</s>(REV. 4:13:60) H. S. Department of Justice (MATERIAL MUST NOT BE REMOVED FROM OR ADDED TO THIS FILE) FEDERAL BUREAU 44.7.75. DO NOT DESTROY HISTORICAL VALUE ENTIRE FILE REVIEWED NATIONAL ARCHIVES FOR HISTORYICAL DECLASSIFICATION of INVESTIGATION ALL INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREN IS UNCESSIFIED DATE/10/01/20/30/31/20 Volume Number: Bureau File Number 4/4. 3/96/ Schedules DO NOT HISTOCIAL See also Nos. NATIONAL ACHIVES Clos Bataan 2025 RELEASE UNDER E.O. 14176

Summary  
The document details FBI investigations into James Earl Ray’s escape from Missouri State Penitentiary (MSP) in April 1967 and subsequent activities linked to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination on April 4, 1968. Ray, serving a 20-year sentence for robbery, was reported to have escaped via a bread truck operated by Rens Farm. The FBI conducted interviews with inmates and guards at MSP, analyzed handwriting samples, and noted Ray’s alleged anti-Negro sentiments. A separate 1968 investigation focused on Ray’s escape from MSP on April 23, 1968, involving discrepancies in bread delivery processes and a warrant for his unlawful flight. Inmates described Ray as quiet, non-confrontational, and unlikely to commit violence, though one inmate claimed he expressed prejudice against Black individuals. A 1965 FBI report referenced alleged interactions between Ray and individuals in Columbia, South Carolina, including transactions involving a machine gun. Later records mention a plot tied to Alabama, involving a machine gun intended for use during a planned action against MLK, with financial arrangements totaling $45,000, $50,000, and $55,000. The plot included plans to position a truck carrying the weapon near a march route in Alabama.  

Key People  
- **James Earl Ray**: Suspect in MLK’s assassination; escaped from MSP in 1967 and 1968; described as non-violent but with alleged anti-Negro sentiments.  
- **Harold Swenson**: Warden of Missouri State Penitentiary (MSP).  
- **George W. Gordon**: Allegedly involved in Ray’s 1967 escape.  
- **John Ray**: Ray’s brother, visited him at MSP.  
- **Raymond B. Howe**: FBI agent who authored the 1967 report on Ray’s escape.  
- **Bernard Pachachang**: Rens Farm employee reporting bread truck details.  
- **Orlan Eugene Rose**: Inmate at MSP who described Ray’s financial habits and quiet demeanor.  
- **James Harvey Bradley (Junior Bradley)**: Inmate at Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary, linked to organized crime in Kansas City.  
- **Carlos Lee Billings**: Inmate at Springfield, Missouri’s Medical Center for Federal Prisoners; reported interactions with Ray in Columbia, South Carolina, around 1965.  
- **BARBER**: White male, described as a participant in the Alabama plot; physical details noted.  
- **BILLINGS**: Psychiatric patient at Missouri’s Medical Center for Federal Prisoners; diagnosed with schizophrenia and anti-social personality disorder.  
- **JAMES**: White male, 40 years old, linked to Mississippi and Australia via a sheep ranch.  
- **EDDIE**: White male, 38 years old, residing in Memphis, Tennessee.  

Key Locations  
- **Missouri State Penitentiary (Jefferson City, MO)**: Site of Ray’s incarceration and inmate interviews.  
- **Rens Farm**: Location of the bread truck used in Ray’s 1967 escape.  
- **St. Louis, Missouri**: Ray’s family connections and FBI field office.  
- **Kansas City, Missouri**: Link to organized crime ties via James Harvey Bradley.  
- **Columbia, South Carolina**: Site of alleged 1965 interactions between Ray and individuals involving a machine gun.  
- **Alabama**: Central to the plot involving the machine gun and planned action against MLK, including Selma-Montgomery route details.  
- **Fort Myers, Florida**: Location of BARBER’s parents and a trailer park.  
- **Mississippi**: JAMES’s residence and connection to a former address.  
- **Tennessee**: EDDIE’s residence in Memphis.  
- **Springfield, Missouri**: Medical Center for Federal Prisoners where BILLINGS received psychiatric care.  

Key Events  
- **Ray’s escape from MSP on April 23, 1967**, via a bread truck operated by Rens Farm; FBI investigation into his movements and potential associations with anti-Negro activities.  
- **FBI interviews** with inmates and guards at MSP detailing Ray’s behavior, drug use, and escape attempts.  
- **Handwriting analysis** of Ray’s prison records and correspondence, though no conclusive links were established.  
- **Arrest warrant filed on April 1, 1968**, citing Ray’s unlawful flight from MSP.  
- **Alleged framing** of Ray for a robbery charge, leading to his 20-year sentence; anonymous source claimed this influenced his personality change.  
- **Machine gun transaction** in Columbia, South Carolina, around 1965, involving Ray and individuals like Johnny Blackwell and June Taylor.  
- **Plot tied to Alabama**, including plans to deploy a truck carrying the weapon near a march route, with instructions to position it away from the line of march.  
- **Financial arrangements** involving payments of $45,000, $50,000, and $55,000 to JAMES and others; remaining funds reportedly in Greenville, South Carolina.  
- **Psychiatric evaluation** of BILLINGS at Springfield’s Medical Center for Federal Prisoners, noting diagnoses of schizophrenia and anti-social personality disorder.  

Key Organizations  
- **Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)**: Conducted investigations into Ray’s background, escape logistics, and alleged connections to the MLK assassination plot.  
- **Missouri State Penitentiary**: Institutional setting for Ray’s incarceration and inmate interviews.  
- **Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary (Kansas)**: Mentioned as a location where Ray may have had contact with other inmates.  
- **U.S. Marshals Service**: Handled the arrest warrant for Ray’s unlawful flight.  
- **Medical Center for Federal Prisoners, Springfield, Missouri**: Site of BILLINGS’s psychiatric care and treatment.  
- **Organized Italian criminal element in Kansas City**: Linked to James Harvey Bradley’s fencing operations.

MLK Declassified Files

44-sl-775_742351_05-01-part_1_of_6.pdf

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