Documents / FOIA release

FOIA on Martin Luther King

Central Intelligence Agency · 2025-06-12 · 295 pages · text by OCR

This Central Intelligence Agency FOIA release, dated 2025-06-12, collects 1976 CIA paperwork on Harold Weisberg's request (76-F-382) for records on Martin Luther King, Jr. It includes routing slips, an Operations Staff memorandum listing releasable press items and exempt cables, dispatches and memoranda, and a CI Staff reply citing a 1968 Office of Security memo on Coretta Scott King. It also contains a 16 May 1968 memo to the FBI reporting that Gerald Lee Richards, investigated in Japan, did not resemble suspect James Earl Ray.

  • p. 4 …5), dated 22 November 1968 Ottawa Citizen, dated 17 December 1968 Sepia (pg. 66) (EX-3592…
  • p. 60 …exempt under (b)(1)5(B)(1). Ottawa-5446, dated 8 June 1968; concerns travel of…
  • p. 64 …The Ottawa Citizen, dated 10 June 1968; The Ottawa Journal, dated 10 June 1968; The Gazette…
  • p. 69 …Department of State telegram, Ottawa-1813, dated 8 June 1968. Reports of the apprehension in London…
  • p. 73 …The Ottawa Citizen, dated 10 June 1968; The Ottawa Journal, dated 10 June 1968; The Gazette…
  • p. 78 …Department of State telegram, Ottawa-1813, dated 8 June 1968. Reports of the apprehension in London…
  • p. 192 …Why did he travel repeatedly to Ottawa? How did he manage to carry guns on planes…
# CONFIDENTIAL

(g) Memorandum, dated 16 May 1968; Subject: Investigation in Japan of Report of Suspicious Action of Another Subject who was Originally Described as Resembling Suspected Assassin; contains information provided by the Japanese National Police Agency; exempt under (b)(3)(a), (b)(6), and (b)(1)5B(1).

(h) Memorandum for the Record, dated 19 April 1968; Subject: Unknown Subject, possibly identifiable with Eric Starvo Galt; the information was based on clandestine photography of the Cuban embassy in Mexico City; exempt under (b)(3)(a); (b)(6) and (b)(1)(5)B(1).

3. the following documents concern the James Earl Ray case but do not mention the Subject by name. All are exempt under (b)(3)(a) and (b)(6).

381-388 thought to be associated with the Ray case. (a) Eight biographic sketches on individuals

(b) Memorandum, dated 17 April 1968; Subject: Gerald Lee Richards.

(c) The Hague-4137 (IN-94424), dated 19 April 1968; station and liaison traces provided no evidence that Subject had ever been in the Netherlands; exemptions (b)(1)5B(1) also applies.

(d) La Paz-4228 (IN-94482), dated 19 April 1968; La Paz morning papers carried photos of FBI Wanted Posters.

(e) Caracas-9414 (IN-94487), dated 19 April 1968; requests photo be pouched.

(f) San Jose-0157 (IN-94496), dated 19 April 1968; requests photo be pouched.

(g) Director-93306, dated 19 April 1968; states that two copies of photo sent 19 April.

(h) Director-92897, dated 19 April 1968; states two copies of photos sent.

(1) Director-92895, dated 19 April 1968; states two copies of photos sent.

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About this file

FOIA release, from the cia-readingroom collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. The text was read from the page images by an OCR model; expect the odd misread word. 295 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.