862.20235/11–245
The Chargé in Argentina (Cabot) to the Secretary of State
[Received November 12.]
Sir: I have the honor to report that on October 19, 1945 the Criminal Division of the Federal Court of Argentina ordered the release from its jurisdiction without prejudice to later prosecution, of 45, and the “preventive imprisonment” of 16 Axis espionage agents against whom charges had been made on August 31, 1945. These 61 individuals were put under the jurisdiction of the court upon the termination of the state of siege when they no longer could have been held without charge. In as much as the state of siege was renewed in early October and since the government expects to expel these agents from Argentina without trial, it is likely that the above mentioned procedure was utilized as the most convenient for the government’s purposes.
These 61 Nazi agents, for the most part, were included in the original list of 71 agents as reported in the Embassy’s despatch no. 173 of June 16, 1945.72 They are in addition to the list of 22 agents who soon are to be deported according to the Foreign Office statement of September 11, 1945. (Reference despatch no. 842 of September 19, 1945, telegram no. 2249 of September 22, 2 p.m., and despatch no. 930 of September 29.73
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Respectfully yours,