The Mystery of Dirk Thomas Kunert

In September 1963, the University of Dallas welcomed a foreign exchange student from West Germany - Dirk Thomas Kunert.

The 22 year old soon fell in with the student supporters of General Walker. It is hard to imagine that he didn't also hang out with those fun guys from CUSA - though I have no evidence for that.

Kunert's name came up after the assassination as possibly having something to do with the German news story about Oswald being the person who took a potshot at Walker.

In fact, it is highly likely that the story was ghosted by Kunert and sent to the West German paper to be published under the name of a staff writer. 

Why?

Kunert had allegedly been studying law and history in West Germany - presumably then, also in Dallas.

It comes down to libel laws and/or putting themselves at arms distance from a false story, giving it more gravitas. The story published in West Germany was republished as a lift out supplement by the Dallas Morning News. Publishing it via this convoluted route shielded them from being sued for libel and would not raise as many questions regarding its truthfulness.

But was Kunert really a West German exchange student?

The FBI was unable to determine that he had returned to West Germany after the assassination - which was what they were told was the case. He was certainly back at the University of Dallas in 1965, if indeed he had ever left. 

Nineteen years ago, Peter Fokes posted a snippet from Mallon's book on Ruth at McAdams' google group.

Ruth Paine gave her first testimony in the matter of John F. Kennedy's assassination on December 5, 1963, in Irving, to Mr. Dirk Kunert of the Senate Subcommittee on Internal Security. Soon abandoned for the Warren Commission's more wide-ranging investigation, the SIS probe has long been forgotten by almost everyone, including Ruth. But the transcript made on December 5 shows her exceptionally eager to cooperate, as she pronounces the FBI agents she's been seeing......"

The SSIS did indeed begin to investigate the assassination but it looks like they did not get much further than this interview before it got closed down.

Ruth has confirmed the interview did take place, though she says she does not recall details.

And indeed, Mallon was contacted for his source material by another member of McAdams group and provided the following:

AGENCY INFORMATION
AGENCY : SISS
RECORD NUMBER : 204-10001-10006
RECORDS SERIES : EXECUTIVE SESSION TRANSCRIPTS
AGENCY FILE NUMBER : DECEMBER 5, 1963

DOCUMENT INFORMATION
ORIGINATOR : SISS
FROM : PAINE, RUTH HYDE
TO : [No To]
TITLE : [No Title]
DATE : 12/05/1963
PAGES : 27
DOCUMENT TYPE : TRANSCRIPT
SUBJECTS : PAINE, RUTH HYDE; OSWALD, LEE, POST-RUSSIAN
PERIOD,
RESIDENCES; OSWALD, LEE, POST-RUSSIAN PERIOD,
ASSOCIATES AND RELATIVES; OSWALD, MARINA,
POST-RUSSINA
PERIOD; OSWALD, MARINA, ASSOCIATES AND RELATIVES
CLASSIFICATION : UNCLASSIFIED
RESTRICTIONS : OPEN IN FULL
CURRENT STATUS : OPEN
DATE OF LAST REVIEW : 11/04/1997
COMMENTS : Box 1

This 27-page document would be gold. It would appear that Mallon obtained it since this document summary does not actually name Kunert. 

Peter makes the point that the SSIS was unlikely to send an investigator to Irving for a single interview, so he assumed he probably had others to interview. However,  the SSIS was working closely with various agencies who used undercover operatives in colleges and universities. Was this the actual connection between Kunert and the SSIS?  It did actually investigate right wing groups as well as those on the left. One target on the right was the John Birch Society, 

In any event, Kunert went on to author several books on geopolitics - at least some for some pretty spooky publishers in Europe. He was also suspected of meeting up with Oswald Mosley in England at some stage. Given the longevity of his support for extreme right causes (apartheid seems to have been one), it is hard to really get a handle on where he stood (assuming he was an infiltrator).  But it is possible he was reporting on those with similar beliefs to his own. It's a living, after all. And a pretty lucrative one given what has been found in another area of research dealing with infiltrators. 

I thought long and hard about posting this, since it would be something that would interest the resident Nazi Hunters on other forums to be somehow folded into their warped realities. 

But I can't let that determine what I share. 
 
All I can do is try and find the proper context when/if I get to finishing my book/s.

Here’s the 12/5 Paine deposition by Dirk Kunert. I read it a while ago but don’t remember it. Hope this helps.

https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=219416#relPageId=2

JFK_FNG wrote:Here’s the 12/5 Paine deposition by Dirk Kunert. I read it a while ago but don’t remember it. Hope this helps.

https://www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=219416#relPageId=2

Than ks for that Tom. I did do a quick search at MFF but missed it when I wrote this. 

What a terribly disappointing interview. It reads like an interview conducted by a foreign student for a university paper. 

I don't know what the SSIS was thinking using him, A real investigation would have assembled as many facts as possible beforehand, But he came with a so-so memory of the shit news stories he'd read and clearly had Lee as guilty as a starting point. 

The guy was a fascist, or acting as one. And that continued through the years with his writing - including a book for a research/propaganda anti-communist organization based in Switzerland who to me, looks like one of the spookiest groups I have ever come across. 

And as I said in the OP, he was most likely the real author of the piece published in German - which was well before this interview.

And as I said in the OP, he was most likely the real author of the piece published in German - which was well before this interview.


He mentioned Germany, and used the phrase "Family Oswald"

Tony Krome wrote:And as I said in the OP, he was most likely the real author of the piece published in German - which was well before this interview.


He mentioned Germany, and used the phrase "Family Oswald"

There are a number of indicators that English is a second language.

Tony Krome wrote:There are a number of indicators that English is a second language.


My German friends always address Xmas cards to us as "Family Krome", so I'd say the guy was raised in Germany.

Yep. I now accept he was indeed an exchange student. But that does not preclude him being an infiltrator. 

Here is the info on his exchange student status. This is about three pages in as it shows who he used as references.
www.maryferrell.org/showDoc.html?docId=58982#relPageId=11

Dr. David Hoggan:

The Committee pointed to the growth of the right-wing press and publications both in France and Germany as “the right extremists’ most notable achievement of late.” In addition to former Nazis, ex-generals, and right radicals, one writer often quoted by the right propagandists is the American historian, Dr. David Hoggan, whose 898-page book, ‘The Enforced War,’ casts the British as the villains who caused World War II and Hitler as their victim.
https://www.jta.org/archive/report-shows-germany-still-has-119-extremist-neo-nazi-groups

There were two reports re investigations of him referenced in the MFF doc linked to. One dated 12/7 and the other, yet later they are confused about whether he is still at the university if he had returned to Germany. The doc also states he has personal undisclosed financial assistance. Because he is on the federal payroll?

Here is the info on his exchange student status. This is about three pages in as it shows who he used as references.


So Anthony Kubek arrived in Irving same year as the Paines. Lived 2 miles up the road.