Juliet Stuart Poyntz
Missing since June, 1937 from New York City, New York
Classification: Missing
Vital Statistics
Date Of Birth: November 26, 1886
Age at Time of Disappearance: 50 years old
Circumstances of Disappearance
Juliet Stuart Poyntz was one of the founding members of the American Communist Party and was for many years at the center of its internal workings and factional struggles.
A graduate of Barnard College and Columbia University, she traveled all over the world promoting Communism until she dropped out of the American Communist Party in 1934 in order to work as an agent for the OGPU, the secret police agency of the Soviet Union and predecessor of the KGB.
She received intensive training in espionage and returned to the United States. In 1936, she was recalled to Moscow for debriefing and to receive further instructions. But while she was there, she became disillusioned after witnessing first hand the purges that Stalin had instigated against old line Bolsheviks,followers of Lenin and anyone who might opose him in the future. She had been interrogated herself and her loyalty questioned.
She had barely managed to allay suspicion before returning to the United States. Badly shaken, she quit her espionage work and openly denounced Communism. She told people she was thinking about writing her memoirs. She was last seen around June 4 or 5, 1937.
In Early December 1937, her lawyer reported her missing to the New York City Police Department. In her apartment at the American Women's Association Clubhouse at 353 West 57th St., she left behind all of her belongings and her passport. She also left behind a bank account containing $10,500 which had not been touched since she was last seen.
It is widely believed that she was abducted and murdered on orders of Soviet Intelligence. She was declared legally dead on October 26, 1944.
Investigators
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact: New York City Police Department Missing Person's Squad 212-473-2042 .
Source Information:
the Bernard College Archives
Spys and Spymasters of Espionage Website
The Charley Project
The Doe Network: Case File 1495DFNY
Link:
Missing since June, 1937 from New York City, New York
Classification: Missing
Vital Statistics
Date Of Birth: November 26, 1886
Age at Time of Disappearance: 50 years old
Circumstances of Disappearance
Juliet Stuart Poyntz was one of the founding members of the American Communist Party and was for many years at the center of its internal workings and factional struggles.
A graduate of Barnard College and Columbia University, she traveled all over the world promoting Communism until she dropped out of the American Communist Party in 1934 in order to work as an agent for the OGPU, the secret police agency of the Soviet Union and predecessor of the KGB.
She received intensive training in espionage and returned to the United States. In 1936, she was recalled to Moscow for debriefing and to receive further instructions. But while she was there, she became disillusioned after witnessing first hand the purges that Stalin had instigated against old line Bolsheviks,followers of Lenin and anyone who might opose him in the future. She had been interrogated herself and her loyalty questioned.
She had barely managed to allay suspicion before returning to the United States. Badly shaken, she quit her espionage work and openly denounced Communism. She told people she was thinking about writing her memoirs. She was last seen around June 4 or 5, 1937.
In Early December 1937, her lawyer reported her missing to the New York City Police Department. In her apartment at the American Women's Association Clubhouse at 353 West 57th St., she left behind all of her belongings and her passport. She also left behind a bank account containing $10,500 which had not been touched since she was last seen.
It is widely believed that she was abducted and murdered on orders of Soviet Intelligence. She was declared legally dead on October 26, 1944.
Investigators
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact: New York City Police Department Missing Person's Squad 212-473-2042 .
Source Information:
the Bernard College Archives
Spys and Spymasters of Espionage Website
The Charley Project
The Doe Network: Case File 1495DFNY
Link:
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