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The MJ-12 Affair: Facts, Questions, Comments


  
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                  -=ð P R O U D L Y  í  P R E S E N T S ð=-
  
  
  
 
 
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   THE CRUCIBLE <> * 416-237-1204 * 12/24/96 HST (1:250/440)
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                         THE MJ-12 AFFAIR:
 
                    Facts, Questions, Comments
 
 
 
 
                         Robert Hastings
 
                          March 1, 1989
 
 
 
 
      FACTS
      -----
 
      First, it has been established that "Falcon", one of the
      principle sources of the MJ-12 material, is Richard C. Doty,
      formerly attached to District 17 Air Force Office of Special
      Investigations (AFOSI) at Kirtland Air Force Base, Albuquerque,
      New Mexico. Sgt. Doty retired from the U.S. Air Force on
      October 1, 1988.
 
      How do I know that Doty is "Falcon"? During a recent telephone
      conversation, Linda Moulton Howe told me that when Sgt. Doty
      invited her to his office at Kirtland AFB in early April 1983,
      and showed her a purportedly authentic U.S. Government document
      on UFOs, he identified himself as code-name "Falcon" and stated
      that it was Bill Moore who had given him that name.
 
      Also, in early December 1988, a ranking member of the production
      team responsible for the "UFO Cover Up? -- Live" television
      documentary confirmed that Doty is "Falcon". This same individual
      also identified the second MJ-12 source who appeared on the
      program, "Condor", as Robert Collins who was, until recently, a
      Captain in the U.S. Air Force. Like Doty, he was stationed at
      KAFB when he left the service late last year.
 
      Both Doty and Collins deny any involvement in the MJ-12 affair.
      However, Linda Howe has issued a sworn affidavit, agreeing to
      testify under penalty of perjury, relating to the events during
      the course of her meeting with Richard "Falcon" Doty at KAFB in
      1983 (Enclosures A and B). Thus far, Doty has *not* issued a
      sworn affidavit, or agreed to testify under penalty of perjury,
      to re-enforce his denial that the events of his meeting with
      Howe occured as she has described them.
 
      For the moment, I will not identify the "UFO Coverup? -- Live"
      source who identified Doty as "Falcon" and Collins as "Condor".
      I do, however, encourage others to independently attempt to
      secure confirmation of the statements that he has already made.
      At least two producers connected with the documentary know the
      facts.
 
 
 
      QUESTIONS
      ---------
 
      Now that "Falcon" and "Condor" have been identified, it seems
      prudent to examine the past activities of Richard Doty and Bob
      Collins to see whether those activities tend to add to, or
      detract from, the credibility of the MJ-12 scenario that they
      have so vigorously promoted within the ufological community.
      That is, do their actions reflect a genuine attempt to release
      authentic above top secret information to the public or, on the
      other hand, suggest a disinformation campaign designed to
      confuse and mislead?
 
      Let's begin with Doty.  Sgt. Richard Charles Doty first received
      widespread attention after he wrote the now well-known AFOSI
      Complaint Form relating to UFO sightings near Kirtland AFB in
      1980 (Enclosure C).  This document, typed and signed by Doty,
      takes on new significance in the light of an incident known as
      the "Weitzel Hoax".  Briefly summarized, this odd tale unfolded
      as follows: In 1981, the Aerial Phenomena Research Organization
      received an anonymous letter from an individual who claimed to
      be a USAF airman assigned to the 1550th Aircrew Training and
      Testing Wing at Kirtland AFB (Enclosure D). The writer further
      claimed to have had a rather dramatic UFO sighting, together
      with a Craig Weitzel and others.  The letter relates that Weitzel
      reported the sighting to a "Mr. Dody" (sic) at Kirtland AFB OSI.
 
      Researcher Benton Jamison located and contacted Weitzel in 1985
      (Enclosure E). Weitzel stated that he did indeed report a UFO
      sighting to Sgt. Richard Doty in 1980, but that the actual
      incident in no way resembled the CEIII experience described in
      the anonymous letter.  Weitzel also denies that he was subsequently
      contacted by a mysterious individual who demanded that he turn
      over any photographs that he might have taken of the UFO, as the
      letter claims.
 
      So, it would appear that the writer of the anonymous letter,
      whomever he was, took a real event and greatly embellished it
      for some reason.
      
      And why is this letter so significant as regards questions about
      Sgt. Richard Doty's credibility as a source for allegedly secret
      government documents?  Simply because careful analysis of the
      anonymous letter reveals that it was almost certainly typed on
      the same typewriter used by Doty to complete the 1980 OSI
      Complaint Form.
 
      Enclosure F is a report by researcher Brad Sparks which address
      typeface irregularities and stylistic traits that are identical
      in both the anonymous airman's letter and Sgt. Doty's report.
      Actually, Spark's typeface analysis is incomplete. In addition
      to the irregular "u" that he identifies, it can be seen that the
      letters "gh", as in the word "sighting", are jammed together in
      identical fashion in both the letter and the report. Lower case
      "o" is also jammed against various letters that follow it in
       the "Weitzel" letter and Doty's Complaint Form.
 
       A professionally-conducted analysis of these flaws should be
       able to determine, with a reasonable degree of certainty, whether
       an "anonymous airman" used Doty's typewriter to compose his
       overdrawn tale. If this fact can be established then two obvious
       questions arise:  1) How and why did the unidentified airman
       from the 1550th Aircrew Training and Testing Wing gain access to
       Sgt. Doty's writer at OSI?  2) On the other hand, did Doty himself
       type the letter and, therefore, attempt to perpetrate a hoax for
       some unknown reason?
 
       Because it has been established that Richard Doty is "Falcon",
       the chief source for the MJ-12 material, it now seems imperative
       thoroughly investigate this incident to resolve these unanswered
       questions.  The second question, in particular, is of obvious
       importance.  Perhaps the Fund For UFO Research, which has recently
       solicited contributions to further investigate the MJ-12 affair,
       would consider funding an expert typographical analysis of both
       the anonymous letter and Doty's Complaint Form to determine
       whether or not there is a link between the two.
 
       Even more disturbing than the implications of the "Weitzel Hoax"
       is an incident that raises the strongest doubts about Richard
       Doty's credibility as a source of information and documents
       relating to the U.S. Government's involvement with UFOs. Infor-
       mation about this incident comes from Dr. Bruce Maccabee and
       links Doty to the so-called Ellsworth AFB hoax.  According to
       Maccabee, Bill Moore has acknowledged that Richard Doty confessed
       to forging the document that describes the alleged events
       connected with the Ellsworth case (Enclosure G).  Doty apparently
       claims that the UFO incident there actually occurred, just as
       described in the document, and that he only wanted to bring it
       to the public attention.  He, therefore, proceeded to type the
       "document" himself, incorporating the "facts" that he claimed
       to know to be true, and then released the bogus report to
       various researchers. Enclosure H is an expose written by Bob
       Pratt, and published in the January 1984 issues of the *MUFON
       Journal*, describing his investigation of this hoax.
 
       If it can be established, beyond any doubt, that Richard Doty
       forged the Ellsworth AFB document, what would that say about
       his credibility as a chief source for the MJ-12 material, under
       the guise of "Falcon"?
 
 
 
       MORE QUESTIONS
       --------------
 
       In addition to the serious questions raised by the "Weitzel"
       letter and the Ellsworth AFB hoax, there also exist fundamental
       discrepancies between information provided by "Falcon" and the
       "facts" contained in the so-called Eisenhower briefing paper.
 
       The Briefing Document (Enclosure I) was purportedly written by
       alleged MJ-12 member Admiral Roscoe Hillenkoetter, in November
       1952, for presentation to then President Elect Dwight D.
       Eisenhower.  Among other things, it states that two UFOs had
       crashed, one in July 1947, near Roswell, New Mexico; the other
       in December 1950, on the Texas-Mexico border.
 
       Linda Howe states, however, that when Sgt. Doty invited her to
       his office at Kirtland AFB OSI, in April 1983, he provided her
       with information that contradicts this version of events.  Howe
       states that Doty confirmed the existence of a secret government
       group called MJ-12 and then opened a desk drawer and produced
       a document entitled "Briefing Paper for the President for the
       President of the United States". (*Not* the Eisenhower document).
 
       Howe states that she was allowed to look through the alleged
       "Briefing Paper" but told not to take notes.  She states that a
       part of the document was a catalog of crashed UFO cases,
       including one near Aztec, New Mexico in 1948 (or '49).
       
       Now, if the *Eisenhower* briefing paper is genuine and was
       indeed presented to Ike in November 1952, why was no mention
       of the Aztec crash contained in it?  Is it plausible that the
       soon-to-be president would be let in on a secret of paramount
       importance --that of alien visitation-- but not be given this
       important information?  Why would he be told about two UFO
       crashes but not about a third?  Why would the Aztec crash, if
       it did occur, be any less significant than the other two
       cases mentioned in the briefing paper?
 
       In short, if the briefing paper that Sgt. Doty showed to
       Linda Howe was genuine, what does that say about the accuracy
       (and authenticity) of the Eisenhower document?  If, on the
       other hand the former was bogus and was meant to mislead
       Howe for some reason, what does that say about Richard "Falcon"
       Doty's reliability as a source for MJ-12 material as a whole?
 
       At the risk of being redundant, may I again point out that
       Linda Howe has sworn out an affidavit indicating a willingness
       to testify under penalty of perjury, as to the truthfulness of
       her statement relating to her meeting with "Falcon" at Kirtland
       OSI.
 
       About Robert "Bob" Collins, I know very little.  I have
       established at the time of his departure from the U.S. Air
       Force, he was assigned to the Plasma Physics group at Sandia
       National Laboratory located at Kirtland AFB.  Linda Howe
       states that in November 1987, Collins was "frantically" trying
       to get her to meet with him in Albuquerque.  At that meeting,
       also attended by John Lear, Collins showed the two some MJ-12
       documents, primarily relating to a live alien allegedly held
       captive by the U.S. Government.  According to Howe, Collins
       stated that he had worked "behind the scenes" with Bill Moore
       for years.
 
 
 
       MOORE QUESTIONS
       ---------------
 
       So, how does Mr. Moore fit into the MJ-12 jigsaw puzzle?  On
       the face of it, he appears to be just a UFO researcher who has
       been approached by questionable government sources.  I have
       information, however, that raises doubts about his public image
       as merely a "civilian" researcher.  Indeed, it appears as if he
       may be working (or have worked) for one of the U.S. intelligence
       agencies. I base this statement on the following information:
 
       In December 1985, I read an article by Barry Greenwood about an
       allegedly ultra-secret government group called "MJ-12".  The
       article was based on information provided by researcher Lee
       Graham.  In March 1986, I met with Mr. Graham at his home, in
       the hope that he would elaborate on the information contained
       in Greenwood's article. I found Graham to be open, honest, and
       sincere.  While I do not agree with many of his conclusions
       regarding MJ-12, I know that he is definitely not the "kook" or
       "space cadet" that some have branded him.  On the contrary, his
       statements to me that evening were logical and down-to-earth.
       I simply disagree with some of his premises.
 
       As we talked, Lee provided me with copies of some of the
       "documents" that have come to be associated with the MJ-12
       affair, including the "Project Snowbird" paper and the
       "Project Aquarius" TWX.  When I asked who had given him the
       documents, he would only say that the person worked for the
       government, as an intelligence operative or information
       conduit.
 
       Over the next fifteen months I called Graham several times,
       to ask whether there had been any developments regarding the
       MJ-12 material. Perhaps the most noteworthy event during that
       period was the visit to Graham by two agents from the Defense
       Investigative Services (DIS).  The agents were apparently sent
       to find out why Graham, who holds a "Q" security clearance,
       was in possession of alleged secret government documents that
       had not been properly declassified.
 
       In early June, 1987, I called Lee again.  This was shortly
       before Bill Moore's press conference in Burbank, during which
       he intended to unveil the "Eisenhower briefing paper" and other
       MJ-12 material.  During this call, without any prompting from
       me,  Graham revealed that the person who had given him the
       documents was in fact Bill Moore.  I was puzzled.  Graham had
       previously said, on several occasions, that he had gotten the
       documents from an individual who worked for the U.S. Government,
       presumably in an intelligence capacity.  As far as I knew, Bill
       Moore did not work for the government in *any* capacity.
 
       I asked Graham to explain this discrepancy.  He unhesitatingly
       replied that when Moore first approached him with the documents
       he (Moore) showed him some kind of government ID card, with Bill
       Moore's picture on it but an alias typed beneath it.  According
       to Graham, Moore indicated that he was working for the U.S.
       Government for the purpose of releasing sensitive UFO-related
       documents to the public.
 
       I began to take notes.  So incredulous was I about all of this
       that I asked Lee to repeat his statements, which he did.  I then
       asked him which agency Moore claimed to work for.  He responded
       that Bill Moore's ID badge was identical to the badge shown him
       by the two DIS agents.  When I was skeptically retorted, "You
       mean to tell me that Moore's badge looked like the DIS badges?",
       he replied, "No, it was identical to them."
 
       Graham went on to state that Moore claimed that he (Moore) had
       been "flagged" in U.S. intelligence agencies' computer files so
       that other operatives would not stumble over and inadvertently
       expose his operations.  Lee went on to say that he had once been
       introduced to Moore's "superior" whom Moore would only identify
       as "Richard".
 
       At the conclusion of this rather baffling phone conversation
       with Graham, I specifically asked him whether there was anything
       that we had discussed that I should not repeat.  He answered,
       "No", and indicated that he would send me materials relating to
       his investigation by the DIS, Bill Moore's first approach to
       him, and other, related matters.  A week later, I received the
       items that Graham had promised and found that references to
       Moore, by name, had been censored by Lee.  By this time,
       however, I had already spoken to Barry Greenwood, Peter Gersten,
       Bob Todd, and others about the details of Moore's approach to
       Graham.  Apparently word got back to Moore about these
       conversations because I later heard that he had vehemently
       denied that he was a government operative and claimed that he
       was only playing a "joke" on a gullible Lee Graham.  The
       "government ID", according to Moore, was a laminated MUFON card.
 
       Enclosure J is a letter, dated May 8, 1986, that Graham sent
       to the DIS in which he discusses Moore's first approach to him.
       Graham mentions that when he was interviewed by the two DIS
       agents, he told them about Moore and his ID card.  Graham then
       goes on to ask why Moore had not been interrogated about his
       possession of allegedly secret government documents, copies of
       which he had given to Graham. (One might also ask why Moore had
       not been questioned about his impersonating a government agent,
       if in fact his ID card was bogus as he now claims.)
 
       Enclosure K is a second letter from Graham to the DIS, dated
       October 19, 1986, exactly seven months after Lee was interviewed
       by the two DIS agents.  In it, Graham again mentions that Moore
       has not been interrogated by the DIS over this lengthy period.
       He concludes that it is because Moore does indeed work for the
       U.S. Government, just as he had been told by Moore himself.
 
       Graham has a point.  If Moore was only "joking" when he showed
       Lee the bogus ID card (an ID that looked so authentic that
       Graham calls it "identical") to a DIS badge) one would think
       that Moore would have been questioned by the DIS about this
       potentially serious matter. If Moore was impersonating a
       government intelligence operative as he disseminated "documents",
       then surely an intelligence agency would be interested in
       pursuing the matter. And yet, according to Lee Graham, seven
       months after he had told the DIS about Moore and his badge, no
       one had apparently approached Moore about this incident.  Why?
 
       One might reasonably postulate that this apparent lack of
       follow-up by the DIS suggests that Moore does (or did) work for
       the U.S. Government, just as he claimed to Lee Graham. If this
       turns out to be true, however, given the highly questionable
       track record of one of Moore's chief sources, "Falcon", one
       must ask whether information, or disinformation, that he has
       been disseminating in this regard, one might also ask why did
       Moore not immediately dis-associate himself from Richard Doty
       once he had discoveredthat he had forged the Ellsworth AFB
       document?  Instead, Moore later presented Richard "Falcon"
       Doty on national television as a reliable intelligence source
       of information about UFOs.  Why?
 
       Another serious issue involving Bill Moore that needs to be
       reviewed concerns the so-called "Project Aquarius" document
       (Enclosure L).  This paper contains the first reference to
       "MJ-12" to be widely circulated within the ufological community.
 
       On the face of it, the Project Aquarius document is a teletype
       message, sent by AFOSI Headquarters to Kirtland AFB OSI, dealing
       with analyses of UFO photographs and films taken by Dr. Paul
       Bennewitz.  However, AFOSI HQ denies that it sent the message
       and calls it a forgery.  It now appears that, in this case,
       AFOSI is telling the truth.
 
       In a letter to attorney Peter Gersten, dated April 4, 1983,
       D. Hall states that Bill Moore privately admitted that it was
       *he* who did a "cut and paste job" and then "retyped" the
       document (Enclosure M).  If this is true, why would Moore do
       such a thing?  If a genuine message was sent to Kirtland AFB
       OSI, dealing with Bennewitz' photos, MJ-12, and the rest, why
       didn't Moore disseminate it in its original form?  Wouldn't
       the "retyped" version of if, if discovered to be such, raise
       doubts about the credibility of the information contained in
       it?
 
       If Moore did "retype" the document, can he now produce the
       original to substantiate the accuracy of the information
       contained in "his" version?  If so, it will be interesting to
       see whether the "original" document will be confirmed as
       authentic by AFOSI Headquarters.
 
       I should point out that I possess additional information about
       the Project Aquarius document that I intend to withold until
       Moore has produced (or failed to produce) the "original".
 
 
 
       A RESPONSE TO BILL MOORE'S OPEN LETTER
       --------------------------------------
 
       Just as I was concluding this missive, I received a copy of
       Bill Moore's open letter to those who would question his
       activities.  In response to his criticisms and pleas, I would
       like to make the following points:
 
       First, Moore states that he is not a "forger", a "hoaxer", a
       "fabricator", or a "counterfeiter".  Whether he is any of
       those things, I will leave to others to decide.  I would ask,
       however, if he could suggest an appropriate word to describe
       his actions when he did a cut/paste/retype job on the Aquarius
       document?  If Moore believed that he was "the only one on the
       right track", as Doty flattered him, then that's his problem.
       If, however, he has engaged in the altering of government
       documents before releasing them to an unsuspecting public,
       then that becomes a problem for all of us.  The credibility
       of *any* document, even when released via the Freedom of
       Information Act, will come into question in the minds of many
       once it has been learned that a "leading ufologist" has
       tampered with this or that document.  And yet, Moore has the
       absolute nerve to rail against those who would question his
       "methods".
 
       Second, Moore feigns self-righteous indignation when he denies
       that he is "some sort of government agent".  But clearly, he
       has only himself to blame for this "rumor".  *If* the ID badge
       that he showed Lee Graham was fake, and *if* he was lying when
       he claimed to be an intelligence operative, does he now have
       any right to bemoan the fact that his escapade has finally
       come to light?  I, for one, do not believe for an instant
       Moore's laminated MUFON card story.  That explanation smacks
       of the ridiculous "red herring" about there being *two* Dotys
       that Moore offered up when the "Falcon"/Doty connection was
       first suggested publicly by Barry Greenwood in 1987.  While
       I am sure that there are *plenty* of Richard Dotys in this
       world, only *one* is the MJ-12 source "Falcon".
 
       Third, Moore calls efforts by researchers to learn the identity
       of his MJ-12 sources "inappropriate" and states that for
       "obvious reasons" his response to these inquiries will be
       "no comment".  This posture, of course, also conveniently
       shields from scrutiny the fact that his "primary" source for
       the MJ-12 material, Richard Doty, has apparently acknowledged
       forging the Ellsworth AFB document -- a fact that Moore himself
       knew *at least* as early as March, 1988.  In view of this
       revelation, the attempt by Moore to project the appearance
       that he is merely protecting a confidential government
       source rings hollow.  Indeed, it seems likely that his desire
       to avoid embarrassment and well-deserved recriminations is
       a chief motive for his "no comment" stance.
 
 
 
       SUMMARY
       -------
 
       So, what does the MJ-12 affair add up to?  I agree with Bill
       Moore it would be premature at this time to draw conclusions.
       It would not, however, be premature to carefully consider the
       following facts:
 
       1)  A handful of "documents" have mysteriously surfaced
       relating to an allegedly ultra-secret UFO policy group,
       code-name "MJ-12".  No government agency will confirm the
       papers' authenticity and the National Archives has noted
       several discrepancies about one of them, the so-called
       "Cutler memo" (Enclosures N and O).
 
       2)  Another of the documents, the "Project Aquarius" message,
       has been discovered to be fake, in the sense that it has been
       altered by Bill Moore before being released to the public.
       As I write, there is no publicly available evidence that the
       original document Moore "retyped" was itself authentic.
 
       3)  The primary source for orally-transmitted MJ-12 material,
       code-name "Falcon", has been determined to be Richard C. Doty.
       According to Dr. Bruce Maccabee, Bill Moore has acknowledged
       that Doty confessed to forging the Ellsworth AFB document.
       Further, Doty's typewriter at Kirtland AFB OSI has been
       implicated in the "Weitzel" hoax, and he has provided infor-
       mation to Linda Howe that contradicts the "facts" contained
       in the Eisenhower briefing paper.
 
       4)  The primary researcher involved in the MJ-12 affair, Bill
       Moore, has, by his own account, faked a government ID card and
       passed himself off as an intelligence operative to at least
       one individual for a period of over two years.  Whether Moore
       showed Lee Graham a laminated MUFON card, as he now claims,
       or a genuine government badge, of some type remains open to
       question.
 
       At the beginning of this letter, I asked whether the actions
       of those involved with the MJ-12 affair tended to suggest a
       genuine release of authentic UFO-related information to the
       public or, on the other hand, a disinformation campaign ( or
       for that matter, a simple hoax).  I hope that those who are
       truly committed to finding the answer to this question will
       now renew their efforts.  Hard questions must be put to Moore.
       Evasive answers and self-serving pronouncements from him
       should no longer be tolerated.  I trust that those who have
       acted in good faith, including Jamie Shandera and Stanton
       Friedman, will be among his toughest questioners.
 
 
       
       I may reached at:
 
 
             6200 Eubank Boulevard NE
             Apt. 833
             Albuquerque, NM 87111
             (505) 291-9335
 
 
       signed: R. Hastings
 
 
       cc:
 
       Walt Andrus
       Robert Bletchman
       Larry Bryant
       Paul Cerny
       Marge Christensen
       Jerry Clark
       T. Scott Crain
       Tom Deuley
       Ann Druffel
       Larry Fawcett
       Raymond Fowler
       Stanton Friedman
       Peter Gersten
       Timothy Good
       Lee Graham
       Barry Greenwood
       Loren Gross
       Richard Haines
       Richard Hall
       Budd Hopkins
       Linda Howe
       David Jacobs
       Ben Jamison
       John Lear
       Bruce Maccabee
       Bill Moore
       Jim Moseley
       Ted Phillips
       Robert Pratt
       Jenny Randles
       Mark Rodeghier
       Jamie Shandera
       Brad Sparks
       Dennis Stacy
       William Steinman
       Whitley Strieber
       Len Stringfield
       Michael Swords
       Bob Todd
       Ron Westrum
       Fred Whiting
       Jo Ann Williamson
       Todd Zechel
 
 
 
 
                              3/18/89
                             MEMORANDUM
 
                           Robert Hastings
 
   TO: The addressees of my recent letter on the MJ-12 Affair
 
   RE: A clarification
 
 
 
 
 
 
         In my recent open letter I mistakenly referred to Lee
         Graham's security clearance as type "Q".  Mr. Graham
         has asked that I send out a clarification on this point.
         I regret the error.
 
         Mr. Graham has also expressed the opinion that I "mis-
         represented some of the things" that he communicated to me.
 
         I have reviewed the portion of my letter that deals with
         Mr. Graham's statements to me, and I consider my account
         of them to be fair and accurate.  While I am certain that
         neither he nor I could re-construct, word for word, our
         conversations after this lapse of time, I nevertheless
         stand by my portrayal of our talks.
 
         As I have already indicated, I consider Mr. Graham to be
         an honest and sincere individual.  I accept the fact that
         his recollection of our communications may differ from
         mine on some points.
 
 
         signed: Robert Hastings
 

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