</s>FBI NEW HAVEN FBI MEMPHIS 534PM URGENT 4/7/68 CAF TO DIRECTOR, NEW HAYEN, CHARLOTTE, AND BIRMINGHAM FROM MEMPHI'S (44-1987) 1P MURKIN - CR- RE KANSAS CITY TEL APRIL SEVEN, SIXTY EIGHT, SIK FORTY FIVE AM. KANSAS CITL REQUESTED THAT NEW HAWEN FURNISH MEMPH IS COMPLETE SUMMARY CONCERNING ONE VINCENT DE PALMA. REQUEST NEW HAVEN, RATHER THAN FINISH SUMMY RE DE PALMA. ESTABLISH DE PALMS'S WHEREABOUTS ON. MARCH TWENTY NINE AND THIRTY, AND APRIL FOUR. NINETEEN Sixty EIGHT. IN EVENT DE PALM'S WHEREABOUSTS CAN BE ESTABLISHED ON THOSE THREE DAYS, IT WOULD NOT APPEAR THAT HE COULD BE OF INTEREST IN CONNECTION WITH CAPTIONED CASE: MARCH WENTY AND THIRTTY ARE DATES OF INTIREST TO BIRMINGHAM SINCE WEAPON IN INSTANT CASE BOUGHT IN BIRMINHAM. APRIL FOUR OF INTERENT BECAUSE THIS DATE THAT MURDER TOOK PLACE IN MEMPHISH S. NEW HAVEM ADVISE WHEN SUFFICEIENT INVESTIGATION HAS BEEN CONDUCTED TO ESTABLIISH WHEREABOUTS OF DE PALMO ON PERTINENT DAYS. P- 157-18-21 END RJC SEARCHED INDEXED SERIALIZED: FILED FBI NEW HAVEN APR7 1968 100-19151 FBI-NEW HAYENT ASPC advised 4/16/68 SAT Buth advised 4 /16/58m 2013 RELEASE UNDER E.C. 14/16

Summary:  
The documents detail FBI investigations into the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., who was killed on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. The Bureau identified a rifle found near the crime scene as having been purchased by an individual using the name Harvey Loweyer or Lowyer, described as a white male, approximately 36 years old, 5 feet 8 inches tall, 150-160 pounds, with black or dark brown hair. The FBI instructed all offices to check records for individuals bearing these names and to prioritize reviewing bombing suspects.  

The documents also reference the Minutemen, a group planning to incite civil strife by targeting prominent Black leaders, including King, Rap Brown, and Stokely Carmichael. The Minutemen were alleged to have plotted to bomb the FBI office in New Haven, Connecticut, to cause confusion rather than harm people. They were further accused of planning to kidnap and assassinate New York Attorney General Louis Lewandowski and others. In 1966, 19 members of the group were arrested for conspiracy to commit arson and illegal firearm possession, with seized weapons including rifles, handguns, bazookas, mortars, and an anti-tank gun.  

Key People:  
- Martin Luther King Jr. (assassinated on April 4, 1968)  
- Harvey Loweyer/Lowyer (suspected rifle purchaser)  
- Robert B. DePugh (identified as National Coordinator of the Minutemen)  
- Louis Lewandowski (New York Attorney General targeted by Minutemen)  
- Rap Brown and Stokely Carmichael (Black leaders planned for assassination by Minutemen)  

Key Locations:  
- Memphis, Tennessee (site of King’s assassination)  
- New Haven, Connecticut (planned FBI office bombing)  
- Kansas City, Missouri (Minutemen headquarters and arrests)  
- Norborne, Missouri (Minutemen headquarters)  

Key Events:  
- April 4, 1968: Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in Memphis.  
- FBI investigation into the rifle linked to the assassination.  
- Minutemen planning to assassinate Black leaders and bomb FBI offices.  
- 1966 arrests of 19 Minutemen members for firearm possession and conspiracy.  
- Minutemen’s alleged plan to kidnap and assassinate Louis Lewandowski.  

Key Organizations:  
- Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – led the investigation into King’s assassination and Minutemen activities.  
- Minutemen – a group planning civil strife, targeting Black leaders, and engaging in armed resistance.  
- Patriotic Party – associated with Minutemen, organized conventions in Kansas City, Missouri.

MLK Declassified Files

157-nh-818_626213_19-02-part_2_of_3.pdf

Document Summary

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