Oswald was deeply involved—as the designated patsy.
They needed one since CIA guys (who I named in an earlier post) had no interest in being executed for the deed.
While E. Howard Hunt was responsible for onsite logistics it was James Jesus Angleton who “managed” Oswald and got him to the right place at the right time.
One amusing Oswald tidbit was when he asked for a specific attorney. That attorney was a well known Communist attorney, John Abt I believe. The reason it was amusing was because Oswald (as part of his counterintelligence duties) wrote to the Communist Party USA and asked to start a Fair Play for Cuba chapter in Dallas. They rejected him but he did it anyway.
The Abt request means that Oswald still believed he had to maintain his cover and that Angleton would get him out of the mess.
It was not until the instant that Ruby shot him that Oswald figured out he had been betrayed—and he knew Ruby personally so he knew exactly what happened.
Ruby was told to do the deed and that LBJ would give him a pardon—another betrayal.
Both Oswald and Ruby were hung out to dry.
Minor correction—the Fair Play for Cuban incident happened in New Orleans—the famous building that had a CIA office in it right next to where Oswald printed his flyers.
“The Abt request means that Oswald still believed he had to maintain his cover and that Angleton would get him out of the mess.”
Good observation.
“It was not until the instant that Ruby shot him that Oswald figured out he had been betrayed—and he knew Ruby personally so he knew exactly what happened.”
Yes, he knew him, and probably not just recently from Dallas. One of Oswald’s brothers was mobbed up in New Orleans and frequented one of Ruby’s clubs he was running for the mob over there.
But I’m not sure that was the moment Oswald figured out he was being hung out to dry. After all, he had previously made the famous “I’m just a patsy” comment to reporters, the night before I believe. I imagine he probably started to suspect things weren’t right when his handler failed to show up at the movie theater, but perhaps wasn’t certain until the end.