Speculation.—Oswald could drive a car and was seen in cars at various places.
Commission-finding.—Oswald did not have a driver’s license. Marina Oswald and Ruth Paine have testified that he could not drive a car, and there is no confirmed evidence to establish his presence at any location as the driver of a car. Mrs. Paine did give Oswald some driving lessons and he did drive short distances on these occasions.[A12-118]
Speculation.—Oswald received money by Western Union telegraph from time to time for several months before the assassination of President Kennedy.
Commission finding.—An employee in the Western Union main office in Dallas, C. A. Hamblen, made statements that he remembered seeing Oswald there on some occasions collecting money that had been telegraphed to him. In his testimony before the Commission, Hamblen was unable to state whether or not the person he had seen was Lee Harvey Oswald. Western Union officials searched their records in Dallas and other cities for the period from June through November 1963 but found no money orders payable to Lee Oswald or to any of his known aliases. A Western Union official concluded that the allegation was “a figment of Mr. Hamblen’s imagination.”[A12-119] The Commission has found no evidence to contradict this conclusion.[A12-120]
Speculation.—On his way back from Mexico City in October 1963, Oswald stopped in Alice, Tex., to apply for a job at the local radio station.
Commission finding.—This rumor apparently originated with the manager of radio station KOPY, Alice, who stated that Oswald visited his office on the afternoon of October 4 for about 25 minutes. According to the manager, Oswald was driving a battered 1953 model car and had his wife and a small child in the car with him. Oswald traveled from Mexico City to Dallas by bus, arriving in Dallas on the afternoon of October 3. The bus did not pass through Alice. On October 4, Oswald applied for two jobs in Dallas and then spent the afternoon and night with his wife and child at the Paine residence in Irving. Investigation has revealed that Oswald did not own a car and there is no convincing evidence that he could drive a car. Accordingly, Oswald could not have been in Alice on October 4. There is no evidence that he stopped in Alice to look for a job on any occasion.[A12-121]
Speculation.—Oswald or accomplices had made arrangements for his getaway by airplane from an airfield in the Dallas area.
Commission finding.—Investigation of such claims revealed that they had not the slightest substance. The Commission found no evidence that Oswald had any prearranged plan for escape after the assassination.[A12-122]
Speculation.—One hundred and fifty dollars was found in the dresser of Oswald’s room at 1026 North Beckley Avenue after the assassination.
Commission finding.—No money was found in Oswald’s room after the assassination. Oswald left $170 in the room occupied by his wife at the Paine residence in Irving. At the time of his arrest Oswald had $13.87 on his person.[A12-123]