Cryptonym: AMTABBY-15
Miguel Angel Orozco Crespo
Sources:
FBI letterhead memo, 11/15/62: An article in El
Mundo, 11/15/62, entitled "Chief of Saboteurs Arrested Upon Arrival from
United States", had another headline stating "Four Hundred Miners
Would Have Died If The Terrorist Plan Had Succeeded". "According to this
article, the Cuban State Security Department had disclosed the arrest of Miguel
Angel Orozco Crespo and two groups of saboteurs who had landed clandestinely in
Cuba under the direction of the (CIA) to carry out acts of sabotage and
espionage. The saboteurs were ordered to destroy the mines at Matahambre and
Nicaro and other major industrial installations in Cuba...Orozco Crespo, a
former lieutenant in the Batista Army, left no doubt of the sinister plans of
the United States to commit criminal acts in Cuba."
A major paramilitary operation consisting of
numerous sabotage operations against on-island targets in Cuba. At least some
of these operations were reviewed and approved by the Special Group
(Augmented). "Part of the AMTABBY net was wrapped up by Castro in 11/2/62,
at which time AMTABBY-15 and AMTABBY-23 were captured. Castro claimed that
AMTABBY-15 was the CIA's principal agent in Cuba." For minor sabotage
operations, no OK from JFK was necessary. For MONGOOSE-size major operations,
presidential approval was required. "Part of the AMTABBY net was wrapped
up by Castro on (handwritten: 11/2/62), at which time AMTABBY-15 and AMTABBY-23
were captured. Castro claimed that AMTABBY-15 was the CIA's principal agent in
Cuba...While the Cubans were unaware of the name MONGOOSE, they did refer to
the operation AMTABBY-15 was involved in as Operation CUPID (handwritten note:
How did AMTABBY-15 know this?) The Cubans were also aware of Robert Wall and
were led to believe that he was a close friend of Robert Kennedy. (Typed note:
Is this true? -- Handwritten note: No.) AMTABBY-15 also told the Cubans and was
told (by whom?) that all sabotage plans were to be on a small scale and were
not to compromise President Kennedy (a note on this memo says 'What can we
say?') AMTABBY-15 went on to say that all large operations i.e. MONGOOSE/CUPID
needed the approval of President Kennedy - how he knew this is unknown????"
Fabian Escalante, The Secret War (Ocean Press, 1995)
(114-115): "(By) the final months of 1961...a
study of the Cuban scene led (CIA) to the false belief that the most favorable
territories for the uprising (included) intricate mountain ranges which could
harbor a strong and well-supplied guerrilla nucleus, distant from urban
centers, scarce means of communication, and a rural population sufficiently
backward culturally and politically to be easily susceptible to indoctrination
by agents...one of the CIA's priorities was the reorganization of the internal
front. The counterrevolutionary groups and bands were structures that already
existed and should be used...William Harvey met with several of these agents
during the early days of 1962, to personally instruct them in the tasks they
were to carry out.
These included Manuel Guillot Castellanos (AMBRONC-5), Julio
Hernandez Rojo (AMOT-99), Esteban Marquez Novo (probably AMBANTY-1, head of
what was called AMCOBRA in 1962, Felix Rodriguez (present for Che's death),
Eugenio Martinez (the Watergate burglar), Clemente Inclan Werner, Luis
Hernandez Rocha (AMHINT-53), Miguel and Ramon Orozco, Alberto del Busto, Pedro
Cameron and Manuel del Valle...Guillot, Marquez Novo, Fernandez Rocha, Cameron
and Del Valle would be infiltrated into Cuba to organize the counterrevolution,
while the rest would take charge of marine supply. Of all of them, the greatest
hope was placed in Guillot Castellanos." (pp. 145-146); ...agents Miguel
Orozco Crespo and Pedro Vera Ortiz were arrested in the Malas Aguas Farm in the
municipality of Vinales in Pinar del Rio province. After his capture, Orozco
Crespo said he had conducted 25 similar special missions against Cuba in 1962 ,
and that his chiefs in Florida were CIA officers, "Rip" Robertson and
Robert Wall. (William "Rip" Robertson was one of the Americans who
landed with the mercenary brigade of Playa Girón, on April 17, 1961 ). He also
said that he had recruited people for Alpha-66 and participated in the training
of these forces.
"In Washington, during the investigation into
the CIA's handling of the invasion, (Rip) Robertson appeared as a witness and
talked at length with Robert Kennedy. He told his Cuban commandos that Kennedy
was all right, which they took as a high compliment, since Robertson hated all
politicians...Ramon Orozco, one of his commandos, remembers what the
paramilitary operations were like: "After the Bay of Pigs...I was on one
of his teams, but he controlled many teams and many operations. And everything
was good through 1963. Our team made more than seven big war missions. Some of
them were huge: the attack on the Texaco refinery, the Russian ships in Oriente
province, a big lumber yard, the Patrice Lumumba sulfuric acid plant in Santa
Lucia, and the diesel plant in Casilda...at the end of December, 1961, (Orozco
and other commandos) sought to escape in a rubber boat where Rip and (Rolando
Martinez, one of the Watergate burglars) waited for them...Rip loaded a rubber
boat with rockets and recoilless rifles, ordered another commando, Nestor
Izquierdo, to get in with him, and then motored up and down the coast looking
for signs of his men. He was back on Martinez' ship when Orozco called him from
the shore...(Robertson's) superiors became so angry that they resorted to
ordering the Cuban boat captains not to allow him to board the intermediary
ships that took the teams to the shore...Rip Robertson and his paramilitary
cowboys (later) joined in the (Vietnam) effort and helped run the Phoenix
program."
Contributors:
Bill Simpich
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