Thursday, November 13, 2008

The First African-American Secret Service Agent To Guard An American President

"...Abraham Bolden, who in 1961, had been the first Black man ever assigned to the secret service detail guarding American presidents. In May 1964, Bolden made an attempt to contact the Warren Commission concerning two matters he felt should be brought to light: (1) A rumored plot to assassinate JFK at a college football game in Chicago on November 2, 1963, which rumor Bolden and other secret servicemen had investigated (the President ended up canceling his trip); and (2) Heavy drinking and 'general laxity' among the secret service agents assigned to Kennedy.

Suddenly, Bolden found himself under indictment for allegedly selling evidence to a counterfeit ring. Convicted in August 1964, on what Bolden claimed were trumped-up charges to keep him away from the Warren Commission, he ended up serving a 6-year sentence." -From, "The Man Who Knew Too Much" By: Dick Russell

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