- Larry Devlin
Lawrence, known as Larry, Devlin is a retired
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) field officer. Stationed for many years inAfrica , he was Station Chief in theDemocratic Republic of the Congo when Prime MinisterPatrice Lumumba was assassinated on17 January 1961 .Biography
Devlin was raised in
California and joined the U.S. Army during World War II, rising to the rank of captain.He entered service with the CIA in 1949, having been recruited out of college by
McGeorge Bundy .Devlin became
Chief of Station in Congo in July 1960, a mere 10 days after the country's independence fromBelgium and shortly before Prime MinisterPatrice Lumumba 's two month term in office, dismissal from power and ultimate execution. In his memoir, Devlin reveals that late in 1960, he received instructions from an agent ("Joe from Paris") who was relaying instructions from CIA headquarters that he (Devlin) was to effect the assassination of Lumumba. Various poisons, including one secreted in a tube of toothpaste, were proffered. The directive had come from the CIA Deputy Chief of Plans Dick Bissell, but Devlin wanted to know if it had originated at a higher level and if so, how high. "Joe" had been given to understand that it had come from PresidentDwight D. Eisenhower , but Devlin to this day does not know for sure. Devlin writes (and has recently said in public speaking engagements) that he felt an assassination would have been "morally wrong" and likely to backfire and work against U.S. interests. In the event, he temporized, neglecting to act, and Lumumba was ultimately murdered by his enemies inKatanga , with Belgian government participation. U.S. intelligence was kept apprised.Devlin supported Congolese dictator
Mobutu Sese Seko in his two coups (14 September 1960 and 24 November 1965). He maintains that it was not a mistake for the U.S. to support this anti-communist, pro-Western strongman in light of larger Cold War concerns.Later, he served as Station Chief in
Laos and, then, as Chief, Africa Division. He retired from service with the CIA in 1974.Subsequent to his CIA employment, Devlin and his wife settled in the Congo and became the
De Beers Diamond representative inKinshasa , where he socialized widely in the expatriate community during the late-1970s and early 1980s.He currently divides his time between Virginia and
Provence , France.*Devlin's book "Chief of Station, Congo" is his account of his firsthand experiences and observations in the Congo during the
Cold War . It was published byPerseus Books Group in March 2007.
*Seth Greenland 's satirical 1997 play "Jungle Rot" appears to be loosely based on Devlin's tenure in the Congo. [http://www.doollee.com/PlaywrightsG/GreenlandSeth.htm 1]Bibliography
*
External links
* [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7871892 'Chief of Station' Recalls Congo During Cold War] March 13, 2007 "
Fresh Air "
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/audio_video/programmes/correspondent/transcripts/974745.txt Transcript of Correspondent: Who Killed Lumumba?] , featuring Devlin
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