Rob Owens person
also: Owens, Owen, Robert Owen
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Related entities (most co-mentioned)
Oliver Northperson · 26CIAintelligence service · 15Nunezperson · 6Hondurascountry · 6Nicaraguan Humanitarian Assistance Officeorganization · 6United Statescountry · 5Joe Kelsoperson · 5Iran-Contra affairevent · 5Shrimp Companyorganization · 5U.S. State Departmentorganization · 5Nicaraguacountry · 4Joseph Fernandezperson · 4Elliot Abramsperson · 4Francesco Chainsperson · 3El Salvadorcountry · 3Dark Alliancebook · 3John Hallperson · 3Contrasorganization · 2Costa Ricacountry · 2Robert Dumlingperson · 2Democratic Force of Nicaraguaorganization · 2Iran-Contraoperation · 2Robert McFarlaneperson · 2Ocean Hunterorganization · 2
Claims (19)
Rob Owens member_of
CIA host_asserted
“but get out of it. Kelso was taken to the U.S. Embassy, where he said the DEA agents began copying the documents in his briefcase until a person that I had never saw before came in, sat down at one of the desks, very nice suit, well-dressed…”
▶ The Colonels Corner Dark Alliance Part 17 @ 48:29
Rob Owens member_of
Gray and Company book_quoted
“And the CIA front called Gray and Company actually developed their PR campaign. But Calero judged that that was too high of a price, although nothing developed. Gray employee Robert Owen became so dedicated to the cause that he put together…”
▶ The Colonel's Corner Safe for Democracy Part 46 (48) @ 27:33
Oliver North appointed
Rob Owens book_quoted
“tax-exempt entities, one for education and the other to raise money. He showed this plan to North, whom he had met while working in the Senate in 1982. North encouraged Owen to visit Central America and scout out conditions there. Owen went…”
▶ The Colonel's Corner Safe for Democracy Part 46 (48) @ 28:03
Oliver North recruited
Rob Owens book_quoted
“safe for democracy. We are still talking about Nicaragua and Oliver North. Oliver North asked Robert McFarlane for permission to provide intelligence about El Bluff and went to the U.S. Southern Command General Paul Gorman and the CIA's Nat…”
▶ The Colonel's Corner Safe for Democracy Part 47 (49) @ 0:31
Oliver North recruited
Rob Owens host_asserted
“In fact, he was there on another purpose as well. The L-100 was supposed to take Contra weapons at Aquacate and fly them to El Salvador, from where the next night it would take its first airdrop into the southern front. Oliver North asked O…”
▶ The Colonel's Corner Safe for Democracy Part 47 (49) @ 36:23
Oliver North appointed
Rob Owens documented
“In 1985, he pressured the newly created organization to hire one of his aides as a consultant. It was a tall former L.A. prep school counselor named Robert Owen, a Stanford grad and one time advertising executive. Dang, that sounds like Lan…”
▶ The Colonels Corner Dark Alliance Part 13 @ 41:01
Rob Owens member_of
Nicaraguan Humanitarian Assistance Office documented
“That meant I was hiring him. Owen was given a $50,000 contract as a quote-unquote facilitator, a job that mystified Doomling's aide, Chris Arcos. Arcos testified that no one was sure what, in fact, Rob Owens could do or bring to the office.…”
▶ The Colonels Corner Dark Alliance Part 13 @ 43:53
Elliot Abrams appointed
Rob Owens documented
“But North kept pushing. Doomling said North had Contra leaders write letters demanding Owens hire. He lobbied Doomling's superior at the State Department, Assistant Secretary Elliott Abrams, a fervent Contra supporter. After one stormy meet…”
▶ The Colonels Corner Dark Alliance Part 13 @ 43:24
Rob Owens recruited
Francesco Chains documented
“The people that were involved in Ocean Hunter in Costa Rica were ones that had been helpful to the cause. Owen testified in 1988 civil deposition. He identified those helpful souls as Frank Chains, the Miami Cuban who had been reported to t…”
▶ The Colonels Corner Dark Alliance Part 13 @ 53:42
Rob Owens recruited
Nunez documented
“The people that were involved in Ocean Hunter in Costa Rica were ones that had been helpful to the cause. Owen testified in 1988 civil deposition. He identified those helpful souls as Frank Chains, the Miami Cuban who had been reported to t…”
▶ The Colonels Corner Dark Alliance Part 13 @ 53:42
Rob Owens member_of
U.S. State Department documented
“who is the right-hand man to Oliver North in the State Department. More important, according to the CIA's official pronouncements, its primary work is the funneling of information. That's the code word for he's CIA. Perhaps Castro didn't re…”
▶ The Colonel's Corner The Mafia, CIA & George Bush Part 20 @ 4:05
Rob Owens member_of
U.S. State Department host_asserted
“Also, Rob Owens, and if you remember Rob Owens, Rob Owens is the guy that was Oliver Norse. We've talked about him in Gary Webb's book. Rob Owens is the guy that was Oliver Norse's right-hand man that they stuck in the State Department unde…”
▶ The Colonel’s Corner-Mafia CIA & George Bush Part 9 @ 33:44
Rob Owens covered_up
Joe Kelso documented
“was the eyes and ears of the CIA and Oliver North. Kelso testified that after Owen got a look at the documents seized at the hotel room, he ordered the DEA agents to stop making copies. He whisked Kelso out of the embassy and dropped him ba…”
▶ The Colonels Corner Dark Alliance Part 17 @ 48:56
Joe Kelso spied_on
Rob Owens guest_asserted
“participating in drug manufacturing. Okay, Kelso said. He said it was later determined that the two men may have been part of Norse resupply operation, which could or couldn't have been official CIA, but they were basically still working fo…”
▶ The Colonels Corner Dark Alliance Part 17 @ 39:33
Rob Owens spied_on
Roberto Chamorro documented
“in 1985. Owen was one of the CIA's top informants in Costa Rica. He listed eight of Chamorro's associates as having past indiscretions. The list included the FARN's Air Force chief, Robello, who Owen described as having potential involvemen…”
▶ The Colonel Corner Dark Alliance Part 12 @ 46:52
Rob Owens member_of
National Security Council documented
“on a suspected drug run off the coast of Florida. Aboard the plane was marijuana residue and Moss's notes, which, according to a CIA cable, contained, quote, the names of two CIA officers and their telephone numbers, unquote. Also found was…”
▶ The Colonels Corner Dark Alliance Part 8 @ 5:02
Rob Owens member_of
CIA host_asserted
“Also, Rob Owens, and if you remember Rob Owens, Rob Owens is the guy that was Oliver Norse. We've talked about him in Gary Webb's book. Rob Owens is the guy that was Oliver Norse's right-hand man that they stuck in the State Department unde…”
▶ The Colonel’s Corner-Mafia CIA & George Bush Part 9 @ 33:44
Rob Owens spied_on
CIA book_quoted
“with the CIA on Iran-Contra. In a memo to North on February 10th, 1986, Rob Owens wrote, no doubt you know the DC-4 Foley got was used at one point for running drugs in part of a group that had a criminal record. Nice group the boys chose, …”
▶ The Colonel’s Corner-Mafia CIA & George Bush Part 9 @ 34:14
Rob Owens member_of
Gray and Company host_asserted
“Livingstone put together a dubious cast of characters to carry out the missions under his authority. Among others, he hired Rob Owen, who had absolutely no qualifications in PR work at all. He was hired to run the Iran-Contra inside of Gray…”
▶ The Colonel's Corner Book Club Prelude to Terror Chap 25 @ 18:30
Mentions (56)
▶ 46:20
kept right on coming. The concern about Chamorro is that he drinks too much and may surround himself with people that are not in the war to fight, but really just to make money. That came from one of Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North's assist…
▶ 46:52
in 1985. Owen was one of the CIA's top informants in Costa Rica. He listed eight of Chamorro's associates as having past indiscretions. The list included the FARN's Air Force chief, Robello, who Owen described as having potential involvemen…
▶ 49:18
that I know of has never been in Nicaragua as part of the Contra effort. CIA informant Rob Owen confirmed that. The Costa Ricans wanted the people. They were up near Costa Rican-Nicaraguan border. They were in several camps. They wanted the…
▶ 9:33
This practice further compromised intelligence oversight, and often the congressman or senator had no idea these young people were there as part of a CIA operation. Many of their names would emerge years later in government scandals. People…
▶ 18:30
Livingstone put together a dubious cast of characters to carry out the missions under his authority. Among others, he hired Rob Owen, who had absolutely no qualifications in PR work at all. He was hired to run the Iran-Contra inside of Gray…
▶ 41:01
In 1985, he pressured the newly created organization to hire one of his aides as a consultant. It was a tall former L.A. prep school counselor named Robert Owen, a Stanford grad and one time advertising executive. Dang, that sounds like Lan…
▶ 41:31
trusted courier in Central America, zigzagging through the war zone for Ali, listening to concerns of the Contras. Owen's work had drawn rave reviews from the CIA contacts. That man has all the attributes that we want in our officers, Ferna…
▶ 42:01
Owen, in 1989, court testimony admitted that there was probably there was a possibility that I might have gone with the CIA on contract. Yeah, just a possibility. But because Owen was a private citizen, Fernandez said he couldn't legally se…
▶ 42:30
which is the perfect situation to have an actual CIA asset pretend like he's a civilian for that exact reason. But that all changed once Owen began working at the Nicaraguan humanitarian office, which probably explains Norse insistence that…
▶ 42:54
more operational relationship, Hernandez confirmed, because then he was a government employee. I asked him to find out things. The director was Robert Dumling, D-U-E-M-L-I-N-G, and his aides couldn't figure out why they needed to have Rob O…
▶ 43:24
But North kept pushing. Doomling said North had Contra leaders write letters demanding Owens hire. He lobbied Doomling's superior at the State Department, Assistant Secretary Elliott Abrams, a fervent Contra supporter. After one stormy meet…
▶ 43:53
That meant I was hiring him. Owen was given a $50,000 contract as a quote-unquote facilitator, a job that mystified Doomling's aide, Chris Arcos. Arcos testified that no one was sure what, in fact, Rob Owens could do or bring to the office.…
▶ 44:21
The minutes from a November 1985 meeting show that for some reason, Abrams and North was extremely concerned about the fallout if someone discovered Owen's involvement in the office, and they began working on a cover story to explain his pr…
▶ 44:54
Oh, my gosh. Rob Owen's mission was to serve as the CIA's unofficial liaison to drug traffickers and other undesirables who were helping the Contras in Costa Rica, people who were too dirty for the CIA to deal with directly. He was going to…
▶ 53:10
It did, the pilot said. So how could a company started by the Medellin cartel and used as a front to run drug into America ever wind up with a contract from the U.S. Department of State Nicaraguan Humanitarian Assistance Office? Yes, they c…
▶ 53:42
The people that were involved in Ocean Hunter in Costa Rica were ones that had been helpful to the cause. Owen testified in 1988 civil deposition. He identified those helpful souls as Frank Chains, the Miami Cuban who had been reported to t…
▶ 55:00
notarized affidavits submitted by the shrimp company to obtain payment from the State Department. Owen claimed the shrimp company was used mainly for an international bank account, serving as one of the several Central American brokers for …
▶ 55:30
in only 1986. Quote, we needed an account in Miami that the State Department money could be deposited to. There were consistent financial transactions between Miami and Costa Rica between Frank, Chans, and Nunez. They had been helpful and s…
▶ 56:29
Of $4.4 million that went into the account, less than a million dollars could be tracked. And much of that was for payoffs of Honduran military officials. The rest was traced to offshore banks and then disappeared. Owen insisted that the tr…
▶ 56:57
U.S. intelligence sources were involved in Costa Rica to provide a check and balance on this, he said. They would be knowledgeable. They knew the lay of the ground. I thought it important and appropriate to talk with them, Owens testified. …
▶ 57:22
Their names were given to the Nicaraguan humanitarian office at the State Department. And it was my understanding that any account that that State Department office provided funds to was cleared by the FBI. The FBI was informed who was bein…
▶ 1:00:42
and a 1977 arrest for conspiracy to sell marijuana. Former CIA official Alan Fiers admits to be aware of his misbehavior and general thuggery, but claims he didn't know the Cuban was a convicted drug trafficker. Bullshit. That's probably th…
▶ 1:01:12
What has been had taken place and the people are now out. He said five small boats were being constructed and a safe house in Costa Rica had been rented on a river which flows into the ocean. Nunez, a Cuban who was in the shrimping business…
▶ 1:02:36
by April 1986, and would soon be running several trips a week. So, obviously, they got the boats. Curiously, the Iran-Contra investigations barely looked at this clandestine operation, which was a clear violation of the Boland Amendment, si…
▶ 1:14:27
One of D.C. one D.C. for Palmer was using to deliver contra aid was shot up in February 1986 as it attempted to airdrop over Nicaragua and it made an emergency landing in San Andreas Island off the coast of Nicaragua, a notorious haven for …
▶ 1:17:49
In his testimony to the Iran-Contra Committee, Rob Owen confirmed that the airplane was involved in an unexplained, embarrassing situation in Costa Rica. That's when I decided some real strange shit was happening, Lippert said. It came back…
▶ 1:09:15
According to a 1986 memo from CIA operative Rob Owen to North, Nunes was preparing to sign an agreement with the heroes and martyr for shrimping rights off the Pacific, another front company. Nunes is doing this so he can help us. He will c…
▶ 21:23
But the four paragraphs about Joe Kelso buried deep in that official report only tell a fraction of his story. How the former fireman from Golden Valley, Minnesota, happened to attract the gaze of Oliver North and his preppy CIA informant, …
▶ 21:50
Congressman Peter Rodino of New Jersey and Dante Bassel of Florida, Jack Brooks of Texas, and Louis Stokes of Ohio, who decided to write their own report about Joe Kelso. The significance of Kelso's section of the committee report is not en…
▶ 48:29
but get out of it. Kelso was taken to the U.S. Embassy, where he said the DEA agents began copying the documents in his briefcase until a person that I had never saw before came in, sat down at one of the desks, very nice suit, well-dressed…
▶ 48:56
was the eyes and ears of the CIA and Oliver North. Kelso testified that after Owen got a look at the documents seized at the hotel room, he ordered the DEA agents to stop making copies. He whisked Kelso out of the embassy and dropped him ba…
▶ 50:24
In the dead of night, Tracy and Minolte drove Kelso north to Hall's well-guarded compound and dropped him off with a dentist friend of Hall's where he spent the night. The dentist drove Kelso to Hall's ranch the next day. Rob Owens later re…
▶ 53:45
It was all done by the DEA agents that, or ordered by the DEA agents that he had tried to turn in. So it goes on later to say that Owen confirmed, North's sidekick, Robert Owen, confirmed that he had picked up the tapes from the customs off…
▶ 54:17
Robert Tracy. Owen said there are some thought, at least according to Mr. Tracy, that the DEA officials may have been in on the take. There was accusations made. Rosenblatt said he washed his hands of the whole matter after he turned the ta…
▶ 54:46
He gave the only copy of the tape recording made by an undercover source to a total stranger, the congressman complained. Owen did not tell Rosenblatt that he worked for North or the CIA. He told him he worked for a private organization. No…
▶ 55:15
That were the subject of the tapes. Owen said his last trip to Costa Rica to meet the DEA agents occurred in October 86. Within a day or two of the Iran-Contra scandal breaking, Owen threw the Kelso tapes away. They were thrown out, along w…
▶ 23:10
who was used on non-routine projects, basically meaning ones that were being ran out of the State Department as opposed to the CIA, Boat's desk calendar obtained from the National Archives show frequent meetings from 1985 and 86 with North …
▶ 1:06
memory about someone so that when we do the show tomorrow, you will be able to put all the pieces together. We have talked about Elliot Abrams. We talked about him three different times in the material we've covered so far. He was the guy w…
▶ 5:02
on a suspected drug run off the coast of Florida. Aboard the plane was marijuana residue and Moss's notes, which, according to a CIA cable, contained, quote, the names of two CIA officers and their telephone numbers, unquote. Also found was…
▶ 5:31
In 1985, records show Owen reported to Oliver North that a DC-6 owned by Mario Calero, quote, which is being used for runs out of New Orleans, is probably used for drug runs into the United States, unquote. During that time, he was dealing …
▶ 33:44
Also, Rob Owens, and if you remember Rob Owens, Rob Owens is the guy that was Oliver Norse. We've talked about him in Gary Webb's book. Rob Owens is the guy that was Oliver Norse's right-hand man that they stuck in the State Department unde…
▶ 34:14
with the CIA on Iran-Contra. In a memo to North on February 10th, 1986, Rob Owens wrote, no doubt you know the DC-4 Foley got was used at one point for running drugs in part of a group that had a criminal record. Nice group the boys chose, …
▶ 37:08
Ron Martin, who was a Cuban businessman who reportedly fought at the Bay of Pigs. And by Cuban, they mean Cuban exile as in the CIA. In a May 13th, 1986 conversation recorded in Norse Notebook between North and his liaison, Robert Owen, the…
▶ 40:32
Edwin Wilson is the guy that was in Libya brokering weapons into Gaddafi that the CIA set up and sent to jail. Thomas Klein shows up in so many of these things, especially the ones that deal with drugs. Jenkins is mentioned in a number of p…
▶ 1:15:55
Basically, we were just talking about the whole Corson-CIA connections. You know, of course, he denied ever being associated with or Michners. And this chapter really laid out the connection between Oliver North, Corson, Michner, the guys t…
▶ 27:33
And the CIA front called Gray and Company actually developed their PR campaign. But Calero judged that that was too high of a price, although nothing developed. Gray employee Robert Owen became so dedicated to the cause that he put together…
▶ 28:03
tax-exempt entities, one for education and the other to raise money. He showed this plan to North, whom he had met while working in the Senate in 1982. North encouraged Owen to visit Central America and scout out conditions there. Owen went…
▶ 0:31
safe for democracy. We are still talking about Nicaragua and Oliver North. Oliver North asked Robert McFarlane for permission to provide intelligence about El Bluff and went to the U.S. Southern Command General Paul Gorman and the CIA's Nat…
▶ 2:01
seemed impossible. Calero abandoned the idea. Although Walker received no immediate employment, he won a place on the team when Project Democracy expanded to include Airlift. In February 1985, North asked Rob Owens to carry intelligence, in…
▶ 3:02
packet of maps so Owen could take to Honduras. Now remember, Owen is the guy that was planted in the State Department. We talked about him at length in several of the books, but primarily the one where, what's his, Dark Alliance, Gary Webb …
▶ 4:30
after they received a huge Saudi Arabia donation and warned Calero of the money's appearance. Owen carried another packet of intelligence to Calero in April when Oliver North told Robert McFarlane that Bermudez planned a big FDN offensive i…
▶ 35:51
and Rob Owens on board. Owens hired by the State Department, we already talked about that, humanitarian office, in big air quotes, was to supervise the unloading of the shipment because the Hondurans were not permitted to do that. It had to…
▶ 36:23
In fact, he was there on another purpose as well. The L-100 was supposed to take Contra weapons at Aquacate and fly them to El Salvador, from where the next night it would take its first airdrop into the southern front. Oliver North asked O…
▶ 36:48
Owen found no FDN weapons. The two CIA liaison men knew nothing of weapons and the Contra representatives simply shrugged in ignorance. Owen went to the CIA chief of base, Jerry Atkins, who refused to call the Honduran station chief and get…
▶ 37:13
General Secord concluded that Atkins, as well as the agency station chief in El Salvador, were openly, quote-unquote, hostile to this operation. Sure. The next day at El Pango came a meeting among Owen Felix Rodriguez, Rafael Quintero, and …
▶ 3:35
Castro went to Costa Rica in order to assist Rene Carvo and the Cuban exile fighting there, said the FBI report. Castro tried to tell the FBI agents that John Hall, quote, does not work for the CIA but funnels information to them, unquote. …