861.1121 Roszkowski, Mieczyslaw/17: Telegram
The Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Steinhardt) to the Secretary of State
[Received March 12—1:02 p.m.]
490. My 313, February 19. I was afforded an opportunity of interviewing Roszhkowski last night at the reception room of the People’s Commissariat for Internal Affairs. He admitted the possession of an old gun, alleging that his minor brother had found the same and brought it home where his cousin concealed it. He also claimed that the police on finding the gun had declared it to be unusable and that he had not been arrested for more than 2 months after the incident. He was subsequently sentenced to 3 years in a reformatory labor [Page 941] camp by the local court. That sentence is now being reviewed by the authorities in Moscow.
I made the best case I could for him, which was none too convincing in view of his previous admissions, and advised the four Soviet officials who were present that the Embassy was prepared to issue a passport to him for his immediate return to the United States.
While I doubt that the Moscow authorities will reverse the decision of the local court, it is not impossible that they might release him after a comparatively short period of time, although I could obtain no assurances to this effect.