2025 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992

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19JUL1967

MEMORANDUM

SUBJECT: Ramparts: John Garrett UNDERHILL Jr:,
			Samuel George CUMMINGS, and
			INTERARMCO

Ramparts of June 1967, Vol. 5, No. 12, pp. 28-29, contains the following passages about Subjects:

	“The day after the assassination, Gary Underhill left Washington in a hurry. Late in the evening he showed up at the home of friends in New Jersey. He was very agitated. A small clique within the CIA was responsible for the assassination, he confided, and he was afraid for his life and probably would have to leave the country. Less than six months later Underhill was found shot to death in his Washington apartment. The coroner ruled it a suicide.

	“J. Garret Underhill had been an intelligence agent during World War II and was a recognized authority on limited warfare and small arms. A researcher and writer on military affairs, he was on a first-name basis with many of the top brass in the Pentagon. He was also on intimate terms with a number of high-ranking CIA officials—he was one of the Agency’s ‘un-people’ who perform special assignments. At one time he had been a friend of Samuel Cummings of Interarmco, the arms broker that numbers among its customers the CIA and, ironically, Klein’s Sporting Goods of Chicago, from whence sic the mail-order Carcano allegedly was purchased by Oswald.

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Summary  
The document details information about John Garrett Underhill Jr., a former intelligence agent linked to CIA activities, and Samuel George Cummings, an arms broker associated with Interarmco. It references a 1967 article in *Ramparts* magazine alleging that a CIA clique was responsible for the assassination of President John F. Kennedy through gun-running, narcotics trafficking, and political manipulation. Gary Underhill, who allegedly confided this to friends in New Jersey after the assassination, died by suicide in 1964. The coroner’s ruling of suicide is questioned due to inconsistencies in the circumstances of his death, including the placement of a pistol under his body and the absence of reported gunfire. Underhill’s background includes military service with MIS during World War II and later work as a journalist and intelligence contractor. Cummings is described as an arms dealer who supplied weapons to CIA operations, particularly for resistance groups behind the Iron Curtain. His business dealings involved Interarmco, a Canadian corporation, and included financial arrangements such as non-interest-bearing promissory notes. The document also notes that Cummings had contacts with U.S. intelligence agencies, including the CIA and FBI, and was monitored by the BND (West German foreign intelligence agency).  

Key People  
- **John Garrett Underhill Jr.**: Former intelligence agent, military journalist, and alleged CIA contractor who claimed a CIA clique orchestrated Kennedy’s assassination. Died by suicide in 1964.  
- **Samuel George Cummings**: Arms broker associated with Interarmco, linked to CIA operations involving the procurement of weapons for resistance groups. Engaged in business dealings with U.S. intelligence agencies.  

Key Locations  
- **Washington, D.C.**: Central to Underhill’s alleged CIA connections and Cummings’ business activities.  
- **New Jersey**: Where Underhill allegedly confided his claims about the assassination to friends.  
- **Philadelphia**: Mentioned as a location tied to Cummings’ early career.  
- **Panama**: Reference to Cummings’ business dealings with an Agency source.  

Key Events  
- **Assassination of John F. Kennedy (1963)**: Allegedly linked to CIA activities through Underhill’s claims and Cummings’ arms trafficking.  
- **Underhill’s suicide (1964)**: Suspected to be a result of his alleged involvement in CIA operations, with inconsistencies in the coroner’s report.  
- **Cummings’ business dealings**: Involvement in procuring weapons for CIA operations, including transactions with Interarmco and financial arrangements involving promissory notes.  
- **Interagency monitoring**: Cummings’ activities were tracked by U.S. intelligence agencies (CIA, FBI) and West German BND.  

Key Organizations  
- **Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)**: Central to the allegations of involvement in Kennedy’s assassination and arms trafficking through Underhill and Cummings.  
- **Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)**: Monitored Cummings’ business activities.  
- **Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND)**: West German foreign intelligence agency that tracked Cummings’ dealings.  
- **Interarmco**: Canadian corporation linked to Cummings, engaged in arms procurement for CIA operations.

JFK Declassified Files

104-10170-10145.pdf

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