FBI files allege Knievel really was Evil

Evel Knievel never denied his scrapes with the law - indeed the motorcycle daredevil revelled in them - but he objected to a 1970's FBI investigation of whether he was involved in a string of beatings.

According to FBI files the US government came close to charging Knievel, who in turn threatened to sue the FBI for alleging he was connected to a crime syndicate, but neither case was ever filed.

Knievel died in November 2007 in Clearwater, Florida. He repeatedly denied his involvement with both investigators and victims.

One phone conversation reported in an FBI interview quoted Knievel as saying he "had had no control over 'the thing' and was not responsible for what just happened to (name removed)".

Knievel, immortalised as "America's Legendary Daredevil," wore red, white and blue for his death-defying stunts. He had a knack for outrageous stories and claimed to have been a swindler, a safe cracker and a holdup man.

His most publicised run-in with the law was when he beat up film studio executive Shelly Saltman with a baseball bat in the car park of 20th Century Fox in 1977.

Saltman promoted Knievel's infamous attempt to jump Idaho's Snake River Canyon and then wrote a book about the experience, angering Knievel by portraying him as "an alcoholic, a pill addict, an anti-Semite and an immoral person".

Knievel was sentenced to six months in jail and Saltman won a $12.75-million (about R120-million) judgment, but never received any money.

FBI investigators in Miami, Chicago and California interviewed Knievel's business associates and examined his phone records.

They believed he was involved in an attack in a Kansas City hotel room and a vicious beating in San Francisco, allegedly by Knievel associates. They also looked into an alleged threat made in Phoenix, Arizona but could find no evidence.

FBI files are available to the public after the death of their subjects but Knievel's file was heavily censored before release, with names and of witnesses and victims and their contact details blacked out, although some details of their experiences remained.

One man told agents he received a threatening phone call and was beaten shortly afterwards by an associate of Knievel who put him in hospital.

He wanted to remain anonymous, he said, because he had moved on to a career not associated with stunt jumping.

"They had me look at mug shots but I couldn't pick him out," he said. "It was a dark room and he wore sunglasses. All I know is he was big - I could describe his shoes better than anything."

Authorities wanted to charge Knievel with interfering with interstate commerce by robbery or extort someone the case was dropped due to insufficient evidence.

Knievel's widow, Krystal Kennedy-Knievel, who he married in 1999 and who was a pre-schooler at the time of the investigation, said she was unaware of any FBI investigation involving her husband and declined further comment. - Sapa-AP