Alpha 66: America’s Terrorists in the Shadows

By American Secrets

In the early 1960s, while the American public saw Cuba as a Cold War adversary and Fidel Castro as a communist threat, the U.S. government was playing a dangerous double game — publicly denying involvement in Cuban affairs while covertly funding exile militias to wage guerrilla war.

One of the most infamous of these paramilitary groups was Alpha 66 — an anti-Castro organization headquartered in Miami, trained in the Florida Keys, and operating out of safe houses and jungle camps in the Caribbean.

They weren’t subtle. They conducted raids, blew up ships, assassinated Cuban officials, and claimed it was all in the name of freedom. But their true purpose? To destabilize Cuba so violently that it would justify a U.S. invasion.

And the CIA was there every step of the way.

The Birth of a Guerrilla Army

Alpha 66 was founded in 1962 by Antonio Veciana, a former Cuban economist turned militant revolutionary. Veciana had worked inside Cuba’s government before defecting and became one of the most vocal enemies of Castro's regime.

Veciana claimed that his real boss wasn’t just Alpha 66 — it was a CIA handler known only as “Maurice Bishop.”

According to Veciana:

“Bishop” was actually David Atlee Phillips, one of the CIA’s top propaganda and psychological operations experts — later implicated in running anti-Castro operations and linked by some to Lee Harvey Oswald.

The CIA has never confirmed this connection. But documents and witness testimony suggest that Alpha 66 operated with implicit U.S. support, especially in its early years.

How Alpha 66 Operated

Alpha 66’s tactics were blunt, brutal, and effective. They launched speedboat raids from southern Florida into Cuban waters, striking ports, destroying Soviet ships, and fleeing before Cuban forces could respond.

They also:

• Trained in remote camps in the Everglades and off islands near the Bahamas

• Acquired weapons with help from sympathetic U.S. military personnel

• Used Miami’s exile-rich neighborhoods for fundraising and recruiting

• Claimed ties to powerful Cuban Mafia figures and anti-communist politicians

According to FBI reports and CIA memos, Alpha 66 operated in a legal gray zone: technically a “private” organization, but with frequent contact with U.S. intelligence operatives.

Public Denial, Private Support

The Kennedy administration was under immense pressure to overthrow Castro after the Bay of Pigs disaster in 1961. While JFK publicly distanced himself from exile violence, Alpha 66 was quietly tolerated — and even encouraged.

In fact, CIA internal documents reveal that Alpha 66 and groups like it were considered a useful cover for deniable operations. If something went wrong, the CIA could claim “we didn’t authorize that.”

Yet Alpha 66's raids nearly started a second Cuban Missile Crisis — especially in early 1963, when they attacked a Soviet ship docked in a Cuban harbor, sparking international outrage. Kennedy was furious — but the group wasn’t shut down.

Why? Because factions inside the CIA wanted Cuba destabilized — no matter the political cost.

Alpha 66 and the JFK Assassination

Here’s where things get murky.

In the weeks leading up to Kennedy’s assassination, Alpha 66's activities were ramping up, and the group was warning of betrayal by JFK. Some members believed the president was preparing to normalize relations with Castro.

Antonio Veciana later claimed — under oath — that he once saw his CIA handler "Maurice Bishop" meeting with Lee Harvey Oswald in Dallas weeks before the assassination. He held this position for decades, despite threats and denials from government sources.

If true, that would place:

• A CIA handler

• An anti-Castro exile leader

• And Lee Harvey Oswald… all in the same room in the same city shortly before Kennedy’s death.

Veciana repeated this claim until his death in 2020. He never recanted.

FBI and CIA Surveillance

Declassified FBI files show the Bureau tracked Alpha 66 extensively, worried about their potential to spark international incidents. But they never shut the group down.

Instead, they:

• Monitored training camps

• Intercepted communications

• Occasionally confiscated weapons shipments

• And passed intel to CIA — which sometimes ignored it

In one instance, an Alpha 66 plot to assassinate Cuban diplomats in Mexico City was uncovered — and quietly buried.

Later Years and Legacy

Alpha 66 continued its operations well into the 1980s, though its relevance faded after the Cold War. The group still technically exists today as a political organization, but its violent roots are often whitewashed.

To this day:

• No member of Alpha 66 was ever prosecuted by the U.S. government

• The CIA’s files on the group remain heavily redacted

• And the possible connection to JFK’s assassination remains a historical shadow

Final Thoughts: America’s Favorite “Terrorists”

In an era where the U.S. claims to fight global terrorism, Alpha 66’s history is a reminder that one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter — especially when they serve your geopolitical goals.

Alpha 66 existed because the CIA wanted a tool they could deny.

They operated with U.S. knowledge. They nearly sparked international war. And, perhaps, their network brushed right up against one of America’s greatest tragedies.

The real mystery isn’t how they got away with it — it’s why we still refuse to admit they were ours.

Sources:

• Antonio Veciana, Trained to Kill

• Jefferson Morley, The Ghost: The Secret Life of CIA Spymaster James Jesus Angleton

• CIA declassified files via CREST

• FBI Field Office reports on anti-Castro exile groups

• Gaeton Fonzi, The Last Investigation

• Lamar Waldron, Legacy of Secrecy