</s>PAGE TWO SUSPECT MALE WHITE. AGE TWENTY SIX TO FORTY YEARS. HEIGHT FIVE FT. EIGHT TO FIVE FT ., ELEVEN INCHES. ONE HUNDRED FIFTY TO ONE HUNDRER SEVENTY LBS. DARK BROWN OR SANDY HAIR COMBED STRAIGHT BACK . EYES BLUE OR GREEN! MEDIUM BUILD! COMPLEXION AVERAGE. SMOOTH. GENERAL PHYSICAL APPEARANCE. NEAT. POSSIBILITY EXISTS SUSPICT IS NON-SMOKER. INDICATIONS WERE THAT SUSSPECT RENTED ROOM BETWEEN THREE AND THREE THIRTY PM, NO APRIL FOUR. LAST, AND DEPARTED ROAM SHORTLY AFTER SIX PM. NO MATCHES OR CIGARETTES FOUND DURING THAT PERIOD. WHICH SUGGESTIS SUSSPEC MAY BE NON-SMOKER. RESULTS OF INVESTIGATION MUST BE PROMPTLY FURNISHED BUREAU, MEMPHIS AND BIRMINGHAM. P. END PX ... GRC FBI PHENIX DN ... DLS FBI DENVER AQ ... TMO FBI ALBUQUEE TU CLR 60W 2025 RELEASE UNDER E.O. 14176

Summary  
The documents detail an FBI investigation into potential threats against Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) in 1968, focusing on suspect descriptions, flight records, and witness accounts. A white male suspect aged 26–40, described as non-smoker, was identified through rental records in Memphis and Birmingham. Barbara Gallegos, a Colorado resident, reported encountering a man matching an artist sketch of the assassin during a flight from Denver to Colorado Springs on April 5, 1968. The suspect, named Richard Kents, had reservations for flights involving TWA and Frontier Airlines, traveling from Nashville, Tennessee, to Colorado Springs. Vincent De Palma, a bus driver in Newport, Rhode Island, provided information about the Minutemen, a group allegedly planning to assassinate MLK, Rap Brown, Stokely Carmichael, prosecutors, and investigators. De Palma also described a potential assassin named Mike, from Texas, with specific physical traits and ties to a milk truck. The FBI sought to verify these claims, reviewing files and contacting offices in Memphis, Kansas City, Little Rock, New Haven, and Salt Lake City. No confirmed information on the suspect was found in Denver files. The investigation also referenced Minutemen hideouts, including a farm near Fayetteville, Arkansas, where De Palma last saw Robert De Pugh on December 23, 1967, and an alleged hideout in a Montana national forest. The FBI instructed Boston to recontact De Palma for further details on the Montana hideout.  

Key People  
- Richard Kents (suspect identified by Barbara Gallegos)  
- Vincent De Palma (bus driver who provided details about Minutemen activities)  
- Robert De Pugh (alleged associate of Minutemen, last seen in Fayetteville, Arkansas)  
- Mike LNU (suspected assassin, described physically and linked to a milk truck)  
- Karl E. Terlaus (Denver-based FBI investigator)  
- Joan Worley (paramour of Walter Payson, allegedly involved with Minutemen)  
- Walter Payson (armed individual linked to Minutemen)  

Key Locations  
- Memphis, Tennessee (investigation hub)  
- Birmingham, Alabama (investigation hub)  
- Denver, Colorado (flight records and witness accounts)  
- Nashville, Tennessee (suspect travel origin)  
- Colorado Springs, Colorado (suspect destination)  
- Fayetteville, Arkansas (Minutemen hideout referenced)  
- Salt Lake City, Utah (Topaz Mining Co., where LNU’s truck was last seen)  
- Montana (alleged national forest hideout)  

Key Events  
- April 4–5, 1968: Suspect’s rental records and flight movements tracked by FBI.  
- April 7, 1968: Barbara Gallegos reported encountering a man matching the assassin’s sketch during a Denver-to-Colorado Springs flight.  
- April 3–7, 1968: Flight reservations for Richard Kents involving TWA and Frontier Airlines.  
- Minutemen planning to assassinate MLK, Rap Brown, Stokely Carmichael, prosecutors, and investigators (as per Vincent De Palma’s testimony).  
- FBI investigation into Minutemen plot against MLK based on De Palma’s claims.  
- Verification of De Palma’s information across multiple field offices.  
- Search for Mike LNU and confirmation of alleged hideouts.  
- Instructions to recontact De Palma for further details on the Montana hideout.  

Key Organizations  
- Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – Memphis, Denver, Boston offices involved in the investigation.  
- Frontier Airlines – Provided flight records for suspect movements.  
- TWA (Trans World Airlines) – Reservations linked to Richard Kents’ travel itinerary.  
- Minutemen – Alleged radical group planning assassinations and civil strife.  
- Local law enforcement offices in Memphis, Kansas City, Little Rock, New Haven, and Salt Lake City.

MLK Declassified Files

157-dn-203_617806_42-01-part_2_of_5.pdf

Document Summary

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