SC SC: Walter Rice dob 1920, found 1/27/91 McCormick

Okay... so this may seem a bit out there, but bear with me.

In the 1960s & 1970s the CIA employed black agents to infiltrate, monitor & report back regarding Black Panther activity in the US & abroad. This is what came up with a google of “African American CIA agents of the 1970s”. This would explain Rice’s exotic passport locations (if Asia, Africa, Algeria) as well as time as kitchen staff in CT- where the BPs were active, living, working, etc. Some famous trials from those days in CT. Were members of the Black Panther Party employed at the “Gris”? What better way to “infiltrate” if you work along side a member & are “brought in”?

New Haven is a 35 min drive from Essex. Similar coastal town with ties to NYC, Boston, etc.

C.I.A. Reportedly Recruited Blacks For Surveillance of Panther Party (Published 1978)

New Haven Black Panther trials - Wikipedia
 
Okay... so this may seem a bit out there, but bear with me.

In the 1960s & 1970s the CIA employed black agents to infiltrate, monitor & report back regarding Black Panther activity in the US & abroad. This is what came up with a google of “African American CIA agents of the 1970s”. This would explain Rice’s exotic passport locations (if Asia, Africa, Algeria) as well as time as kitchen staff in CT- where the BPs were active, living, working, etc. Some famous trials from those days in CT. Were members of the Black Panther Party employed at the “Gris”? What better way to “infiltrate” if you work along side a member & are “brought in”?

New Haven is a 35 min drive from Essex. Similar coastal town with ties to NYC, Boston, etc.

C.I.A. Reportedly Recruited Blacks For Surveillance of Panther Party (Published 1978)

New Haven Black Panther trials - Wikipedia

omg wow your good. this could be it.
I wonder if something was going on at the Gris. Oh this is so interesting!
 
omg wow your good. this could be it.
I wonder if something was going on at the Gris. Oh this is so interesting!
ITA! So fascinating! I had no idea. The BP trials in CT link contains many more links. Major rabbit hole. Mr. Rice sure lived an interesting life. I wish he could tell us all about it. I wonder if anyone kept anything from his trailer? Oh for some touch DNA! Who knows- perhaps in a few more years scientists will even be able to extract a profile from cremated remains. Seems they can do leaps & bounds more each year.
 
Another thought- some articles talked about returned mail. Just bills, I wonder? Or letters? He had no address book? No cards? Maybe a check he hadn’t mailed? Some DNA on an envelope? Must be something somewhere. Did the Unsolved Mysteries (Season 6, Episode 17, 1/26/94) people get any artifacts for the show? The state got his money; where did his personal effects go?
 
Okay... so this may seem a bit out there, but bear with me.

In the 1960s & 1970s the CIA employed black agents to infiltrate, monitor & report back regarding Black Panther activity in the US & abroad. This is what came up with a google of “African American CIA agents of the 1970s”. This would explain Rice’s exotic passport locations (if Asia, Africa, Algeria) as well as time as kitchen staff in CT- where the BPs were active, living, working, etc. Some famous trials from those days in CT. Were members of the Black Panther Party employed at the “Gris”? What better way to “infiltrate” if you work along side a member & are “brought in”?

New Haven is a 35 min drive from Essex. Similar coastal town with ties to NYC, Boston, etc.

C.I.A. Reportedly Recruited Blacks For Surveillance of Panther Party (Published 1978)

New Haven Black Panther trials - Wikipedia

ok I was just able to read the article. Very interesting. Now my question would be when did they recruit him, how and where did they recruit him from.
below is a snip of the article. I wish I knew where the places his passport was stamped to and also the years. Was it during before of after him working at The Gris.
—————————
Some former high‐level officials of the C.I.A. acknowledged that black Americans had been used in Africa and elsewhere to spy on the Black Panthers. Full details of those activities, they said, were not disclosed to the Senate committee or the Rockefeller Commission.

In interviews, a few members of both panels acknowledged that they had received some information about the C.I.A.'s spying on blacks. Most staff members, however, firmly denied that there had been such spying.
 
ITA! So fascinating! I had no idea. The BP trials in CT link contains many more links. Major rabbit hole. Mr. Rice sure lived an interesting life. I wish he could tell us all about it. I wonder if anyone kept anything from his trailer? Oh for some touch DNA! Who knows- perhaps in a few more years scientists will even be able to extract a profile from cremated remains. Seems they can do leaps & bounds more each year.

Yes this IS really interesting! Now I know that in the case of Joseph Chandler III they did keep some items from his apartment. I wonder if they did the same with Walters trailer. They must of kept something.
 
Another thought- some articles talked about returned mail. Just bills, I wonder? Or letters? He had no address book? No cards? Maybe a check he hadn’t mailed? Some DNA on an envelope? Must be something somewhere. Did the Unsolved Mysteries (Season 6, Episode 17, 1/26/94) people get any artifacts for the show? The state got his money; where did his personal effects go?

He had returned mail? That they came back to him? I don’t think bills would be returned. Maybe letters to someone that moved. If he licked the envelope which Iam sure he did they could get DNA from that. Have you seen the Unsolved Mysteries episode? I have not.
 
@JudgeJoe - I think you have found a HUGE piece of the puzzle! I was searching un FOIA -CIA, African American ..but failed to turn up anything. I had forgotten about BP and was only considering Cold War and Vietnam type operatives.

As for the isolated SC town location......not close to family. Family will tend to ask questions. He could very well have been born in FL, but chose/or was chosen McCormick SC to better play into his Southern roots. Dialect, food preferences, etc. He had close access to the Augusta VA medical services. Another good way to keep confidentially with his work.

ETA; COINTELPRO

CIA involvement, we as the public may never get the details. MOO
 
@JudgeJoe - I think you have found a HUGE piece of the puzzle! I was searching un FOIA -CIA, African American ..but failed to turn up anything. I had forgotten about BP and was only considering Cold War and Vietnam type operatives.

As for the isolated SC town location......not close to family. Family will tend to ask questions. He could very well have been born in FL, but chose/or was chosen McCormick SC to better play into his Southern roots. Dialect, food preferences, etc. He had close access to the Augusta VA medical services. Another good way to keep confidentially with his work.

ETA; COINTELPRO

CIA involvement, we as the public may never get the details. MOO
Interesting link- or maybe alarming? Perhaps we’ve never been as free as we thought. And... not sure any of these tactics have really changed. Kind of sounds like today...:confused: Imo

From your link:
“The FBI has used covert operations against domestic political groups since its inception; however, covert operations under the official COINTELPRO label took place between 1956 and 1971. COINTELPRO tactics are still used to this day and have been alleged to include discrediting targets through psychological warfare; smearing individuals and groups using forged documents and by planting false reports in the media; harassment; wrongful imprisonment; and illegal violence, including assassination.”
 
@JudgeJoe - yes, I read that also. We the public, know NOTHING. Only what we are allowed to know.
I watch, listen and observe. Try not to ask too many questions.

MOO IMO IME IMHO

ETA; by the way, I run a background search on his last known address.....nothing. It doesn't exist. Not on the tax rolls anyway. Maybe next step is GIS. I find I have quite a bit of luck searching under those.
 
Nope on GIS. Property information lists recent purchase as of 2004. Not applicable to this case.
Hmm..... lots of very loose ends. MOO
 
Nope on GIS. Property information lists recent purchase as of 2004. Not applicable to this case.
Hmm..... lots of very loose ends. MOO
I wonder if any of those well-known BP members worked at the Gris? Just one might be a lead. Also what well-known people stayed/met there? I couldn’t find any names on their web history, but I bet they have pics on the wall as so many of those places do. I bet that place was frequented by politicians, celebrities, dignitaries... Imo.

Field trip anyone?:)
 
I wonder if any of those well-known BP members worked at the Gris? Just one might be a lead. Also what well-known people stayed/met there? I couldn’t find any names on their web history, but I bet they have pics on the wall as so many of those places do. I bet that place was frequented by politicians, celebrities, dignitaries... Imo.

Field trip anyone?:)

hahaha right?!

Believe it or not I went on a search for photos or the Gris last night and anything to do with BP and Essex..

I did not come up with anything substantial.
 
Another direction...

What about the “neighbor” Rice listed as “next-of-kin” during his Abbeville Hospital visit? “James Edwards”.

Did he exist? Were they friends? If so, you’d think he knew something about Walter? Otherwise why list him? Were they business associates? Another CIA agent? Why’d the guy visit him at the hospital? And why didn’t he check on his friend- ask for a welfare check-after Walter stopped paying his power & water bills?

How does this piece fit with his “hermit” lifestyle? If you have one good friend who cares enough to visit you at the hospital, you’re not really a hermit, imo. Did he go to church? Buy his own groceries & bourbon? Someone must have engaged in small-talk along the way. Seems they’d pick up tiny clues here & there.

Deliciously baffling!
 
Another direction...

What about the “neighbor” Rice listed as “next-of-kin” during his Abbeville Hospital visit? “James Edwards”.

Did he exist? Were they friends? If so, you’d think he knew something about Walter? Otherwise why list him? Were they business associates? Another CIA agent? Why’d the guy visit him at the hospital? And why didn’t he check on his friend- ask for a welfare check-after Walter stopped paying his power & water bills?

How does this piece fit with his “hermit” lifestyle? If you have one good friend who cares enough to visit you at the hospital, you’re not really a hermit, imo. Did he go to church? Buy his own groceries & bourbon? Someone must have engaged in small-talk along the way. Seems they’d pick up tiny clues here & there.

Deliciously baffling!

OMG COMPLETELY!!! So but so many Questions!!!

I thought about the whole neighbor thing too!!!!
Did he visit him in the hospital? Did you read that anywhere? I had not seen it.
Ok if he was really the neighbor wouldn’t James Notice he had not seen Walter in like forever.???? I am assuming he was old like Walter and I know the old people always used to call and check up on each other more back then. if he was the neighbor didn’t he notice the mail piling up?

Also the supermarket, grocery store, laundry mat, gas station, barber, mechanic, doctor, dentist, eye doctor .. those are places iam assuming he would of frequented. It supposedly was a tiny town no?

Does anyone know for sure how long he supposedly lived in that trailer?
 
OMG COMPLETELY!!! So but so many Questions!!!

I thought about the whole neighbor thing too!!!!
Did he visit him in the hospital? Did you read that anywhere? I had not seen it.
Ok if he was really the neighbor wouldn’t James Notice he had not seen Walter in like forever.???? I am assuming he was old like Walter and I know the old people always used to call and check up on each other more back then. if he was the neighbor didn’t he notice the mail piling up?

Also the supermarket, grocery store, laundry mat, gas station, barber, mechanic, doctor, dentist, eye doctor .. those are places iam assuming he would of frequented. It supposedly was a tiny town no?

Does anyone know for sure how long he supposedly lived in that trailer?
Yes, read it in the Unsolved Mysteries article. Says Walter “listed” Edwards as next-of-kin when he was in the hospital in Abbeville. Doesn’t say if Edwards actually went there.

Rice only lived in McCormick since 1990. Got in his accident Jan 1992, died Feb. So prob lived there less than 2 yrs.
Heirs of Walter Rice
 
Walter Rice Timeline
(from all linked articles thus far)

July 6, 1920: Born Abbeville, SC
Or FL

1973-1983: works at Griswold Hotel (restaurant cook) Essex, CN

1990: relocates to McCormick, SC

Jan 1992: Serious auto accident

January 25, 1992: takes cab home due to damaged vehicle

Feb 1992: utility bills unpaid, mail uncollected; 2 yrs later, coroner estimates TOD as Feb 1 & COD as massive heart attack.

Later 1992: 2 thieves break in to WR’s trailer & discover his deceased remains; one waits months, then notifies PD

April 5, 1993: McCormick PD investigate, find Rice’s remains & remove Walter's body (1994 in one report- I think 93 correct)

Jan 26, 1994: Unsolved Mysteries airs Walter’s story seeking heirs.(Season 6, Ep 17)

April 1995: Rice’s 138-145K estate goes to the state of SC

MISC TIDBITS/ INFO:
-Social Security number invalid
-Birth Certificate- unverifiable
-Passport stamps from several
foreign countries.
-Fingerprints tied to CIA?
-Relatives: no wife, no kids,
youngest of 8 kids- so 7 brothers/
sisters. Possible “Niece, Jane”
-Visited 2 Hospitals: Augusta, GA
(listed niece “Jane, next-of-kin) &
Abbeville, SC (listed "James
Edwards", as next-of-kin, but this
person is actually a neighbor)

Let me know what I missed, or messed up & I’ll fix!:rolleyes:
 
Walter Rice Timeline
(from all linked articles thus far)

July 6, 1920: Born Abbeville, SC
Or FL

1973-1983: works at Griswold Hotel (restaurant cook) Essex, CN

1990: relocates to McCormick, SC

Jan 1992: Serious auto accident

January 25, 1992: takes cab home due to damaged vehicle

Feb 1992: utility bills unpaid, mail uncollected; 2 yrs later, coroner estimates TOD as Feb 1 & COD as massive heart attack.

Later 1992: 2 thieves break in to WR’s trailer & discover his deceased remains; one waits months, then notifies PD

April 5, 1993: McCormick PD investigate, find Rice’s remains & remove Walter's body (1994 in one report- I think 93 correct)

Jan 26, 1994: Unsolved Mysteries airs Walter’s story seeking heirs.(Season 6, Ep 17)

April 1995: Rice’s 138-145K estate goes to the state of SC

MISC TIDBITS/ INFO:
-Social Security number invalid
-Birth Certificate- unverifiable
-Passport stamps from several
foreign countries.
-Fingerprints tied to CIA?
-Relatives: no wife, no kids,
youngest of 8 kids- so 7 brothers/
sisters. Possible “Niece, Jane”
-Visited 2 Hospitals: Augusta, GA
(listed niece “Jane, next-of-kin) &
Abbeville, SC (listed "James
Edwards", as next-of-kin, but this
person is actually a neighbor)

Let me know what I missed, or messed up & I’ll fix!:rolleyes:

Omg! this is an awesome timeline!!!!!
thank you.. now we have this to reference to!! Thank you judgejoe!

I have a couple of questions now that we have a clear timeline.

So from 1983 to 1990 we have no idea where he was.

We don’t know what years he got his passport stamped and went away.

Says that he went to 2 hospitals in Augusta Georgia .. do we know what year or years he went. It’s weird to go to another state to go to the hospital. Was he living in Georgia at that time but it was not recorded?
 

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