Who Killed JFK? Declassified Files, A Big CIA Twist

The assassination of John F Kennedy remains an open wound in the American consciousness. The shock of that instant - captured in Richard O'Connell's poem 'Nekros' - paints a haunting image: "A head dropped back and dying, pouring blood from its skull... All history stark in that flow." Those horrific seconds in Dallas' Dealey Plaza on November 22, 1963 left a mystery that still defies resolution, despite the declassification of 80,000 documents.

US President Donald Trump's decision to declassify those files has reignited speculation surrounding the events of that day. While visiting the JFK Center for the Performing Arts yesterday, Trump told Americans, "You got a lot of reading," adding that his administration would not withhold any information.

This follows his earlier decision in 2017 to release additional documents, though thousands remained redacted over national security concerns. In January, Trump signed an executive order to declassify all remaining files related to the Kennedy assassination, as well as the killings of Robert F Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr.

The latest tranche of documents - posted to the US National Archives' website - includes previously redacted records, with 1,123 files newly identified. Researchers and analysts are now combing through the material for fresh insights.

CIA Insider's Allegations

On the night following John F Kennedy's assassination, intelligence officer J Garrett Underhill fled Washington in distress. His destination was a friend's home in New Jersey, where he arrived visibly shaken. According to the declassified memos, Underhill alleged that a "small clique" within the agency was responsible for Kennedy's assassination.

Underhill allegedly confided in his friend Charlene Fitsimmons that the CIA had orchestrated the killing. "[Lee Harvey] Oswald is a patsy," he allegedly said, insisting that the real perpetrators had "done something outrageous" and were likely involved in gun-running, narcotics, and other illicit activities.

Underhill's past as a decorated military intelligence officer, consultant, and military affairs writer lent credibility to his fears.

John F Kennedy wipes his brow during his State of the Union Address to the US Congress on January 14, 1963 at the House of Representatives in Washington, D.C.
Photo Credit: AFP

"The friends whom Underhill visited say he was sober but badly shook. They say he attributed the Kennedy murder to a CIA clique which was carrying on a lucrative racket in gun-running, narcotics and other contraband, and manipulating political intrigue to serve its own ends. Kennedy supposedly got wind that something was going on and was killed before he could 'blow the whistle on it'. Although the friends had always known Underhill to be perfectly rational and objective, they at first didn't take his account seriously. I think the main reason was, explains the husband, that we couldn't believe that the CIA could contain a corrupt element every bit as ruthless -- and more efficient --as the mafia," a declassified document, dated 19 July, 1967, read.

Fearing for his life, Underhill left Washington immediately after the assassination, telling friends he might have to flee the country. Less than six months later, on May 8, 1964, he was found dead in his Washington apartment with a gunshot wound to the head. The official ruling was suicide, but inconsistencies - such as the fact that he was shot behind the left ear despite being right-handed - have fueled rumours.

Underhill's body was discovered by a man called Asher Brynes from The New Republic.

"The verdict of suicide in Underhill's death is by no means convincing. His body was found by a writing collaborator, Asher Brynes of the New Republic. He had been shot behind the left car, and an automatic pistol was under his left side. Odd, says Brynes, because Underhill was right-handed. Brynes thinks the pistol was fitted with a silencer, and occupants of the apartment building couid not recall hearing a shot. Underhill obviously had been dead several days," the declassified document reads.

Underhill's Intelligence Career

Born in Brooklyn in 1915, Underhill was a Harvard graduate who entered the intelligence world during World War II. His work in the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) earned him a War Department staff citation for excellence. Post-war, he was eyed for CIA recruitment, though records indicate he was to be approached cautiously and granted only limited access to classified material.

By the mid-1950s, Underhill was a well-connected journalist and consultant, writing for Life and Esquire, often critical of US military preparedness. His interactions with intelligence agencies continued, particularly in relation to Soviet military analysis. He had once informed the FBI and CIA about Herman Axelbank, a man peddling photographs of Soviet military assets.

CIA and FBI Connections to Oswald

The newly released documents add to existing doubts about Lee Harvey Oswald's role. While the official record states that Oswald acted alone, inconsistencies remain. The timing of the shots, bullet trajectory, and witness testimonies suggest the possibility of a second shooter. The Zapruder film - which shows President Kennedy and his motorcade in Dealey Plaza in downtown Dallas - captures the assassination, and shows Kennedy's head moving backwards, contradicting the idea that all shots came from behind.

John F Kennedy, his wife Jacqueline, Texas governor John Connally, and Connally's wife Nellie in the presidential limousine minutes before the assassination in Dallas
Photo Credit: US Archives

Oswald's background only deepens the mystery. A former Marine, he defected to the Soviet Union in 1959 before returning to the US with a Russian wife. His documented ties to pro- and anti-Castro groups, combined with the fact that he was monitored by both the CIA and FBI before the assassination, have led many to suspect he was not acting alone.

Anna Paulina Luna, head of the newly established Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets, recently endorsed the theory that "two shooters" were involved-challenging the long-standing conclusion of the Warren Commission.

The Role of CIA-Linked Arms Dealers

The released files also throw light on a man called Samuel George Cummings, an arms dealer with intelligence connections. Cummings, who worked with the CIA as a weapons expert, was involved in purchasing and distributing foreign arms. Documents indicate that he worked closely with intelligence agencies in the US and abroad, including West German intelligence (BND), and may have played a role in clandestine arms deals related to anti-Castro operations.

His company, International Armament Corporation (Interarmco), was involved in supplying weapons to resistance groups. While there is no direct link between Cummings and the JFK assassination, his activities and ties to intelligence agencies have raised questions about the events leading up to November 22, 1963.

Another enduring mystery is why Jack Ruby - a Dallas nightclub owner with reported ties to organised crime - shot Oswald two days after the assassination. While Ruby claimed he was acting out of grief for Kennedy, sceptics argue he was silencing Oswald before he could reveal more information.

Ruby's trial and his subsequent death from cancer while in custody have only deepened suspicions. Adding to the intrigue, one of the doctors who treated him in prison, Louis Jolyon West, was involved in MKULTRA, the CIA's mind-control program.

Key pieces of physical evidence in the JFK case remain controversial. The "magic bullet" theory, which suggests a single bullet hit both Kennedy and Texas Governor John Connally, has been widely criticized for its implausibility.