FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

Date September 10, 1964

SYLVIA ODIO advised that she resides with her four small children in a one family house at 4223 West Lovers Lane, Dallas, Texas. She stated that she is currently employed by Knoll Associates, Incorporated, 250 DecorativeCenter, Dallas, Texas.

Miss Sylvia Marguerita Odio was born on May 4, 1937, in Havana Cuba. She speaks English fluently.

SYLVIA ODI noted that she is planning to move with her four children around the end of September to Miami Florida, where she intends to unite with her nine brothers and sisters into one family. She stated she does not have a house located as yet in Miami, but her oldes brother CESAR ODIO, presently resider at 1600 Southwest B2nd Place, Miami Florida.

Miss ODIO stated that she is from a large family consisting of ten brothers and sisters, namely, CESAR, AMADOR, JAVIER, FREDDY, JORGE, SARA, ANNIE, MARY LOU, CHRISTINA, and herself. Her Parents, AMMADOR ODIO-PADRON and SARA DEL TORO, are still in Cuba. Her father is in jail on the Isle of Pines, Cuba, for being an enemy of the Castro Government. Her Mother is now in Santiago de Cuba, Oriante, Cuba. She stated that all of her brothers and sisters are in the United States. Several of the younger brothers and sisters are now in an orphanage in Dallas. All of the brothers and sisters will be reunited in Miami, with the exception of one sister, SARA, wh recently married JACOB MHIER and who will continue to reside id Dallas.

Miss ODIO stated her father, AMADOR ODIO-PADRON, was active in the Cuban underground assisting CASTRO in the revolution against BATISTA. Her father was exiled twice previously from Cuba during BATISTA's era. After FIDEL CASTRO

on 9/9/65 in Dallas, Texas File # DL 100-10461

By Special Agent RICHARD J. BURNETT/jtf Date Dictated 9/9/64

came to power in Cuba, her father, realizing too late that CASTRO was a communist, joined the Cuban underground and fought afainst the CASTRO regime. He and his family used to hide members of the cuban underground who were fighting CASTRO.

ODIO stated that she married GUILLERNO HERRERA, a cuban, in Havana, Cuba, in 1957. In 1960, her husband, their children and she were able to leave Cuba and went to Ponce, Puerto Rico, via Miami, Florida, where they spent a few days being processed by U. S. Immigration authorities.

She and her family then resided at Ponce, Puerto Rico, until she left for Dallas, Texas, in March, 1963, to join her sister, SARA, whi was at that time a student at the University of Dallas. She left her children in Puerto Rico until she could make living arrangements for them with her in Dallas. Miss ODIO stated she had obtained a divorce from her husband in both Ponce and San Juan, Puerto Rico, in early 1963. She stated due to her marital problems, her parents being in jail in Cuba, and her brothers and sisters all scattered throughout the United States, she had developed a nervous condition but same had not effected her mentality, and she does not suffer from illusions.

Miss ODIO stated in regard to previous information furnished by her to the President's Commission regarding the visit to her apartment, around the latter part of September, 1963, of three individuals, one of whom she believes was LEE HARVEY OSWALD, she had the following information to furnish:

She advised that she has tried and tried to definitely determine the exact date these three persons came to her apartment.She atated that she had discussed this matter with her sister, ANNIE, who was in her apartment when these three men came to her residence.

She stated her sister, Annie, normally came to her apartment on Friday to baby-sit for her, as she, SYLVIA, normally went out that night of the week; however, ANNIE had come early this particular week, and both she and her sister now believe that she, ANNIE, had arrived on Thursday September 26, 1963.

Miss ODIO remembers that she moved from her apartment at 1084 Magellan Circle, Case View, Dallas, Texas, on Monday, September 30, 1963, to avoid having to pay any additional rent for October at this address. She stated she does not go out on Sundays and would have been home on Sunday, September 29, 1963. On Saturday, Miss Odio stated that she is normally so tired that she stays home all day and accordingly would have been home on Saturday, September 26, 1963.

Miss ODIO stated that she received the one telephone call from the previous night's visitor, who had identified himself to her as "LEOPOLDO", after she returned from work. Accordingly, this telephone call would have had to be on either Thursday, September 26, 1963, or Friday, September 27, 1963; however, she stated that Friday, September 27, 1963. would be her best secollection of the exact day.

She stated that the three men, one of whom is believed by her to have been OSWALD, were most probab;y at her apartment on Thursday night, September 26, 1963. She stated that if it was not Thursday night September 26, 1963, then it would have been Wednesday, September 25, 1963, but she considers the Thursday date to be the most probable date.

Miss Odio advised that the Cuban anti-CASTRO group known as the Directorate Revolutuionarrio Estudiantil, more commonly referred to as the "DRE", has never to her knowledge been an organized group in the Dallas area.

She stated that while a resident of Ponce, Peurto Rico, she had attended the organizing meeting of "JURE" held in early 1963 at Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico, a town located near Ponce, Puerto Rico. She stated that she was one of the original members of this organization.

Miss ODIO stated that if the two other individuals who visited her home on the night in question were truly members of the "JURE", then MONOLO RAY, head of this group, would positively know the identity of any such "HURE" member who uses the war name of "LEOPOLDO".

Miss ODIO stated that in her own mind she rather doubts that these two other visitors were actually members of "JURE". She stated that she bases this doubt on the fact that these two unknown men appeared to be Mexicans rather than Cubans. She stated that their skin was "olive" colored, which skin tone is common among mexicans and not among Cubans.

She stated that in there approximately fifteen minute conversation on the night in question, she cannot recall any phrases or words in Spanish used by "LEOPOLDO" or the other man which would indicate that they were not actually Cubans, but instead Mexicans. She noted that she does not recall any idiomatic phrases used by them at that time, as she did not then question their authenticity.

She stated that she would probably have never give much thought to their visit if it had not been for the subsequent assassination of President KENNEDY. When she first heard of President KENNEDY's assassination, work, on the afternoon of Nvember 22, 1963, she immediately recalled the visits of the three men to her home in late September, 1963 and thought it

very possible that they might have been responsible, as one had mentioned that night that President KENNEDY should have been killed by the Cubans.

She stated she became very nervous regarding this possibility and feared that the Cuban exies might be accused of the President's death and, upon dwelling on this thought, had fainted at work and was taken to the hospital in Irving , Texas.

Miss Odio emphatically denied that she had ever told Mrs. C. L. CONNELL that LEE HARVEY OSWALD had made talks to small groups of Cuban refugees in Dallas. She similarly denied knowledge of ever telling Mrs. CONNELL that a Cuban associate of hers had called anyone in New Orleans regarding OSWALD, in which this Cuban friend had been advised that OSWALD was a double agent attempting to iniltrate Cuban exile groups.

Miss ODIO stated that a gun seller called JOHNNY MARTIN had spoken before small groups of Cuban refugees in Dallas, and she believes she had mentioned this persons name to Mrs. CONNELL, however, she does not know what Mrs. CONNELL is talking about in regard to the alleged telephone call to New Orleans where a person was discussed who might be a double agent trying to infiltrate Cuban refugee groups.

In reply to a question as to why Mrs. CONNELL would attribute such statements to her, Miss ODIO stated that, "You would have to be a woman to understand". She stated that Mrs. CONNELL and she had been friends, but due to personal reasons, they had had a falling out. She believes that Mrs. CONNELL in attributing the aforementioned information to her was using a "double-edge knife", that is, she was trying to help in the investigation of the assassination and at the same time was trying to embarass or get her, Miss ODIO, in trouble.

In regard to the information attributed to her by Mrs. CONNELL, Miss ODIO noted that she most certainly would have mentioned these facts to the FBI agents when they first interviewed her if she had such knowledge of same, as she fully realizes the importance of such information, if true.

Miss ODIO stated that she had not previously contacted the FBI with her information about the three visitors who had come to her home in September, 1963, as she had not considered it pertinant at the time and did not want to bother the Government investigative agencies with what they might consider a "nut" complaint when they were undoubtedly so busy with other investigative matters pertaining to the assassination.

She stated that she might have eventually proceeded on her own initiative to bring this incident to the attention of the appropriate authorities, but she still considers her informatiom meareg, and even unimportant, due to the very short duration of her conversation with the three visitors to her apartment in late September, 1963.

Miss ODIO stated she still personally believes that it was LEE HARVEY OSWALD who was the third man who accompanied the two self-identified Cubans to her apartment, however, she stated that she has seen so many pictures of LEE HARVEY OSWALD since the assassination of President KENNEDY that she is getting confused on this point at this late date, and added that even though she thinks it was LEE HARVEY OSWALD, it may not have been.