A mobster at Dealey Plaza

When the mission isn’t the real mission.

John F. Kennedy, November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas. Photo: Walt Cisco, Dallas Morning News

Last night I saw Hoods, Spooks, and the Hidden Elite (2009). I already knew that crime boss/accountant Meyer Lansky had protection from the Feds, who were in his debt for helping them out with espionage in WWII. One of Lansky’s top men, Chauncey Holt, became entrenched in the CIA. This film is Holt telling his story in 1997 with photos and footage.

An interesting tidbit: Holt claims the Mafia had compromising pictures of J. Edgar Hoover and Tolson. That explains why the FBI seemed “unaware” of organized crime for so long. I don’t believe the FBI should even exist, but Hoover seemed pretty bad at his job; he held onto it until his death because he had compromising photos of everyone else.

Holt claims JFK had decided to repair relations with Castro (and the USSR) through back channels. The CIA told Holt of its intention to stage a failed assassination attempt on JFK and blame it on Cuba.

Holt ran the printing presses (fake badges, IDs) for the CIA, which also secretly operated the legitimate business of printing badges and IDs for law enforcement and other officials across the USA. He also oversaw gun alterations. He was to deliver 15 fake Secret Service badges to…