Mitchell Werbell III
Encyclopedia
Mitchell Livingston WerBell III, (1918–1983), was an OSS
operative, Soldier of Fortune
, Paramilitary trainer, firearms engineer, and arms dealer.
(OSS) and served in China, Burma, and French Indochina. As a guerrilla operative during World War II, he carried out a secret mission for the OSS under the command of Paul Helliwell in China with E. Howard Hunt
, Lucien Conein
, John K. Singlaub
and Ray Cline. They were paid with five-pound sacks of opium. Following World War II, WerBell briefly worked as the director of advertising and public relations for Rich's, a department store in Atlanta, Georgia; he left after a year to open his own PR firm.
to design silencers for the M-16 rifle. The name was an acronym for "Studies In the Operational Negation of Insurgents and Counter-Subversion". Through SIONICS he developed a low cost, efficient silencer for machine guns.
In 1967 he partnered with Gordon B. Ingram
inventor of the MAC-10
submachine gun. They added WerBell's silencer to Ingram's machinegun and attempted to market it to the U.S. military as "Whispering Death" for use in the Vietnam War
. WerBell is credited with over 25 different silencer designs and the "WerBell Relief Valve, a mechanism designed for machinegun suppressors. WerBell's modular designs and use of exotic materials such as titanium in sound suppressors have an impact on their design to the present day.
SIONICS was absorbed by the company MAC (Military Armament Corporation) and later called Cobray where WerBell developed a training center for counterterrorism in the 1970s. The courses lasted 11 weeks and students included members of the military, high-risk executives, CIA agents, and private individuals. WerBell concurrently ran Defense Systems International, an arms brokerage firm.
In 1966 WerBell helped plan an invasion of Haiti by Cuban and Haitian exiles against "Papa Doc" François Duvalier
called Project Nassau (but internally referred to as Operation Istanbul). The mission, which (according to Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) and the Special Subcommittee on Investigations of the House Commerce Committee) was financially subsidized, and to be filmed by CBS news
, was aborted when the participants were arrested by the FBI. WerBell was released without being charged.
In 1972 WerBell was approached by the Abaco Independence Movement (AIM) from the Abaco Islands
, a region of the Bahamas, who were worried about the direction the Bahamas were taking and were considering independence or to remain a separate Commonwealth nation under the Crown in case of the Bahamas gaining independence (which they did in 1973). The AIM collapsed into internal bickering before a coup by Werbell could be carried out.
In 1973 WerBell was asked to assist with a coup d'état
against Omar Torrijos
of Panama, according to CIA documents released in 1993. WerBell sought clearance from the CIA which denied getting involved in coups. The plan was not implemented, though Torrijos died in a plane crash five years later.
In a 1979 20/20 interview WerBell claimed that Coca-Cola had hired him for $1 million to take care of kidnapping threats against its Argentine executives during an urban terrorist wave in 1973. Coca-Cola later denied the claim.
Later in life WerBell claimed he was a retired Lieutenant General in the Royal Free Afghan Army or sometimes an Afghan Defense Minister after supplying Afghanistan with large weapons contracts and training. WerBell claimed he was given the billet of Major General in the US Army to allow him to travel freely in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War to demonstrate and sell his silenced submachineguns and sound suppressors. This has been confirmed by Major General John Singlaub and Lt Col. William Mozey.
on November 22, 1963 when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated; spearheading the 1965 Invasion of the Dominican Republic
; being tried and acquitted on charges of conspiracy to marijuana smuggling reportedly in association with Gerry Patrick Hemming
and with the acquiescence of Lucien Conein
; and providing physical security services and training for Lyndon LaRouche
security forces.
In 1988, Sheriff Sherman Block
of Los Angeles
announced that Hustler publisher Larry Flynt
wrote WerBell a $1 million dollar check in 1983 to kill Hugh Hefner
, Bob Guccione
, Walter Annenberg
, and Frank Sinatra
. Los Angeles television station KNBC
displayed a photocopy of the check. WerBell died in Los Angeles a month after receiving the check.
murder case of Roy Radin, Arthur Michael Pascal, then owner of a Beverly Hills security firm, testified that prosecution witness William Rider, Flynt's former brother in law and private security agent, "told him of poisoning soldier of fortune Mitchell WerBell III in 1983 in order to take over WerBell's counterterrorist school based in Atlanta. Pascal said that Rider and... Flynt, poured four to six ounces of a digoxin
, a powerful heart relaxant, into WerBell's drink during a cocktail party at Flynt's Los Angeles mansion. WerBell, 65, a security consultant for Flynt... died of a heart attack at UCLA Medical Center a few days later." Flynt and his attorney, Alan Isaacman
, were in Bangkok and "unavailable for comment, according to a Hustler magazine spokeswoman". "Isaacman characterized an earlier Rider claim of a Flynt-paid murder contract as 'fantasy'." Rider passed a polygraph test regarding "possible involvement in homicides," according to courtroom testimony. Pascal was later arraigned on a murder charge due to tapes Rider provided investigators.
Office of Strategic Services
The Office of Strategic Services was a United States intelligence agency formed during World War II. It was the wartime intelligence agency, and it was a predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency...
operative, Soldier of Fortune
Soldier of Fortune
Soldier of Fortune is another term for an adventurer or mercenary. It may also refer to:- Film :* Soldier of Fortune , a 1955 film starring Clark Gable, Susan Hayward, and Michael Rennie...
, Paramilitary trainer, firearms engineer, and arms dealer.
Early life and OSS service
WerBell was born in Philadelphia, the son of a Czarist cavalry officer in the Imperial Army of Russia. In 1942 WerBell joined the Office of Strategic ServicesOffice of Strategic Services
The Office of Strategic Services was a United States intelligence agency formed during World War II. It was the wartime intelligence agency, and it was a predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency...
(OSS) and served in China, Burma, and French Indochina. As a guerrilla operative during World War II, he carried out a secret mission for the OSS under the command of Paul Helliwell in China with E. Howard Hunt
E. Howard Hunt
Everette Howard Hunt, Jr. was an American intelligence officer and writer. Hunt served for many years as a CIA officer. Hunt, with G...
, Lucien Conein
Lucien Conein
Lt. Col. Lucien Emile Conein was a noted U.S. Army officer and Office of Strategic Services / Central Intelligence Agency operative...
, John K. Singlaub
John K. Singlaub
John Kirk Singlaub is a highly-decorated former OSS officer and a retired Major General in the United States Army, and a founding member of the Central Intelligence Agency . He was a joint founder, with Congressman Larry McDonald, of the Western Goals Foundation, a conservative private...
and Ray Cline. They were paid with five-pound sacks of opium. Following World War II, WerBell briefly worked as the director of advertising and public relations for Rich's, a department store in Atlanta, Georgia; he left after a year to open his own PR firm.
SIONICS
After WerBell closed his PR Firm to design silencers for firearms, he incorporated SIONICSSIONICS
SIONICS was an American company producing firearm suppressors . It was founded in the 1960s by Mitchell WerBell, a former OSS and CIA officer....
to design silencers for the M-16 rifle. The name was an acronym for "Studies In the Operational Negation of Insurgents and Counter-Subversion". Through SIONICS he developed a low cost, efficient silencer for machine guns.
In 1967 he partnered with Gordon B. Ingram
Gordon B. Ingram
Gordon B. Ingram was an American inventor and entrepreneur. He was the founder of Military Armaments Company, the creator of the MAC-10 and MAC-11 machine pistols, and is widely credited with popularizing the submachine gun....
inventor of the MAC-10
MAC-10
The MAC-10 is a highly compact, blowback operated machine pistol developed by Gordon B. Ingram in 1964.-Design:The M-10 was built predominantly from steel stampings...
submachine gun. They added WerBell's silencer to Ingram's machinegun and attempted to market it to the U.S. military as "Whispering Death" for use in the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. WerBell is credited with over 25 different silencer designs and the "WerBell Relief Valve, a mechanism designed for machinegun suppressors. WerBell's modular designs and use of exotic materials such as titanium in sound suppressors have an impact on their design to the present day.
SIONICS was absorbed by the company MAC (Military Armament Corporation) and later called Cobray where WerBell developed a training center for counterterrorism in the 1970s. The courses lasted 11 weeks and students included members of the military, high-risk executives, CIA agents, and private individuals. WerBell concurrently ran Defense Systems International, an arms brokerage firm.
Mercenary activities
In the 1950s, WerBell served as a security advisor to Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo and to the Batista regime in CubaIn 1966 WerBell helped plan an invasion of Haiti by Cuban and Haitian exiles against "Papa Doc" François Duvalier
François Duvalier
François Duvalier was the President of Haiti from 1957 until his death in 1971. Duvalier first won acclaim in fighting diseases, earning him the nickname "Papa Doc" . He opposed a military coup d'état in 1950, and was elected President in 1957 on a populist and black nationalist platform...
called Project Nassau (but internally referred to as Operation Istanbul). The mission, which (according to Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
(FCC) and the Special Subcommittee on Investigations of the House Commerce Committee) was financially subsidized, and to be filmed by CBS news
CBS News
CBS News is the news division of American television and radio network CBS. The current chairman is Jeff Fager who is also the executive producer of 60 Minutes, while the current president of CBS News is David Rhodes. CBS News' flagship program is the CBS Evening News, hosted by the network's main...
, was aborted when the participants were arrested by the FBI. WerBell was released without being charged.
In 1972 WerBell was approached by the Abaco Independence Movement (AIM) from the Abaco Islands
Abaco Islands
The Abaco Islands lie in the northern Bahamas and comprise the main islands of Great Abaco and Little Abaco, together with the smaller Wood Cay, Elbow Cay, Lubbers Quarters Cay, Green Turtle Cay, Great Guana Cay, Castaway Cay, Man-o-War Cay, Stranger's Cay, Umbrella Cay, Walker's Cay, Little Grand...
, a region of the Bahamas, who were worried about the direction the Bahamas were taking and were considering independence or to remain a separate Commonwealth nation under the Crown in case of the Bahamas gaining independence (which they did in 1973). The AIM collapsed into internal bickering before a coup by Werbell could be carried out.
In 1973 WerBell was asked to assist with a coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
against Omar Torrijos
Omar Torrijos
Omar Efraín Torrijos Herrera was the Commander of the Panamanian and National Guard and the de facto leader of Panama from 1968 to 1981...
of Panama, according to CIA documents released in 1993. WerBell sought clearance from the CIA which denied getting involved in coups. The plan was not implemented, though Torrijos died in a plane crash five years later.
In a 1979 20/20 interview WerBell claimed that Coca-Cola had hired him for $1 million to take care of kidnapping threats against its Argentine executives during an urban terrorist wave in 1973. Coca-Cola later denied the claim.
Later in life WerBell claimed he was a retired Lieutenant General in the Royal Free Afghan Army or sometimes an Afghan Defense Minister after supplying Afghanistan with large weapons contracts and training. WerBell claimed he was given the billet of Major General in the US Army to allow him to travel freely in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War to demonstrate and sell his silenced submachineguns and sound suppressors. This has been confirmed by Major General John Singlaub and Lt Col. William Mozey.
Other exploits
Other exploits include an alleged, but unsubstantiated presence at Dealey PlazaDealey Plaza
Dealey Plaza , in the historic West End district of downtown Dallas, Texas , is the location of the assassination of John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963...
on November 22, 1963 when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated; spearheading the 1965 Invasion of the Dominican Republic
Operation Power Pack
The second United States occupation of the Dominican Republic began when the United States Marines Corps entered Santo Domingo on April 28, 1965. They were later joined by most of the United States Army's 82nd Airborne Division and its parent XVIIIth Airborne Corps...
; being tried and acquitted on charges of conspiracy to marijuana smuggling reportedly in association with Gerry Patrick Hemming
Gerry Patrick Hemming
Gerald Patrick "Gerry" Hemming, Jr. was a former U.S. Marine, mercenary and Central Intelligence Agency operative associated with attacks against on Cuba in the 1960s.-Early background:One of eleven children, Hemming born in Los Angeles, California on March 1, 1937...
and with the acquiescence of Lucien Conein
Lucien Conein
Lt. Col. Lucien Emile Conein was a noted U.S. Army officer and Office of Strategic Services / Central Intelligence Agency operative...
; and providing physical security services and training for Lyndon LaRouche
Lyndon LaRouche
Lyndon Hermyle LaRouche, Jr. is an American political activist and founder of a network of political committees, parties, and publications known collectively as the LaRouche movement...
security forces.
In 1988, Sheriff Sherman Block
Sherman Block
Sherman Block was the 29th Sheriff of Los Angeles County, California from January 1982 until his death.He was preceded by Peter Pitchess and succeeded by Lee Baca....
of Los Angeles
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states...
announced that Hustler publisher Larry Flynt
Larry Flynt
Larry Claxton Flynt, Jr. is an American publisher and the president of Larry Flynt Publications . In 2003, Arena magazine listed him as the number one on the "50 Powerful People in Porn" list....
wrote WerBell a $1 million dollar check in 1983 to kill Hugh Hefner
Hugh Hefner
Hugh Marston "Hef" Hefner is an American magazine publisher, founder and Chief Creative Officer of Playboy Enterprises.-Early life:...
, Bob Guccione
Bob Guccione
Bob Guccione was the founder and publisher of the adult magazine Penthouse. He resigned from his publisher position in November 2003.-Early life:...
, Walter Annenberg
Walter Annenberg
Walter Hubert Annenberg was an American publisher, philanthropist, and diplomat.-Early life:Walter Annenberg was born to a Jewish family in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on March 13, 1908. He was the son of Sarah and Moses "Moe" Annenberg, who published The Daily Racing Form and purchased The Philadelphia...
, and Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
. Los Angeles television station KNBC
KNBC
KNBC, channel 4, is an owned-and-operated television station of the NBC Television Network, licensed to Los Angeles, California, USA. KNBC's studios and offices are located within the NBC Studios complex in Burbank, California, and its transmitter is located on Mount Wilson...
displayed a photocopy of the check. WerBell died in Los Angeles a month after receiving the check.
Death and courtroom poisoning claim
In the 1989 Cotton ClubThe Cotton Club (film)
The Cotton Club is a 1984 crime-drama, centered on a famed Harlem jazz club of the 1930s, the Cotton Club.The movie was co-written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, choreographed by Henry LeTang, and starred Richard Gere, Diane Lane, and Gregory Hines...
murder case of Roy Radin, Arthur Michael Pascal, then owner of a Beverly Hills security firm, testified that prosecution witness William Rider, Flynt's former brother in law and private security agent, "told him of poisoning soldier of fortune Mitchell WerBell III in 1983 in order to take over WerBell's counterterrorist school based in Atlanta. Pascal said that Rider and... Flynt, poured four to six ounces of a digoxin
Digoxin
Digoxin INN , also known as digitalis, is a purified cardiac glycoside and extracted from the foxglove plant, Digitalis lanata. Its corresponding aglycone is digoxigenin, and its acetyl derivative is acetyldigoxin...
, a powerful heart relaxant, into WerBell's drink during a cocktail party at Flynt's Los Angeles mansion. WerBell, 65, a security consultant for Flynt... died of a heart attack at UCLA Medical Center a few days later." Flynt and his attorney, Alan Isaacman
Alan Isaacman
Alan L. Isaacman is an American lawyer primarily famous for serving as attorney for publisher Larry Flynt. His past clients also include Geraldo Rivera, Kathy Griffin, Rock Hudson and CBS, Inc. He lives in Beverly Hills with his wife and triplets.-Educational History:Isaacman went to Pennsylvania...
, were in Bangkok and "unavailable for comment, according to a Hustler magazine spokeswoman". "Isaacman characterized an earlier Rider claim of a Flynt-paid murder contract as 'fantasy'." Rider passed a polygraph test regarding "possible involvement in homicides," according to courtroom testimony. Pascal was later arraigned on a murder charge due to tapes Rider provided investigators.
External links
- Werbell interview for Saga Magazine, 1981
- Spartacus Biography - Mitchel Werbell
- Cuban Exiles - Project Nassau documents
- Related newspaper article from MIT archives: Special Subcommittee on Investigations of the House Commerce Committee
- American Mercenaries: The True Story of Mitchell L. WerBell III - Part 1