</s>4/4-637 Volume Number CLOSIFICATION NO. Sertals 129-932 5 of BUREAU L BUREAU FBI - CENTRAL RECORDS CENTER RH-RICHMOND RH-0044-0017B: RH Class / Case # Sub Vol. Serial # INVESTIGATION 00445 657 3 129 232 Barees File Number 9/10/907712 RRP002HBIX See date No. 2025 RELEASE UNDER E.O. 14176

Summary  
The documents detail FBI investigations into James Earl Ray’s movements and potential connections to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., including sightings, license plate tracking, and criminal history. A female caller reported observing Ray driving a 1956 faded green Plymouth with Virginia license plate A3-6-6 (issued to Paul Darden Golden) near Aberdeen, Maryland, on April 20, 1968. The FBI sought confirmation of the car’s ownership and flagged Ray as a suspect in unsolved bank robberies and burglaries. Discrepancies in Ray’s identity were noted, including references to alias "Galt" and conflicting accounts of his activities in Birmingham, Alabama, involving alleged ties to the Department of Public Safety and interactions with MLK. Records also mention Charles William Moates, tracked via airline flight records from Cincinnati to Clarksburg, West Virginia, with physical descriptions including dark hair, medium build, and a forehead scar. The FBI compiled laundry-related Thermo-Seal markings ("20R-3" or "W-20R-3") found on bed sheets in a 1966 Mustang linked to Eric Starvo Galt, analyzed by the Textile Marking Machine Company. Additional records reference Ray’s criminal history, including multiple arrests for burglary, forgery, and robbery, and his 1967 prison escape. Investigations also explored potential connections between Virginia laundries and Thermo-Seal codes, with some SN numbers possibly indicating SSNs.  

Key People  
- James Earl Ray (suspect in MLK assassination; aliases: James McBride, James Walton, W.C., Herron, James O’Conner, Jim)  
- Eric Starvo Galt (linked to 1966 Mustang; alias Harvey Lowyer, John Wilker)  
- Paul Darden Golden (license plate owner for Ray’s car)  
- Charles William Moates (suspect with physical description and flight records)  
- William H. Smith (Charlotteville, Virginia; examined for ties to Ray)  
- Grace Smith (wife of William H. Smith)  
- Henry Sheffield (Martinsville, Virginia; reported sighting resembling Ray)  
- Raymond Curtis (convict; mentioned bounty on Ray)  
- Norman Perry (Delta Airlines passenger on flight from Atlanta to London)  

Key Locations  
- Aberdeen, Maryland (Ray’s alleged sighting)  
- Birmingham, Alabama (linked to Ray’s activities and MLK connections)  
- Virginia Beach, Virginia (license plate issuance location)  
- Cincinnati, Ohio (origin of Moates’ flight)  
- Clarksburg, West Virginia (destination of Moates’ flight)  
- Atlanta, Georgia (location of 1966 Mustang; Ray’s last known presence)  
- Richmond, Virginia (FBI headquarters for investigation)  
- Memphis, Tennessee (mentioned in FBI correspondence)  
- Virginia (list of laundries under investigation)  

Key Events  
- April 20, 1968: Female caller reports sighting of Ray driving a Plymouth near Aberdeen, Maryland.  
- April 23, 1968: FBI confirms license plate details and initiates checks on Ray’s car ownership.  
- Investigation into Thermo-Seal markings found on laundry items in a 1966 Mustang linked to Eric Starvo Galt.  
- Compilation of Virginia laundries for potential connection to Thermo-Seal codes.  
- Examination of William H. Smith’s employment history and physical description matching Ray.  
- Henry Sheffield’s sighting of a man resembling Ray in Martinsville, Virginia, on 4/17/68.  
- Raymond Curtis’ claims about a bounty on Ray for MLK’s assassination and details of Ray’s alleged flight to London via Delta Airlines.  
- FBI request for information on Norman Perry’s Delta Airlines flight (flight #106) from Atlanta to London.  

Key Organizations  
- Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)  
- Lake Central Airlines (tracked Charles William Moates’ flight)  
- Textile Marking Machine Company (analyzed Thermo-Seal markings)  
- Van Lear Construction Co. (linked to William H. Smith’s employment)  
- Taylor-Hulse Dry Cleaning and Laundry (Augusta, Georgia)  
- Bonne Bright Laundary (Arlington, Virginia)  
- Crescent Laundary (Hattiesburg, Mississippi)  
- Keesler Air Force Base Laundy (Biloxi, Mississippi)  
- Pan American Airlines (requested records for Norman Perry’s flight)

MLK Declassified Files

44-rh-657_sec_003_ser_129-232-part_1_of_5.pdf

Document Summary

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