</s>RECYO - CITY RIGHTS FBI APR 30 4 07 PM bb APR. 30 4 03 PM 80 RECD- ROSEN FOB. LETELABE 2019 RELEASE UNDERFLO. 1478

Summary  
The documents detail FBI investigative efforts related to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., encompassing telephone surveillance, suspect monitoring, forensic analysis, and cross-jurisdictional coordination. Key activities include requests to examine phone records for John Larry Ray (MLK’s brother) and Carol Ann Pepper (his sister), operators of the Grapevine Tavern in St. Louis, with emphasis on calls made during MLK’s travel periods. Surveillance focused on toll calls from public coin phones along routes frequented by suspects like Ray, particularly in Texas locations such as Marathon, San Antonio, Houston, and Dallas. The FBI also sought to trace photographs of an unidentified individual linked to the Soviet Embassy in Mexico City. Forensic investigations included latent fingerprint analysis, handwriting comparisons, and tracking Thermo-Seal laundry tapes used in mail handling, with requests for comparison of specimens from April 26–30, 1968. An anonymous letter alleging James Earl Ray’s association with Jerrie Durval was submitted for forensic review, referencing her potential hospital location in Milwaukee. Corrupted or illegible sections of the documents include repeated strings of letters and numbers, possibly encoded data or typographical errors.  

Key People  
- John Larry Ray (brother of MLK, operated Grapevine Tavern)  
- Carol Ann Pepper (sister of MLK, co-owner of Grapevine Tavern)  
- James Earl Ray (suspected assassin)  
- Jerrie Durval (alleged girlfriend of James Earl Ray)  
- James E. Smith (associated with laundry tape samples)  
- Special Agents in Charge (SAC): Memphis, Omaha, Richmond, Baltimore  
- C. C. Bishop (approver/authorizing official)  
- Edgar Franklin Johnston (suspect mentioned in a separate case)  
- Gerald Lee Richards (subject of an FBI inquiry involving CIA contact)  

Key Locations  
- St. Louis, Missouri (Grapevine Tavern)  
- Memphis, Tennessee  
- Birmingham, Alabama  
- Texas (Marathon, San Antonio, Houston, Dallas)  
- Mexico City (Soviet Embassy, photographs of unidentified individual)  
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin (County General Hospital)  
- Lynchburg, Virginia (Smith’s One Hour Cleaners)  
- Montreal, Canada (postal and banking institutions)  
- Ottawa, Canada (Foreign Liaison Unit)  

Key Events  
- FBI requests to check telephone records for Ray, Pepper, and Grapevine Tavern lines  
- Surveillance of toll calls made by suspects along MLK’s travel routes  
- Coordination with regional FBI offices (e.g., Memphis, Birmingham) for threat tracking  
- Investigation into photographs of an unidentified American at the Soviet Embassy in Mexico City  
- "ARMED AND DANGEROUS" alerts issued for ongoing monitoring  
- Request to compare Thermo-Seal laundry tapes with known specimens (April 26–30, 1968)  
- Submission of anonymous letter alleging James Earl Ray’s association with Jerrie Durval for latent fingerprint and handwriting analysis  
- Coordination with Canadian postal authorities for distribution of wanted flyers  
- Reference to FBI Laboratory comparisons and code number tracking in laundry tape shipments  

Key Organizations  
- Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)  
- U.S. Department of Justice  
- FBI Laboratory  
- Western States Telephone Company (involved in toll call tracking)  
- Special Agents in Charge (SAC) offices: Memphis, Omaha, Richmond, Baltimore  
- Foreign Liaison Unit (Ottawa)  
- Textile Marking machines (associated with Thermo-Seal tapes)

MLK Declassified Files

44-hq-38861_hs1-233652821_08-01-part_5_of_8.pdf

Document Summary

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