Felix Rodriguez killer from CIA
Executive summary
Felix (Félix) Rodríguez is a Cuban‑born former CIA paramilitary officer long linked in reporting and his own accounts to the capture and the immediate aftermath of Che Guevara’s 1967 capture in Bolivia; multiple sources say he “captured” or was “one of the last men to speak to” Guevara and that Bolivian authorities ordered Guevara’s execution [1] [2] [3]. Reporting and archival summaries also tie Rodríguez to the 1961 Bay of Pigs operation, Vietnam‑era paramilitary programs, and later Iran‑Contra/contra resupply activities — but details, motives and legal responsibility for Guevara’s death are portrayed differently across sources [1] [4] [5] [6].
1. Félix Rodríguez’s role in Bolivia: captured advisor or executioner?
Contemporary profiles and Rodríguez’s own accounts describe him as a CIA paramilitary advisor who advised Bolivian forces during the hunt for Che Guevara and was present at Guevara’s capture and in the hours before the execution, with outlets calling him “one of the last men to speak to Che” [1] [2]. Those same sources and museum/biographical pieces report that the execution was carried out by Bolivian authorities on orders from the Bolivian government; reporting frames Rodríguez as involved in the capture and interrogation but attributes the formal execution order to Bolivian officials [3] [1]. Available sources do not mention a definitive legal finding that Rodríguez personally ordered or physically executed Guevara.
2. How mainstream sources characterize the claim “Rodríguez killed Che.”
Major biographical summaries and news profiles emphasize Rodríguez’s presence and advisory role rather than portray him solely as the killer; for example, Wikipedia’s entry and longform profiles list him as “known for his involvement” in Che’s capture and execution while also noting his being “one of the last men to speak” with Guevara [1] [2]. Regional reporting similarly frames the sequence as capture and Bolivian execution rather than an unequivocal CIA assassination carried out by Rodríguez alone [3]. The record therefore supports that Rodríguez was a central U.S.-linked actor on site, but it does not uniformly support the simple slogan “Felix Rodríguez killed Che” without further qualification [1] [3].
3. Broader career context that fuels contested narratives
Rodríguez’s résumé includes Brigade 2506/Bay of Pigs participation, Vietnam‑era paramilitary work (PRUs and Phoenix‑program links), and later involvement in contra resupply and Iran‑Contra–era activities; these episodes are documented in multiple sources and create a pattern that observers use to interpret his Bolivia role [1] [4] [5] [6]. Because he worked in clandestine, paramilitary advisory roles and later testified in Iran‑Contra hearings, critics and conspiracy‑minded accounts have been able to stitch broader accusations—about assassination plots, torture or connections to drug networks—around his biography [5] [7]. These accusations appear in investigative and activist outlets but are not uniformly corroborated in mainstream archival summaries provided here [5] [7].
4. Sources, evidence and limits of the public record
Primary and secondary sources in the set include news profiles, archived interviews, Wikipedia summaries, and specialist sites; several directly quote Rodríguez’s own memoir‑style accounts or interviews [2] [8]. Official determinations about chain‑of‑command responsibility for Guevara’s killing are not provided in these items; rather, the record emphasizes Bolivian orders and Rodríguez’s on‑the‑ground advisory role [3] [1]. Available sources do not mention any declassified CIA document in this set that definitively assigns legal culpability for the execution to Rodríguez personally [9] [1].
5. Competing perspectives and why they persist
Journalistic and encyclopedic sources frame Rodríguez as a CIA operative who played a pivotal operational role [1] [3]. Critical outlets and activist pages widen the allegation set—linking him to torture or drug‑trafficking networks during later Central American conflicts—citing testimony, investigative claims and associative evidence [5] [7]. The dispute persists because clandestine operations produce fragmentary public records, eyewitness memoirs differ, and Rodríguez himself has long given interviews that emphasize his centrality to the operation [2] [8].
6. Bottom line for readers weighing the claim “Felix Rodríguez was Che’s killer”
Documents and mainstream reporting in this set establish Rodríguez as a U.S.‑linked paramilitary advisor present at Guevara’s capture and interrogation and as one of the last people to speak with him, while also making clear the execution was ordered by Bolivian authorities [1] [2] [3]. Sources do not provide a single, authoritative declassified record in this collection that proves Rodríguez personally shot Guevara or legally ordered the execution; competing narratives exist and some outlets expand accusations into broader allegations about his later activities [1] [5] [7].