Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Thinks Thane Eugene Cesar Killed His Father And Is Out To Prove It
Was he the real assassin?
Getty The Kennedy family is an American dynasty. Some might say that they are one of the closest things we have to a royal family. But all their fame and prestige has not saved them from serious heartache. First, there was the tragic assassination of John F. Kennedy, and then, the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, and that was only the beginning. While Robert has been dead for years, he has not been forgotten. Who is Thane Eugene Cesar? He's the security guard who stood behind RFK when he was killed, and if you believe RFK's son, he is the man who truly killed his father.
1. Who Is Thane Eugene Cesar?
On the day when Robert F. Kennedy, brother to JFK and aspiring presidential candidate was assassinated in Los Angeles, California, a man named Sirhan Sirhan was arrested. Sirhan was tried and convicted of the crime, but now RFK's son Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is speaking out because he doesn't believe it was Sirhan at all. Instead, Kennedy believes it was the security guard, Thane Eugene Cesar, who was standing behind his father when the bullet struck. Kennedy shared this news on September 11th, 2019 literally minutes after he learned that Cesar died, sharing what he believed to be the truth on Instagram.
2. The Assassination of RFK
When RFK was shot, it was a terrible tragedy for the country. In addition to being a prominent politician with a serious shot at the presidency, Kennedy was already a former Attorney General who made the fight against poverty for Americans one of his guiding principles. For the Kennedy family, RFK represented a chance to keep the sun shining on their dynasty. His loss was one more blow to the family. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. recently went to visit Sirhan Sirhan in prison, apparently curious and unsatisfied with the man's conviction. His own unease with how the case was solved has people looking back at the case once more.
3. Why It Matters
While the theories behind his brother's assassination are more than well-known, fewer people are familiar with the various theories put forward in the case of the assassination of Robert Kennedy. For decades conspiracy theorists have implied that Cesar may have been more involved than anyone knew, but now with the victim's own son adding his voice to their questions, Cesar's involvement seems more plausible. In a curious twist, Sirhan Sirhan was recently in the news on his own after he was stabbed in prison by another inmate, a crime unconnected to the death Kennedy.
4. What's The Evidence?
Conspiracy theories aside, in order for RFK Jr.'s allegations to stick he's got to actually have evidence proving Cesar's involvement in the murder of his father or his claims are all for naught. It's going to be tricky since Sirhan Sirhan was actually arrested at the scene of the crime. In order for Kennedy's theory to be correct, you have to believe that there was a second shooting. Multiple witnesses who were there when Kennedy was shot claim that they saw Cesar raise his gun when Sirhan fired at Kennedy. Could Cesar's gun have discharged, accidentally killing Kennedy in the process?
5. How Sirhan Sirhan Fits In
As far as the law is concerned, Sirhan Sirhan is Kennedy's killer. He was convicted of the murder. He admitted to doing it at his trial. However, there are those who will argue that he only did this as part of his lawyer's strategy to argue for his diminished mental capacity. Sirhan's comments about the murder have been wildly inconsistent to say the least. At times he has even claimed not to have any memory of the actual assassination at all. That said, the eye witness accounts and the diary entries where he wrote "RFK must die" prior to the assassination are pretty damning.
6. The Questions Remaining
While some might argue that the case of who killed RFK has been solved, there are still niggling bits of evidence that have some people, including it would seem RFK Jr., still unpacking serious questions. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the chief questions are the facts that “the coroner reported that the fatal shot was fired less than one inch from Kennedy’s head behind his right ear. Four shots came from the rear but Sirhan fired a .22 from a few feet in front of Kennedy. The revolver held eight rounds, but a radio reporter’s tape recording of the shooting has sounds of what one audio expert describes as 13 shots and double shots."
Rebecca Jane Stokes is a writer living in Brooklyn, New York with her cats, Batman and Margot. She's an experienced generalist with a passion for lifestyle, geek news, pop culture, and true crime.