Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954, Indochina, Volume XIII, Part 1

123 Heath, Donald R.: Telegram

The Ambassador at Saigon (Heath) to the Department of State

secret

Saigon, October 18, 1952—11 p.m.

815. Wirom 623, Sept 23¹ and Embtel 630, Sept 20.² Pres Tam asked me to see him last night and informed me that the Vietnamese security police had finally captured the principal agent ordered by the VM to assassinate me and had killed his assistant.

The VM originally set Oct 1 for the attempt but then postponed it until later in the month. The principal agent appeared in Saigon on Oct 10 and shadowed. On evening of Oct 11 was observed by plain-clothes detectives entering the Emb garden presumably for a preliminary reconnaissance since he left within a few minutes. The fol day he was arrested with a woman companion. On his person was found a rough sketch of the residence and garden and in his room a Sten machine gun, one VM made revolver and three grenades. He was wearing the uniform of a Fr Master Sergeant and had well-forged papers. According to Tam both arrestees confessed rather readily and revealed that an assistant lived in a nearby village and was expected to join them in Saigon. The assistant failing to appear a security police party went to his village, opened fire and killed him instantly. The fol day a sub-machine gun and six grenades, ammunition and VM documents were discovered in a hiding place revealed by the prisoners.

Tam showed me a copy of a proposed press release which did not name me but merely stated that the Vietnamese police had arrested two VM agents planning to assassinate an “important foreign personage”. Today’s Saigon press, however, gave fairly long story of the occurrence and named me as the object of the plot.

The security police believes that no other attempts on my life will be made in the near future but has suggested reinforcing the hedge around the residence with barbed wire and additional lighting of the garden at rear of the residence. In addition to the regular guard one plain-clothes man will be assigned to exercise surveillance.

From Tam‘s remarks, I fear that the male prisoner will be executed with only a drum-head trial, if any, within a few days.

Heath

1. Not identified in Department of State files.
2. In telegram 630 from Saigon, Sept. 20, not printed, Ambassador Heath reported that President Tam had warned him that the Viet Minh had organized a plot against his life. (123 Heath, Donald R.)