[REDACTED PARAGRAPH]

This may be a reference to William D. Pawley, former U.S. Ambassador to Brazil and Peru a resident of Florida and Senator George A. Smathers (D) of Florida.

[REDACTED PARAGRAPH]

20 Drew Pearson’s column “Sugar Diplomacy in the Caribbean,” St. Petersburg Times, February 26, 1963. 

>> Pearson also skewers Henry Holland for being a mining consultant to Trujillo and “handling various oil problems for Venezuela dictator Perez Jimenez."

21 “Mrs. Cassini, Society Columnist’s Wife Dies,” Los Angeles Times, April 10, 1963.

Igor “GhiGhi” Cassini died in 2002. Igor Cassini was the second “Cholly Knickerbocker” for the newspaper.

22 John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum. Historical Resources, A Chronology from The New York Times: October 9, 1963. http://www.jfklibrary.org/Historical+Resources/Archives/Reference+Desk/New+York+Times+Ch ronology/1963/October.htm

23 Staff memo House Select Committee on Assassinations.

Obituary “Flor de Oro Trujillo, Whose Father Led Dominican Republic.” By Rudy Johnson. The New York Times, February 17, 1978, Section D, Page 12.

24 "Nixon in New York." By Victor Li. ABA Journal website. May 2018.