Trained to Kill: The Inside Story of CIA Plots Against Castro, Kennedy, and Che

Antonio Veciana fought on the front lines of the CIA’s decades-long secret war to destroy Fidel Castro, the bearded bogeyman who haunted America’s Cold War dreams. It was a time of swirling intrigue, involving US spies with license to kill, Mafia hit men, ruthless Cuban exiles—and the leaders in the crosshairs of all this dark plotting, Fidel Castro and John F. Kennedy.

Veciana transformed himself from an asthmatic banker to a bomb-making mastermind who headed terrorist attacks in Havana and assassination attempts against Castro, while building one of the era’s most feared paramilitary groups—all under the direction of the CIA.

In the end, Veciana became a threat—not just to Castro, but also to his CIA handler. Veciana was the man who knew too much. Suddenly he found himself a target—framed and sent to prison, and later shot in the head and left to die on a Miami street. When he was called before a Congressional committee investigating the Kennedy assassination, Veciana held back, fearful of the consequences. He didn’t reveal the identity of the CIA officer who directed him—the same agent Veciana observed meeting with Lee Harvey Oswald in Dallas before the killing of JFK.

Now, for the first time, Veciana tells all, detailing his role in the intricate game of thrones that aimed to topple world leaders and change the course of history.

Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history--books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Antonio Veciana is one of the most swashbuckling figures from the underground war against Fidel Castro in the 1960s and ‘70s. A former bank accountant in pre-revolutionary Havana, Veciana turned himself into a daring leader of the anti-Castro movement, organizing multiple assassination attempts and founding one of the most militant Cuban exile groups, Alpha 66, under the secret guidance of the CIA. He lives in Miami, Florida.

Carlos Harrison is a former reporter for the Miami Herald, where he won the Pulitzer Prize, and has worked as a national and international correspondent for Fox News. He is the author of fourteen books in English and Spanish, and has written numerous magazine articles and award-winning television documentaries. He lives in Pembroke Pines, Florida.