An Enormous Crime The Definitive Account of

THENEW YORK TIMESBESTSELLER An Enormous Crimeis nothing less than shocking. Based on thousands of pages of public and previously classified documents, it makes an utterly convincing case that when the American government withdrew its forces from Vietnam, it knowingly abandoned hundreds of POWs to their fate. The product of twenty-five years of research by former Congressman Bill Hendon and attorney Elizabeth A. Stewart, this book brilliantly reveals the reasons why these American soldiers and airmen were held back by the North Vietnamese at Operation Homecoming in 1973, what these brave men have endured, and how administration after administration of their own government has turned its back on them. This authoritative expose is based on open-source documents and reports, and thousands of declassified intelligence reports and satellite imagery, as well as author interviews and personal experience.An Enormous Crimeis a singular work, telling a story unlike any other in our history: ugly, harrowing, and true.

Former U.S. Rep. Bill Hendon (R-NC) served two terms on the U.S. House POW/MIA Task Force (1981–1982 and 1985–1986), as a consultant on POW/MIA affairs with an office in the Pentagon (1983), and as a full-time intelligence investigator assigned to the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs (1991–1992). He has traveled to South and Southeast Asia thirty-three times on behalf of America’s POWs and MIAs. Hendon is considered the nation’s foremost authority on intelligence relating to American POWs held after Operation Homecoming and is an expert on the Vietnamese and Laotian prison systems. He lives in Washington, D.C.

Elizabeth A. Stewart’s father, Col. Peter J. Stewart (USAF), is missing in action in North Vietnam. His name appears on Panel 6E, Line 12, of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. She has spent more than two decades researching intelligence relating to American POWs and MIAs. Her efforts have taken her from Capitol Hill to Cambodia, from the South China Sea to the presidential palace in Hanoi, and to the most remote regions of northern Vietnam. An attorney, she lives in Winter Haven, Florida.

Preface	p. xv

Introduction	p. 3
The POW Hostage Plan and Its Implementation	p. 11
Hanoi Bound	p. 19
American POWs Captured by the Pathet Lao	p. 26
American POWs in North Vietnam	p. 28
1972: The War Draws to a Close	p. 46

January 1973: Peace at a Very High Price	p. 63
February 1973: A Historic Journey to Hanoi	p. 76
February-March 1973: The "Most Tortured" Issue, "The Toughest Sale"	p. 82
Mid- to Late March 1973: The Returnee Debriefs Tell of Hundreds of American POWs Held Back	p. 92
Spring 1973: "A 'Cancer' on the Presidency"	p. 98
Spring, Summer, and Fall 1973: The Collapse of the JEC Talks - The Collapse of the Paris Peace Accords	p. 108
1974: The End of the LIne for Richard Nixon	p. 117
January-April 1975: The End of the Line for South Vietnam	p. 120

May-December 1975: "Cuba Suggested to Us to Keep Them Back" - Congress Investigates the Fate of the POWs and MIAs	p. 127
1976: Montgomery Continues His Investigation - American POWs Seen in Captivity in Both North and South Vietnam	p. 140
1977: A New President Addresses the Matter of the Unlisted, Unreturned POWs	p. 156
1978: The Sightings of the Unlisted, Unreturned POWs Continue - The Refugee Exodus Begins	p. 175
1979: A Prison System in Chaos - Convincing Evidence Finally Reaches Washington	p. 188
1980: Rescue Plans	p. 206

1981: "Gasoline"	p. 215
1982: "The Principle of Reciprocity"	p. 224
1983: A Dramatic Change of Course	p. 232
1984: Tragedy at Arlington - A Missed Opportunity in the Oval Office	p. 248
1985: "Progress" in the Search for Remains - Freshmen, Stonewalled on POWs, Turn to Perot - McFarlane Drops His Guard	p. 266
1986: Trench Warfare	p. 287
1987: Perot to Hanoi - A Bombshell from General Vessey - No Evidence?	p. 323
1988: "Just Two Bar of Silvers for Each Man"	p. 347
1989: "...The Statute of Limitations Has Been Reached"	p. 367
1990: Sabotaging the Helms/Grassley Investigations - The Bush Final Report on POWs - Thach's Historic Visit to Washington	p. 378

1991: One Last Chance to Save the Unlisted, Unreturned POWs	p. 399
1992: The Fragging	p. 408
1993-1995: "The Vietnamese Know How to Count"	p. 465
1995-2005: "War Legacies"	p. 480
Epilogue: A Proposal for President Bush	p. 483
A Message from the Authors	p. 487
Notes	p. 489
Acknowledgments	p. 565
Index	p. 567
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

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An Enormous Crime The Definitive Account of American POWs Abandoned in Southeast Asia

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