Mr. McCullough. Do you want me to just continue?
Mr. Griffin. Yes.
Mr. McCullough. I went immediately to the Dallas Municipal Building, and to the police headquarters. I am uncertain now of exactly what floor this was on. I stayed at the police headquarters floor of the building for 6 or 7 hours, since this was the scene of the operations.
Mr. Griffin. Were you on that floor continuously during that period, or were there times when you were off?
Mr. McCullough. There were times when I was off the floor, to use the telephone, or to consult with other members of the Bulletin staff who were also on assignment in Dallas. But most of the time I was on the floor and in a narrow corridor outside the room in which principals in the assassination of the President and the subsequent events were being questioned by Dallas police officials. And I believe by members of the Federal agencies.
I was not alone. There were at least 50 other reporters along this narrow corridor. It was around midnight, to the best of my recollection, when they brought a man who police told us was Lee Harvey Oswald into an interrogation room. Trying to get a look at the physical setup inside this room. I stood briefly on a metal ashtray that was on the corridor. And coming down from this metal ashtray, I hit with my right elbow a man who was standing beside me. I apologized for bumping into the man and expressed the hope that I had not struck his notes, assuming he was another reporter. He explained to me that he was not a reporter, that he was a businessman in Dallas, and I noted then that he was carrying a box. I would guess it was about 8 inches to a foot square. And the reason I remember it is on one side, in white lettering, on a blue background, was the word “Alpacuna.” It struck me as odd, that a reporter would be carrying a box. And then, of course, when he explained he was a businessman I took a good look at him, because I think reporters get annoyed—because there were enough of us in the corridor without outsiders being there. I mentioned this to another member of the Bulletin staff later, and then discovered after the shooting of Oswald, the man I had bumped into that night was Ruby.
Mr. Griffin. Let me ask you some questions about this. You mentioned that you were trying to look into an interrogation room.
Mr. McCullough. Yes.
Mr. Griffin. Did this meeting with the man you think was Ruby, did it occur on the third floor of the police department?
Mr. McCullough. I am not certain—on whatever floor the police department offices are located. There is a whole string of them. There is a homicide squad, robbery, theft units. I believe it was on the third floor. It was not the upper floors. There were floors above. I am fairly certain it was the third floor.