CUARTEL GENERAL, AREA DEL ESTE.
GUARDIA NACIONAL DE NICARAGUA.
BLUEFIELDS, NICARAGUA.

4 May, 1931

From:    The Area Commander, Eastern Area.
To:      The Jefe Director, Headquarters Guardia Nacional

          de Nicaragua, Managua, Nicaragua.

Subject: An intelligence report on activities of SANDINO, BLANDON, and COCKBURN.


  1.   Captain C. A. Inman, G.N. Department Commander of Northon Bluefields, sent Mr. J. A. Fagot, the son of the most prominent American resident of Capo Gracias, to Bluefields to report information he had obtained when he was in Honduras, a fugitive from bandits who looted CAPE GRACIAS who were trying to capture him.

  2.   Mr. J. A. Fagot is a young man, married, fairly well educated, keen, alert and intelligent, but most of the information contained herein, obtained from Mr. Fagot, is second hand, and a great amount of it is obviously the usual SANDINO propaganda. Mr. Fagot reported, substantially, the following:

Fagot met one MOLLO SANZ and had lengthy conversations with him on April 24, 1931, in Honduras. MOLLO SANZ is a Spaniard who has come to this continent to walk from New York to Buenos Aires. He a writer and is preparing a book on SANDINO. Fagot’s interview with SANZ took place in CATATASCA, Honduras. SANZ stated that he had just come through Honduras through DANLI. SANZ previously passed from DANLI to SANDINO’S headquarters, exact place unrevealed, the travel involved occupying twelve days from DANLI. He arrived at the headquarters on April 10th, 1931, and spent two and one half days with SANDINO. SANDINO claimed to have seventy three military divisions, a total of five thousand men. That he was obtaining good supplies of ammunition, of German manufacture, from the pacific seaboard: that his money came from Bolshevist source; that he has an airplane landing field in Nicaragua, near CUILALI on the COCO RIVER; that several of General MONCADA’S old Generals are now coming over to enlist in SANDINO’S cause, notably General ESCAMILLA. SANDINO told SANZ that ADOLFO COCKBURN holds a commission from Sandino as a General. Fagot states that this same statement came from Webster to Abraham Martinez, (both well-known on Coco River) and to Fagot. SANDINO directed SANZ to keep an eye on BLANDON and COCKBURN and RIVERA, during the course of their operations in the COCO RIVER and near PUERTO CABEZAS; That his orders are to those jefes to kill all AMERICANS and destroy their property but to leave natives entirely alone. SANZ stated that he would communicate with SANDINO when he arrived in COSTA RICA on his way SOUTH, and that he intended to report unfavorably to SANDINO on the conduct of EAST COAST generals, especially with regard to COCKBURN and RIVERA: that those two parties have some kind of private understanding between each other, and that all of the loot and plunder captured in the raids does not reach SANDINO; that much of the stolen goods are in COCKBURN’S possession who is now selling goods in a small store on the COCO RIVER. SANDINO’S plan required BLANDON to take PUERTO CABEZAS, after which PEDRO ALTANIRANO’S column would reinforce BLANDON, via PIS PIS-SANTA CRUZ trail; a third column would thereafter join the forces from COCO RIVER, and the entire concentration of SANDINO forces would then proceed down the EAST COAST, the RIO GRANDE DISTRICT and take BLUEFIELDS. After taking PUERTO CABEZAS, BLANDON was to report to SAKLIN and give instructions to RIVERA, who, by that time, would have taken CAPE GRACIAS. On April 28, 1931, FAGOT met NIEVAS AVAREZ, a resident of LAS, just below WASPOOK, on COCO RIVER. NIEVES AVAREZ, a known SANDINO spy, stated that reinforcements, three hundred bandits, were then proceeding down COCO RIVER. The leaser of this force was not revealed.

After Abraham RIVERA was released from prison in BLUEFIELDS, he immediately associated himself with COCKBURN, and these two parties have been in constant communication and activity, together for over one year. A long conference between these two was held, just prior to RIVERA’S raid down the COCO RIVER in JANUARY 1931. The meeting took place at SAKLIN. After the Guardia patrol had finished its observations of the SAKLIN-COCO RIVER territory, COCKBURN immediately assumed executive powers, and actually changed one of “Comandantes” on the river,- installing a negro “FRANCIS” who had been imprisoned with COCKBURN, as comandante of SAKLIN after forcing the old agent of police to leave. It was this action that caused an open break between COCKBURN and the GOVERNOR, CAPE GRACIAS.

Becoming bolder, COCKBURN called reunions of the Indians (COCKBURN is well known as the “King of the Indians on the COCO RIVER”) from ANDRES and KISALIYI districts, and made propaganda openly in favor of SANDINO. One indian, “CLELAC”, inhabitant of SOUPOUCI, told FAGOT that the COCKBURN-RIVERA bandits had ransacked his house and assaulted his wife, and went to BLANDON to protest. CLELAC asked COCKBURN “How can those men be our brothers when they do these things?” COCKBURN is alleged to have consulted with BLANDON, who told COCKBURN to promise all of the Indians, as he did, that in three days time, if all indians would come over to the railroad line, they would receive loot from PUERTO CABEZAS in ample quantity to reimburse them for any losses suffered on the COCO RIVER. COCKBURN and RIVERA were together almost constantly during the bandit raiding activities on the COCO RIVER, and COCKBURN aided them with supplies and cattle and food.

COCKBURN’S stores are the only ones on the entire lower stretch of the COCO RIVER that have never been touched in bandit raids. COCKBURN’S son “J[???]S” was recognized among the bandits that raided CAPE GRACIAS. RUFINO COLONER, a Nicaraguan resident of KLUPKI, COCO RIVER, piloted the RIVERA bandits down the river, and now has some of the supplies taken from the radio office, CAPE GRACIAS, in his house.

FAGOT states that MOLLO SANZ showed him a SANDINO’S map, whereon seventy three marks indicative of units of SANDINO forces located in various parts of NICARAGA, were inscribed. There were five such markers near MANAGUA. FAGOT attempted to obtain the map, but did not succeed.

JOHN MARSTON.

IR31.06.01: 9-10