The JFKA and Gilberto Policarpo Lopez

[Fred Litwin]

And how old was his daughter in 1963?

[Tom Graves]

And how old was his daughter in 1963?

Dear Fred,

If you'd read our email exchanges, you'd know that she said she was eighteen years old when he moved his family to the U.S. in 1995, which means she hadn't been born yet in 1963.

Does that matter somehow?

-- Tom

PS Thanks for confirming that he flew from Mexico City to Havana on a cargo plane

[Tom Graves]

I don't believe any of this.

There is nothing to see here, guys.

Dear Fred,

That's your precious opinion.

Don't get all huffy, now.

-- Tom

[Fred Litwin]

Yes, it matters. She has no idea how sick Gilberto was in 1963.

fred

[Benjamin Cole]

https://www.archives.gov/files/research/jfk/releases/180-10141-10498.pdf

Cubana Airlines flight 465 on Nov. 27.


Cubana Airlines Flight 465 on November 27, 1963, was technically a passenger plane that was primarily carrying cargo on that specific return flight.

Investigation records from the National Archives clarify the nature of this flight:

Capacity: All Cubana flights to Mexico City at that time were capable of carrying passengers.

Specific Load: On November 27, 1963, the flight arriving in Mexico City carried 75 passengers. However, the return flight to Havana departed with only one passenger (identified as Gilberto Lopez) and what was described as a "plane load of cargo," including automobile parts, food, and medicine.

Context: Because some return flights from Mexico City to Havana were used extensively for shipping supplies to Cuba, they were occasionally characterized as being "basically cargo" flights even though they remained passenger-capable aircraft with a crew of nine.

--30---

This seems like "something to see."

Lopez was a US citizen. US citizens had trouble visiting Cuba, usually requiring special arrangements.

But Lopez just ad-hoc hopped on a plane in MC and made it to Havana? As the only passenger? And they held up the flight for him?

You might need to re-think this one, without your premises as blinders.

[Tom Graves]

Yes, it matters. She has no idea how sick Gilberto was in 1963.

Dear Fred,

Neither do you, evidently.

After the assassination, his wife told the investigators that he suffered from epileptic seizures, but ironically, he was doing construction work just fine a month or two later.

-- Tom

PS From a 17-page HSCA document (RIF 180-10141-10499) that was released in 2017 or 2018. “CIA has no objection to declassification and/or release of this document as sanitized.”

The FBI learned that Lopez married an American woman in Key West in August 1962. [33] According to Lopez's wife, he worked for a time with the Pepsi Cola company in 1962 and at the Molina and Murgia Bakery in Key West, which was owned by cousins. [34] She said that he also worked for a construction company in Tampa in June 1963. [35] Lopez's wife told the FBI that Lopez began suffering from recurrent attacks of epilepsy and had to be confined at Jackson State Hospital in Key West in early 1963. [36] She stated that he was treated by doctors from Coral Gables and Key West for the epilepsy. [37] She stated that she did not believe he had a history of epilepsy before coming to the United States. [38] She believed his convulsions were brought on by nervous tension and worry over his family in Cuba and may have been a reason for his return to Cuba in 1963. [39]

Starting with footnote 27 and ending with footnote 33, the source is FBI Report, 8/26/64, Serial 105-126109-12, p.  (The footnotes from 34 to 51 were “ibid.”)

Footnote 49 – “According to Lopez's FBI file, he registered with the Selective Service at Key West on July 29, 1960, and was classified 4-F on February 23, 1962 due to a language barrier.

[Benjamin Cole]

How healthy does a guy have to be to pull a trigger?

Why was Havana so eager to bring a US citizen--Lopez---into Cuba?