August 14, 2010

The Malmstrom AFB Missile/UFO Incident, March 1967

According to Ufology researcher/writer Robert Hastings, on March 16, 1967, the appearance of UFOs at Echo-Flight nuclear missile facility allegedly shut down the missile silo. Robert Hasting’s information comes from a man named Robert Salas who claimed he witnessed the event.

Background of the Malmstrom AFB Missile/UFO Case

The son of one of the officers who was involved in the Echo flight incident, named James Carlson, took Hastings and Salas to task for those claims. Carlson contends that both his father and retired Col. Walt Figel, the other officer involved in the incident, both reported that there were no UFOs.

See Tim Printy’s March-April 2010 edition of SUNlite for more background.

Hastings has denied that James was ever in touch with the second witness, Col. Walt Figel. James Carlson provided RU investigators with records of his correspondence with Figel, which revealed that Figel confirmed James Carlson’s interpretation of how the event actually occurred.

In March of 2010, James writes:

Robert Hastings has made much of the fact that I have refused to interview his witness, Col. (Ret.) Walter Figel, Jr., regarding his recollections of the Echo Flight Incident on March 16, 1967. To be precise, he has written “I note first that James Carlson still refuses to call retired Col. Walt Figel, to hear from his own lips, as I did in October 2008, that while on alert as the DMCCC at Malmstrom’s Echo Flight, in March 1967, he spoke with two individuals via the phone in the capsule–a missile maintenance team member and an arriving SAT team member–about a “large round object” that was hovering over one of the flight’s LFs. James’ father, Eric Carlson, lied to him some time ago–telling him that no UFOs were present when all 10 missiles dropped-off alert status–and so James has been slandering and libeling everyone who disputes that version of events ever since, Including one former MIMS tech whom I interviewed a few years ago.” He stated as well: “So, James Carlson, rant on. If you ever find the courage to call Col. Figel please let me know. I will provide his phone number, as I first offered to do a year-and-a-half ago.”

Frankly, I’ve never needed his assistance to contact Col. Figel — I’ve managed to do so quite easily on my own. The fact that I have been reticent to discuss the matter in more detail has very little to do with cowardice. I have, in fact, contacted Col. Figel, but didn’t feel that it would be very ethical to discuss in detail the event he recalls without securing first his complete cooperation, authority, and permission to do so. Having secured that this very evening, I am now prepared to discuss the matter in full. I can also add, very strongly, that my father never lied to me about anything, as Hastings claims, and that his recollections match exactly those of Col. Figel’s. I’ve “slandered and libeled” nobody, and I can say with complete confidence today that both Robert Hastings and Robert Salas have knowingly mislead their entire audience into believing a lie they were well aware of in order to sell their books.

James reported that Col Figel confirmed that:

1. Col. Figel does not believe UFOs were “even remotely associated with the Echo Flight Incident, or any other equipment failures at Malmstrom.”
2. Col. Figel confirmed that he has no interest in Ufology and is not a fan of the UFO crowd.
3. Figel stated, “I have read both of their books. There are many inaccurate statements and events in the books. I have told them both that.”
4. He also stated that Salas was “never involved in any of them (the flights) at all.”

August 2010 – James Carlson Reveals more of the Figel Communications

In August of 2010, James learned that more rumors had spread regarding his communications with Figel. Specifically, there were rumors floating about that the communications had never taken place. Once again, James entered the RU forums to set the record straight, and wrote the following commentary in a post on RealityUncovered forums:

“Gentlemen, and Ladies, In some discussions I’ve had with people in other forums, I’ve discovered that there a lot of people out in the world who are convinced that I have not had any discussions with COL.(Ret.) Walter Figel, Jr., and that my declarations to the contrary are lies. Robert Hastings has apparently decided that this is going to be stand he takes. In a recent commentary, he has stated – as he has for months – that I have never spoken with Walt Figel, who has confirmed everything that Robert Hastings has asserted regarding the Echo Flight Incident on March 16, 1967.

This is patently untrue and can be easily shown as such. Robert Hastings has knowingly published versions of this event that he has been told are false by both my father and Walt Figel, and his claims to the contrary are little more than silly attacks that are intended to delay the ruination of his and Robert Salas’ Echo Flight claims until after his pathetic little dog and pony show at the National Press Club in Washington, DC next month. The fact that he would do so at the expense of another man’s reputation doesn’t surprise me. He and Robert Salas have done this before.

The fact that he would do such a thing that is so easily countered also doesn’t surprise me, for reasons I won’t go into. I think everybody knows my opinion of him. It would very, very easy for Hastings and Salas to prove that I am lying by simply contacting Walt Figel, and getting a statement from him that I have been lying about his assertions for the past four-and-a-half months, but neither man has done this. In fact, some months ago Robert Hastings insisted that he would – within a matter of days – release statements and transcripts of his discussions with Walt Figel that would prove his case. He has failed to do so, not because he’s too busy (frankly, it wouldn’t take that long), but because he can’t.

He knows exactly what Walt Figel told me, because he and Robert Salas called him the very next day. It was my certainty that these two have made claims that not only could not be supported, but were transparently contrary to the witness statements that they have published in support of their claims, that originally motivated me to call Walt Figel in the first place – that and Hastings’ insistence that I was afraid to all Figel, because Figel would tell me that my Dad had lied to me. I wanted to confirm my conviction that he had never made the claims regarding UFO interference that Hastings and Salas have consciously and knowingly misrepresented in order to make their claims seem more likely.

This is deceptive – a judgment I reached immediately upon discussing the matter with Walt Figel, who insisted that not only were UFOs not involved at Echo Flight in March 1967, but that he has discussed this with both Hastings and Salas, and was ignored. That escalates the entire incident beyond simple deceit to one of conscious and knowing invention, an invention that has lent their claims greater support among those factions demanding public disclosure of classified documents.

Using a blatant “lie” to give support to such factions is, in my opinion, nearly to the point of a treasonable offense. For these reasons, I have decided to publish the totality of my communications with both Walt Figel, the deputy commander of Echo Flight on March 16, 1967, and Frederick Meiwald, who, according to Robert Salas, was the commander of Oscar Flight on March 24-25, 1967, which is when Salas asserts a UFO took 8-10 missiles offline, an event that emptied the command post of all armed security personnel, and ultimately resulted in the injury of one security policeman to such an extent that he had to be evacuated from the site by helicopter.

You would think that if a man was injured by a UFO during his watch after that same UFO had emptied the command post of personnel, so they could confront the UFO, fully armed, that he would probably believe that the UFO was not a figment of the entire command post’s group imagination. That’s not the case, though.

Meiwald isn’t exactly the brilliant confirmation of these events that Salas has made him out to be. Robert Hastings has recently claimed – again – that my interview with Walt Figel did not occur. He claims that Walt Figel has confirmed his entire UFO story regarding Echo Flight, and that my father has been lying about this incident for forty years. If this is true, it should be extremely easy to prove by simply calling Walt Figel, and asking him.

In fact, when I first gave details of my interview with Figel last March, Hastings stated that he could easily prove that he was correct and I was either lying or being deceptive, and that he could, and would, prove this within a matter of days. He said this in an email to the gentlemen who operate this website, Reality Uncovered, stating specifically “I will post a comprehensive rebuttal to James’ flawed claims in the next few days, providing verbatim excerpts from the conversations. I may even make key portions of the original audio tape available online.“ That was four-and-a-half months ago, and he hasn’t even provided a muted summary. Since then he has continued to insist that he would prove the errors in my assertions, saying, at one time or another that I was lying, was being deceptive, misunderstood what Figel was saying, etc., etc.

So prove it, Robert. Or are you just a lot of talk, without any evidence at all? Four-and-a-half months, Robert, and you’ve done nothing except call me names and insist that I’m a liar. If you are indeed a paragon of virtue, then prove it – if I’m lying, then certainly Walt Figel would agree with you, yes? How much time would it take to simply confirm that one part of your slanders? A couple of minutes? One telephone call? Do what you claimed you could easily do months ago – or are you just making noise and killing time so that those people who donated money for the fraudulent dog and pony show that you and Salas are organizing for the National Press Club in Washington, DC next month won’t have grounds to sue you? After all, if someone could show that you solicited donations based on assertions that you knew were false, which is pretty much what Walt Figel’s statements to me assert, then you’ve been soliciting funds on false pretenses, haven’t you? And not just you – Robert Salas, too.“

To be continued…

Comments (5)

Filed under: UFOlogy, UFOs — Tags: echo flight, Hoax, james carlson, Robert Hastings, UFOs — RyanDube @ 2:01 pm

July 7, 2010

Richard Theilmann & The Naval Order

The following excerpt is taken from an email exchange between William H. Schmidt and RU investigator Andy Murray. Bill is the commander of the New York Naval Order Commandery and former prosecutor and judge for Bergen County in New Jersey. The New York Commandery is the organisation Richard Theilmann frequently visited wearing full naval uniform and a vast array of medals and ribbons; medals and ribbons he had supposedly earned through various acts of gallantry and military campaigns he was allegedly part of.

Andy has been in regular contact with Mr. Schmidt as part of the ongoing investigation into the Source A hoax.

From: William H Schmidt [mailto:williamhschmidt@********]

Sent: Monday, July 05, 2010 10:00 PM

To: ‘Andrew Murray’

Subject: RE: FBI agent

Andy:

Special Agent Rand**** called me late in the afternoon on Friday. He said he interviewed Theilmann and that he admitted that he is not now and never served in any branch of the US Armed Forces, reserve or active and that his only contact with the military was as a defense contractor with Grumman. He said he called Special Agent Co**** of NCIS but has not hear back from him.

…

He does not believe that the US Attorney will take jurisdiction. He said he admonished Theilmann about wearing the uniform and medals. I doubt that will suffice. It seems that the agent visited the residence and left his business card…probably Tuesday. Thereafter I got a text message from him telling me that it seems I got caught up in the UFO Smear Campaign, that he was sorry and that it would all workout. I may be wrong but I believe that indicates he will maintain his deception and try to blame it on the government discrediting him…something he set in motion already.

[Other information snipped]

Thank you and your group for bringing this to my attention.

Bill Schmidt

The information above concurs completely with the testimony given to me by Laura Leight-Hernandez, formerly Laura Theilmann – Richard Theilmann’s ex-wife.
Laura stated Richard worked for Grumman in Florida, before moving to REL Electronics and then on to a Chrysler Jeep dealership.

Further testimony from Laura and other family members – both current and ex – will be forthcoming in the near future.

The next email is from a discussion between RU investigator JeddyHi (John H) and Vic Campbell. Vic is the official photographer for the New York Naval Order and John first contacted him when absurd allegations of photoshopping were made at the Open Minds forum. The allegations were concerning the nametag pinned on Theilmann’s lapel at an official function and have been thoroughly debunked both at OM and by Vic.

Vic Campbell was contacted by Dr. Michael Salla regarding Richard Theilmann, this is Vic’s response which he also shared with John.

From: Vic Campbell <vic******yahoo.com>
Subject: Naval Order v Richard Theilmann – Curiouser and Curiouser
To: “Exopolitics” <exopolitics@*****com>
Date: Monday, July 5, 2010, 4:45 PM

“Theilmann [has] admitted [to the FBI] he is not now nor was he ever an active or reserve member of any of the United States armed forces and that his only contact with the military was as a defense contractor with Grumman…….”

RE your request at the bottom of this message – and explanatory links posted there

HOW DO THESE THINGS HAPPEN??

The Naval order is a venerable organization whose members are attracted to naval history and preserving it for future generations. I am a member and this response is my personal observations and are NOT an official response. I am not an officer of the Naval Order of the United States. Please respect the organization and in the future direct your inquiries, if any, to officials of the New York Commandery.

…

Our membership was until less than two decades past restricted to the level of O-6 and above. As the membership aged, the requirements were generally reduced to all officers and more recently to enlisted with sincere interest in naval history. Only in the past decade has the overall age of the membership begun to skew demographically younger with more active duty or reserve service members in membership. I became aware of the organization about 1995 when doing a documentary about the early 1942 Java Sea Battle in which the old U.S. Asiatic Fleet and its ABDA Fleet of Allies were destroyed by the Imperial Japanese Navy at its peak of power. Often referred to as “The Fleet the Gods Forgot”, the Asiatic veterans remain in the shadow of Pearl Harbor even though they were attacked in the same time frame in the Philippines and fought without support until sunk about three months later. Many of those survivors became a part of the “River Kwai” story and the “Death Railway” in Burma. (See www.usshouston.org and www.chinagunboat.blogspot.com.) Refer also to the book “Ship of Ghosts” by Jim Hornfischer. Jim was awarded the Samuel Eliot Morison Award for his book “Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors” a few years back. That award dinner may have been one of the early functions in which Theilmann appeared ( The New York Commandery’s Morison Award Dinner ). It was one of the Java Sea Battle veterans, an enlisted man who had been made an honorary Naval Order member, who introduced me to the New York Commandery. Perhaps a year later I was invited by a national officer to join the organization. My membership application included the filled out form as well as my own DD214 form showing a rank of O-2 and serving in USS O’Callahan (DE-1051) in Vietnam.

…

As you can imagine, the older demographic passing the torch to the “younger” demographic has been gradual – at the same time the level of communications were changing from a legacy system to email and web sites. Our membership depends on volunteer effort to maintain some level of web presence. I volunteered as webmaster and found a free wiki system to aid with the effort. So it is I who put the list on the web. ( www.nousny.org )

….

Our membership director, Don Schuld, is a superb organizer who has,since taking the job, begun a painstaking analysis of membership status and overall improving membership growth. His efforts are so good he now holds office at the national level. Theilmann was on the verge of exposure by Schuld just as these other issues came to light. (Schuld actually told him at a recent luncheon that records showed his membership never went through and arranged to get him a new application).Theilmann had avoided the formal membership process for maybe three or four years by simply taking a form when originally offered and then claiming many months later to perhaps a different commandery officer that the form was “lost” or a check was sent but somehow it was lost in the mail. Prior to Schuld our membership papers would sometimes not make the rounds for months before a final approval. A lost form would not be unusual. A KEY PART OF THE APPLICATION is the DD214 form of military service. So in effect, Theilmann was able to game the system for years. He merely avoided the membership paperwork.

…

Over time, our general membership came to believe he was actually a member when in fact he was not. We often have guests. It is possible some member met Theilmann, heard his story and invited him as a guest. This opened the door for him. A typical meeting over lunch involves a cocktail hour and sharing stories or information on books and current topics – and more later among each other at table. We then have excellent speakers who are authoritative and highly respected. At one meeting, our ”Chaplain” was not present and perhaps someone asked Theilmann to say grace.(He was in dress whites). Unaware he was not a member at all, someone probably suggested he might be a suitable substitute for our highly respected, aged WWII veteran, the retired Capt. Freiberger when he was unable to attend due to illness. It was a short step apparently from there to a suggestion to make him “Assistant” Chaplain. It is not even an official post, but something of an honorary position created ‘off the record’ with good intent. Theilmann’s “story” was now widely circulated among the general membership and his uniform and medals suggested such a worthy person for this unofficial status.

…

I received a list of officers (including the unofficial office of assistant chaplain) for the website after request to the leadership. I simply cut and pasted it to the web. So there you go – a fraud goes from walking in the door to some level of recognition in an organization of which he is not even a member.

…

I was sucked into the “story” as were all of our members. I can assure you our process for membership is much improved since the time Richard Theilmann came walking in the door wearing a dress white uniform adorned with rows of ribbons. Bear in mind – some of our actual “reserve” membership was being called up for active service at the time. Theilmann’s timing could not be better to appear as one called up from a civilian occupation and then finding and interest in our group through some interest in history. It seemed quite plausible.

….

Some retrospect of events have given some of the members pause now that Theilmann is exposed. I recalled the episode of Theilmann’s “shoot down” from a few years ago to a fellow member. He then told me I had my “facts wrong” that the events were not like that at all, that he was “shot down” in an EA6B Prowler, over the Sea of Japan and was recovered by a submarine vectored their position (4 crew) as “enemy” destroyers were scouring the region to find them first. (The version I remembered was milder – a larger AWACS plane and crew – crippled by gunfire or a missile and forced to land on Kamchatka Peninsula where they were patched up and sent home after some negotiations – all of which remain TOP SECRET (of course) to this day). Supposedly this happened only weeks before the civilian airliner was shot down over Kamchatka in 1983. In a brief comparison of notes – I capitulated to my friend who I believed to have a better memory than me. Actually I like the “facts” of the untrue story given to me better than I like the “facts” of the untrue story given to my friend. The more dramatic story with NO press about it in memory would be more suspect when perpetuating a fraud. There may be a better story yet as this episode gets hashed out.

I often took photos of Theilmann at gatherings. Bear in mind luncheons are monthly and perhaps 40percent of any prior luncheon attendees would also beat the next one. The order does not meet in the summer so it actually takes awhile for most people to even learn the names of fellow members by repetitive meetings. Often he was in uniform. In his first story to me he mentioned that he was one of only 28 Americans ever shot down by the Soviets – a very small club. I always tried to introduce him as “one of 28 ….” The last time I did this he corrected me and said he was “one of 46….”. It was a wide disparity but I just let it go that perhaps my memory was bad. After all, this man had a purple heart, and rows of other medals designating him quite the hero.

At our last post lunch gathering at a nearby bar in Manhattan, my 19 year old son (who had been my guest at the luncheon) was chatting with one of the WWII veterans in our group. As Thieilmann left the bar (having ordered and eaten a light lunch because he had been late to the NOUS NY lunch) the WWII navy veteran said to my son something like “There goes a real dude – probably got the uniform at a costume shop”. They chuckled about it. He also left without paying – we assumed a simple error – so I paid for his lunch at the bar. I had earlier photographed my son between two “heroes” at the luncheon. Theilmann on one side and a real honest to God hero WWII Marine torpedo plane (SBD) pilot – also a Korean War aviator. (In Korea he was squadron leader for with both Ted Williams and John Glenn under him at one time or another – If you want to bump into HISTORY – you can easily do it at Naval Order luncheons). Since this discovery about Theilmann, my son has had a few more chuckles.

….

Several times in the past, at NOUS-NY luncheons, I had asked Richard Theilmann if he would allow me to video his story for youtube (my channel www.me3tv.org – and for a veteran archive that I participate in as a volunteer with media. He always expressed gracious interest in doing it and ALWAYS suggested that some time in the near future he would contact me and would sit for an interview. He would mention several problems, however, among them the inability to tell the “whole” story on tape due to government restrictions which were near some 25 year expiration. OF COURSE he never intended to do an interview. Once on the web with an interview – his name would be public and people who know him would begin to expose him as a fraud.

……….

I first became aware of the “Theilmann question” AFTER that meeting in early June when an email from out of the blue was asking me if a certain picture of Theilmann on the web as unaltered and was genuine. (Who cares? I thought). Anyway it was a simple question and I could answer it. I took the photo. It was unaltered. It was Thielmann in civilian attire and he had a name tag on his lapel – handwritten – because (as we now know) he never got an inscribed name tag because he never completed the membership process. The questioner followed up with a couple of other confirming questions. I did not think of it further. A couple of weeks later, the “researcher” sent me a copy of his email to our Commander for the New York Naval Order exposing Theilmann. I was shocked to say the least. This is the first I have discussed the matter beyond our leadership, in particular William Schmidt who is a superb leader for this group. He is very organized and focused and as an attorney his views and direction have benefited the New York Commandery in many ways. Between his leadership and Don Schuld’s superb membership documentation – there is no question that our own people would have soon uncovered the fraud perpetrated on the Naval Order;.

….

I am told there are people in national politics and even in the press who are not well documented either.

…

I have nothing further to report to you and hope you will allow a measure of understanding to the way in which the Naval Order, New York Commandery, was abused. Any further correspondence should be directed to our Commander – William Schmidt. Please DO NOT chase after Captain Freiberger. He is over 90 years old, in ill health and is a dear and respected member of our order. He is known to most of us for his wonderful delivery of grace prior to our luncheons. He would have absolutely zero knowledge of the events surrounding Mr. Theilmann.

Vic Campbell — www.me3tv.org / www.buzzcreek.com

After receiving this email, John contacted Vic and asked him if it would be possible to share this information with our readership.

This was his reply:

From: Vic Campbell <vic******@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Naval Order v Richard Theilmann – Curiouser and Curiouser
To: “john h***” <jeddyhi@*****>
Cc: “Bill Schmidt” <williamhschmidt@********>
Date: Tuesday, July 6, 2010, 9:59 AM

You are welcome to my comments and perhaps in your writeup you might suggest the real heroes in our midst are shortchanged by frauds like this. Use them as you wish.

…

ABSOLUTELY use my email record. It is part of the effort to clarify the events involving the NOUS. If Sala tries to use my information inaccurately , yours can counter it.

Thanks.

As Vic so aptly wrote above:

The real heroes in our midst are shortchanged by frauds like this.

No doubt the people who need stories like the Source A hoax to be true, will seize upon the statement by Mr. Schmidt that the US Attorney may not take jurisdiction in this case to be some kind of validation as to Theilmann’s status. Sadly, however, because it could be difficult to prove that Theilmann used the uniform and medals for monetary reward or in order to gain employment by using the false naval history on his CV, the cost of bringing a case to prosecution may well be considered as being too high in relation to the actual crime he has committed.

The NCIS involvement in this case is primarily concerned with Theilmann’s alleged access to Dahlgren Naval Warfare Center in order to visit with Dr. Bruce Maccabee. It is possible that this aspect of the case is one that may well see a prosecution brought against Richard Theilmann.

Whatever happens, you can be sure you will get the facts here at Reality Uncovered.

Comments (35)

Filed under: Exopolitics, UFOlogy — Tags: Exopolitics, Fraud, Hoax, Source A — Stephen Broadbent @ 12:35 am

June 16, 2010

A litany of lies

Richard Theilmann, the New York resident revealed by our investigation as the man behind the mysterious Source A character, is a liar and a fraud.

We have already proven how claims attributed to Theilmann by the likes of Clay and Shawn Pickering could not possibly be true. Chief amongst those was the statement Theilmann had served over 40 years in the US Navy – since 1968, in fact. Before his identity was revealed, there was no way of knowing if this was correct or not, because nothing about his age or rank was known to anyone outside of the Source A group.

With his identity revealed, it was discovered he was only 14 years old in 1968, turning 15 in the July of that year. Clearly much too young to have been “wearing the uniform since 1968″.

It has since been claimed at the Open Minds forum he was actually enrolled in the Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (NJROTC) at school, thus validating the 1968 statement. This is patently absurd, naval classes at school do not equate to a career at sea by any stretch of the imagination.

From the NJROTC official website:
“Our program mission is to instil in students in United States secondary educational institutions the values of citizenship, service to the United States, personal responsibility and a sense of accomplishment.”

It is also a claim that can be quickly falsified. The school attended by Theilmann and named in our original report, did not host a NJROTC unit from 1968-1971 or at anytime since and thus never offered any such naval classes.

With the revealing of his identity came also the revealing of his alleged rank in the Navy, namely that of Lieutenant Commander (LCDR). Again, this was something that quite simply did not fit reality.

As noted in our original expose, The LCDR officer rank is classed as a junior officer with a pay grade of O-4. More senior ranks, from commander through captain and all the way up to admiral are ranked from O-5 to O-10 respectively. The maximum length of service a LCDR can achieve before being forced to leave the navy, is 20 years, or 24 years with special dispensation by the service secretaries.

http://www.cbo.gov/doc.cfm?index=1772&type=0&sequence=2
“In addition to regulating promotion opportunity and timing, DOPMA (Defense Officer Personnel Management Act of 1980) provides for an “up-or-out” promotion system that further standardizes career patterns. Under that system, officers who are not promoted to O-2, O-3, or O-4 after being reviewed for promotion for the second time must leave the military. To complete 20 years of service and become eligible for retirement, officers must attain the pay grade of O-4.(2) To remain beyond 20 years, they must advance even farther. Officers in pay grades O-5 and O-6 may complete 28 and 30 years of service, respectively.
2. The service secretaries, however, have the authority to permit an officer in pay grade O-4 to remain on active duty until completing 24 years of service.”

Again, the claim of having served 40 years at sea just doesn’t hold any water once all of the facts are known.

With this information about his alleged military career not standing the test of scrutiny, a full public records search was conducted in order to ascertain the truth about Richard Theilmann.

RU Researcher “Wormwood”, best known so far for her sterling work in the James Angleton Jr investigation, was given the task of collating Theilmann’s personal information in order to conduct a military records search. Full name, D.O.B and SSN were sent off to the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis, Missouri and while we awaited a reply, our investigation continued.

The information we were uncovering was shedding new light on Richard Theilmann’s personality and background on a daily basis. The medals he is pictured wearing in photos on MySpace and the New York Naval Order Commandery website became a cause for concern. How could he be wearing medals for service in Vietnam when he left high school in 1971 and the war ended in 1973? Sure, it was possible in certain situations, but it didn’t seem probable.

We tried many times to let Richard have his say, but he declined every opportunity he was given to set the record straight. I spoke to him on two occasions, and Andy Murray also tried to get him to budge. His stock answer was that there didn’t seem to be any point. It was however very revealing when he did admit to waiting for the FBI to call at any minute.

Why would someone with nothing to hide be waiting for the FBI to call “at any minute”?
That’s an easy question to answer; it’s because he certainly does have something to hide.

Richard Theilmann does not have a military record. He has never served in the US Navy nor any other branch of the United States Military.

He is a faker. A hoaxer. A conman. A liar.

Several members of Richard Theilmann’s family have read our reports into his activities, and to put it bluntly, they are disgusted with him. They say that Richard has never served in the US Navy or any other part of the United States military and they go on to claim that he has suffered from a certain medical condition that makes serving in the military impossible. They have been aware of his irresponsible behaviour for many years, but seeing him wearing someone elses medals in a uniform he has no right to wear, appears to have been the straw that broke the camels back.

The straw that broke the liars back for us on the investigation team, was this one: (Select pic to download PDF)

RE: Veteran’s Name: THEILMANN, Richard John
SSN/SN:
Request Number: 1-7852597443
Dear Requester:
Thank you for contacting the National Personnel Records Center. We have been attempting to
verify the veteran’s military service from the information that has been provided. We have
conducted extensive searches of every records source and alternate records source at this Center;
however, we have been unable to locate any information that would help us verify the veteran’s
military service
For a further search, please furnish us with any papers you may have which may provide
additional information about the requested military service, such as military orders, awards,
citations andlor military addresses shown on letters mailed home. Unfortunately, without any
new data, we will not be able to conduct a further search. We regret that we are unable to
provide a more positive response.

For those that think this whole story was too complex to be just a simple hoax or even “prank”, please read “Fake Military Heroes“ and educate yourself to the growing problem of Stolen Valor.

There are some people involved in this story that think they have gotten away with it. Rest assured, they haven’t. This investigation is ongoing and further information will be released once verification has been completed.

Comments (86)

Filed under: Exopolitics — Tags: Exopolitics, Fraud, Hoax — Stephen Broadbent @ 5:05 am

May 24, 2010

Ufology Exopolitics Special – Source A Update

Michael Salla The majority of people who have read our “Source A Exposed” report know they have read a comprehensive and well documented account of deceit and deception. The tale of intergalactic politics and sentient rocks should never have stood the test of time in the first place, but the people running the show made sure theirs was a tight ship, it was next to impossible to verify even a single aspect of the story. When chinks did appear, such as the Katrina rapes that never were, they were glossed over and ignored.

However, our detailed investigation and subsequent report of the true story behind the Source A information cannot be ignored. Our facts are of the real kind, the kind which can be checked and verified.

The supporters and enablers of the Source A story have therefore attempted to attack our reveal from a different angle. Michael Salla, one of, if not THE principal supporter of Clay and Shawn Pickering’s story, has been very active in what could loosely be termed as damage control.

At OM, here in the comments section of the site and on his own site, he has fastened on to one particular aspect of our investigation and attacked it for all he is worth. His problem? My deliberately ignoring that part of Maccabee’s testimony that was contrary to my intended ‘exposure’. (He conveniently forgets this was a group effort and not the result of one person’s investigation)

Let’s examine Salla’s claim in more detail. He refers to the following section of the report:

“The information we already had was more than sufficient to nail this down, but this was, after all, the man who had personally met with Source A on a navy base and indirectly ended up vouching for him. I called him up a couple of days later and had a very productive conversation. Whilst on the phone, I told him that we had discovered the name of Source A and I wondered whether Source A had identified himself by name to him. He said he had, to which I replied “Richard?” he answered by saying “Yeah Richard, Richard Theilmann”.”

Salla argues:

“Unfortunately, for Broadbent he omits to mention that the same source he used to confirm his outing of Source A, directly contradicts his ‘exposé’. The source in question is recently retired Navy scientist Dr Bruce Maccabee who in 2008 was still working at the U.S. Naval Surface Warfare Center, in Virginia. This is what Maccabee had to say in a 2009 interview about a meeting he had with Source A in 2008.”

He did get that part right, Bruce Maccabee was indeed our source who confirmed Richard Theilmann’s identity for us. Unfortunately for Salla, this would be the only thing he does get right in response to our article.

Salla then quotes Bruce Maccabee:

“First of all, I work at a Navy Laboratory, at the time, he visited me, I think it was in April 2008. In a Navy Laboratory in order to get in you had to have credentials, you had to have clearances, a badge that would allow you to come in, and even if you get in, you might need an escort, if you didn’t have a sufficiently high clearance. Well Source A came right to my office, without any escort. Which tells me he had the credentials. He gave me a review of all the things he had done over the years. It … certainly looked real. At the very least, he was able to go right through the security of the laboratory and came right through to my desk. I told him how to get to the office and he did it.”

Salla continued (in part)

“So here we have a respected senior Navy scientist confirming that Source A had genuine credentials, and a very high security clearance as well to enable him to enter the facility unescorted.”

In light of the information to follow further below, quite how Salla can go from “..which tells me had the credentials” to “had genuine credentials” is anyone’s guess. The same applies to stating as fact that Source A had “a very high security clearance”.

From speaking with Bruce on the phone, I had the distinct impression that he had been conned by Source A and perhaps others in respect to the base access issue. There were a number of options on the table which could explain how Source A could gain access to the facility, but I didn’t dwell on this aspect because it wasn’t important based on everything else we had uncovered.

Time to Dwell

As it stands, there are a number of ways Source A could have gained access to the base and Maccabee’s office. Firstly, and considering what we had already discovered about Richard Theilmann and the inconsistencies in the Pickering’s story, he could have faked his way in.

Salla only gives a cursory glance to this possibility, with the following comment on this blog:

“If a hoax is what is occurring, that would at the least invite a Congressional investigation of lax security procedures at the Naval Warfare Center that allowed an alleged ‘hoaxer’ to walk around unescorted in the post 911 error [sic].”

Bryce Weiner, one of the researchers involved in this investigation, showed how “the ability for individuals to fake credentials to gain access to military facilities in a post-9/11 era is quite well established.” and provides the following examples:

Man faked his way into Army as an NCO

5 fake Army Chaplains arrested

Fake Naval officer arrested

Another possibility that would explain how Theilmann was able to access the facility, would be his previous service in the US Navy. I checked the visitor information for the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren Division – Bruce Macabee’s place of employment when visited by Theilmann sometime around April 2008 – in order to better understand the security procedures for the base.

http://www.navsea.navy.mil/nswc/dahlgren/PAO/visitInfo.aspx

“Standard Facility Access:

All visitors access the facility via the Main Gate. Visitors will be issued a visitor badge, which must be returned to the gate upon departure.”

The fact that the base has a standard facility access highlights how one does not need any classified security clearances in order to access the base. RU admin Access Denied showed how a retired naval officer, for example, may want to access the base in order to use the Commissary (grocery store) or the Exchange (general store) facilities available to all retired members of the US Navy. Dahlgren has both of these stores on site.

“Base Vehicle Pass:

Visitors will be issued a vehicle pass, when deemed necessary, at the Pass and ID office. A valid drivers license is required.”

Nope, no special credentials or highly classified security clearances needed there, either.

There is no need for us to comment on the “Submission of visit requests for classified visits” section, because as we will see further below, there is absolutely no need for us to do so.

The Real Deal

Prompted by Salla’s constant accusations of disingenuity regarding our “omission” of Bruce Maccabee’s expert testimony, we decided to contact him again.

RU’s Ryan Dube once again opened discussions with Dr. Maccabee, asking for further clarification regarding the meeting with Richard Theilmann.

Bruce replied a short time later:

“Haven’t had a contact from anyone regarding the “Affair of A”.
As for getting onto the Navy base is concerned, I offered to meet him at the check-in entry building, assuming that he would need an escort.
However, he assured me that he could enter without an escort…. and obviously he was correct.
He arrived within a few minutes of the planned time.”

Realising that this was info already in the public domain, Ryan knew that more information was needed in order to discover exactly what the requirements were – as understood by Bruce:

“Thanks for the response Bruce,

According to this document, you don’t need an escort, you only need to have an appointment with someone on base:

http://www.navsea.navy.mil/nswc/dahlgren/PAO/visitInfo.aspx

As you’ve stated below, you and he had agreed upon a “planned time” when he would arrive – so is it safe to assume that he had an appointment to meet with you? According to the document above, if he had an appointment with you, he could simply pick up the visitor badge at the main gate. There’s nothing in the visitor information page that mentions anything about needing an escort.

Can you confirm?

-Ryan”

Keen to receive a response and after hearing nothing for several hours, Ryan sent a further email:

“Bruce, could you please confirm that the information Steve found is true and that Richard did not need an escort to visit you on the base, only an appointment?

SNIP

You’ve stated that you *assume* he’d need an escort. The documentation from the base shows that he only needed an appointment, not an escort. I hope you can understand how important it is that you confirm the truth and let us know if he really needed an escort or not – not just whether you assume as much.

Thanks Bruce – again, I really appreciate your insight on this.

-Ryan”

This time Bruce did reply:

“I thought I answered this question before.
I had assumed he would need an escort and said I would meet him at the entry office when he arrived.
He said he didn’t need an escort.
And, evidently he didn’t. He showed up at my office within minutes of the appointed time.
That meant he drove through the guard gate and followed a map of the lab to the building where I
worked.
To get through the guard gate he would have had to have a badge or a “common access card” that
would have been checked by the guard.”

Ryan, being the excellent researcher he is, knew we needed specific clarification on this issue and responded with the following important questions:

“Bruce…I understand your point, but people are using your description of the visit to imply that Richard had high-level classified clearances.

According to the visitor rules that Steve found here: (http://www.navsea.navy.mil/nswc/dahlgren/PAO/visitInfo.aspx)

You mention below that he would have needed a badge – according to the document above, this could have been a visitor badge:

“All visitors access the facility via the Main Gate. Visitors will be issued a visitor badge, which must be returned to the gate upon departure.”

A “visitor” is defined as anyone with an appointment on the facility, and you will notice that the document differentiates between a simple facility visit and a “classified” visit…for some reason you don’t make that differentiation in your own description of the visit.

Salla and others are using your description of the visit to imply that because Richard was able to gain entrance to the facility, that he had classified clearances – however, the official visitor guidelines for the base state that a visitor can visit the facility without security clearances, so long as the visit isn’t a “classified visit”. Please take a look at the link above for the differentiation.

I guess what I’m asking is – isn’t it possible that he was there to visit someone else for non-classified reasons, and decided it would be a good opportunity to visit you? What if someone else at your facility signed for him as a visitor? What if there was an event or a Navy function he was attending at the facility, as a visitor? Aren’t there dozens of reasons he could have had access to the facility that don’t necessarily imply he has special classified clearances?

-Ryan”

The questions had the desired effect and Dr. Maccabee responded to Ryan later that day and was much more specific with his answers (emphasis added):

“My recollection is that a visitor badge had a big “V” on the front. I didn’t have that many unclassified visitors over the years so my memory is hazy on this. But my recollection is that he did not have a “V” badge.
However, I could be wrong on this. I didn’t pay close attention to all the details of the visit because I didn’t foresee this controversy. I was doing C&S P a “favor” by agreeing to meet “A”. So far as I knew, they had much more information than I had about “A” and his testimony. He certainly did not need a high level clearance to have an unclassified visit with me. However, because of all the “hush hush” activities and the claim by C&S P that he was working for an Admiral, I assumed he had a high level clearance. He never said anything to me that would make me think that he had no clearance level. Had I thought that I was supposed to be thoroughly vetting this person I would have taken notes at the time and I would have written down all the pertinent info on his badge.

At any rate, the truth or falsity of his various claims will be determined by further investigation.”

Boom! That is the sound of Salla and Co’s hopes and dreams for the Source A story exploding around their ears. The one remaining aspect of the story -in their eyes at least- that these people could use to prove to others there MUST be something to the story, has gone up in a cloud of white hot shrapnel and billowing smoke. Salla’s assertions that Theilmann gaining access to the base and meeting with Maccabee “supports his claims that he was a covert operative for classified programs involving senior US Navy personnel” are thus completely and utterly without merit.

Bruce says he didn’t pay attention to all the details of the visit and was actually doing Clay and Shawn Pickering a FAVOR by agreeing to meet Source A! One can only speculate why Clay and Shawn would need such a favour. To lend veracity to their claims, perhaps?

In case you missed it above, Bruce also confirms that Source A “certainly did not need a high level clearance to have an unclassified visit” with him. Bruce confirms that he only assumed he had a high level clearance based on what he was told by the Pickerings.

That Richard Theilmann accessed the base is without question. However, there were any number of ways he could have done this, none of which necessitate the need for any kind of classified clearances whatsoever. The people pushing this story need you to believe that he did have such access, because without it, the story is dead in the water.

It is clear to us that Bruce Maccabee was used as an unwitting pawn in the game being played by the Pickerings. Based on Salla’s extensive comments on this subject and past behaviour promoting the outlandish claims, one would be forgiven for wondering if he – and others in the exopolitics crowd – are more heavily involved in this apparent con game than at first thought.

This is something we are actively investigating.

Richard Theilmann

There has been one other major development in the Source A investigation. I spoke with Richard Theilmann on the telephone today and had a brief, but amicable conversation with him. Due to the nature of the information discussed, I shall refrain from mentioning any details for the time being. However, further calls have been arranged and we will be reporting on these conversations in the very near future.

Stay tuned for further updates.

Stephen Broadbent

Comments (83)

Filed under: Disclosure, Exopolitics, UFOlogy — Tags: Bruce Maccabee, Disclosure, Exopolitics, Hoax, UFOlogy — Stephen Broadbent @ 1:21 am

March 27, 2010

Loose Lips Sink Spaceships

Prototype Our tagline here at Reality Uncovered is a simple one: Searching for the answers, passionate about the truth. It has served us very well over the years, considering we are fighting against people who are making up the answers as they go along and lie so well it has become second nature to them.

Of course, we are talking about the people behind Scammers Inc, the group of villains and conmen that have managed to convince so many people about the “reality” of alien contact.

All it takes is just a little digging into the backgrounds of these people to realise what has really been going on over the years. Fabricate your past, make up an illustrious history, confirm each other’s stories and away you go. Rinse and repeat. It’s astonishing how easy it has been for them to get away with something so basic for so long.

Ram, Bam, Thank You Ma’am

Once in a while a wannabe will come along and make a play for their share of the pie – it is a pretty big pie, after all. One such wannabe is trying to sell this to anyone who will listen. There are other documents that come with this information, yours for a mere billion dollars apparently.

The introduction from the business plan:

In February, 2008, a select group of notable physicists, business leaders, and technical experts met at SARA Headquarters in Cypress, California. The assembly was gathered by Gordon Novel of RAM P & T, Inc. for the purpose of demonstrating evidence of RAM P & T’s proprietary propulsion drive. This breakthrough technology was intensively scrutinized by many of the 17 attendees, including top experts which arrived from NASA, ODNI, SARA, and other notable scientific institutions including those from as far away as Australia and Washington DC. RAM experts went to the sources of the misunderstandings in common science by showing the point of error in many of the current text books being used to teach our post doctorate students today. All supporting math was found to be valid for those top scientists who arrived with reservations they left with a new knowledge that the math and science was based on sound science.

RAM P & T (RAM) is seeking funding to build the next generation propulsion device, with knowledge gained from initial successful experiments and from solid, theoretical predictions. With initial funding of $20,000,000., some of which is in hand, we will be able to set up a new facility and start on a series of experiments that can complete the development of an environmentally safe, cheap and unlimited energy/propulsion source. This lab work, Phase I of the project, lasting about 20 months, will confirm the predictions that this technology can produce net energy/lift. Phase II will develop the technology to the point of a commercially viable prototype. A successful completion of Phase I will essentially assure commercial success, as no new technology will be needed for Phase II. Total funding required by RAM for Phase I and II of this project is $220 M. RAM believes that some Phase II funding may be available from current Phase 1 committed sources.

(Emphasis mine)

If there really are some committed sources, this particular author believes they really should be committed. To an insane asylum.

Back to Future, part 4

A "mini rig"

The above is just a very small part of the large document set that was leaked to us at RU by someone on the inside of the RAM project. The documents include a patent, business plan and various drafts and images. All in all it makes for hugely amusing reading.

Water, Water, Everywhere

Speaking of leaks, someone on the inside of the OM (Obnoxious Morons) team, recently contacted us and gave us some very interesting information. Some of it we already knew, and some of it we have long suspected. Some of it seemed like he might have been slipping us some false information in with the good.

Essentially, he told us that a certain Kit Green is at least three other people on that forum and is responsible for the majority of decisions the OM admin team make in certain situations. We’ll be reporting on some of this information in due course, but I did find it extremely interesting that two of these other supposed personas are Canadian.

During our Serpo investigation, ex team member “Centrist” told me how he had explained to Kit how he could connect to an ISP in another state or even country and hide his actual location from email and webservers. The example he used in his demonstration was Canada. Obviously, I can’t vouch for the authenticity of the story because I wasn’t there, but not long after that a certain member registered at OM from Canada and proceeded to become a right pain in the backside to seekers of truth everywhere. Oddly enough, both he and Kit share a very strong chinese connection…

The allegation of OM creating a particular hoax in order to drive up membership and forum activity is a serious one that we are currently actively investigating.

Stay tuned for further updates.

Comments (96)

Filed under: Aviary, The Core Story, fringe science — Tags: Crashed UFOs, Fraud, fringe science, gordon novel, Hoax, Kit Green, RAM, Scammers Inc — Stephen Broadbent @ 3:03 am

January 24, 2010

Johnny Depp dead? Umm, no.

Johnny Depp, very much alive “What’s this!?” I hear you cry. Has Reality Uncovered turned into a celelbrity fan site and left its roots in the reality and ufology fields far behind? Actually, no, we haven’t.

The homepage on my browser is a heavily customised version of the iGoogle homepage, with links to this site, social networking and news sites, various gadgets and what not, along with the Google Trends gadget installed on the top right corner of the page. I’m a bit of a newsaholic so I like to know what’s hitting the search engines, because if something turns “volcanic”, it’s usually a big story and it will often be on there long before it hits the news media.

Imagine my shock, then, when the top story on Google Trends today turns out to be the search term “Johnny Depp Dead”. I almost spattered my brand new laptop with a mouthful of coffee, because I just happen to love Johnny Depp! Not in that kind of way you understand, but I find the guy hilarious and would be very sad if he was taken before his time. Most of you will know him from the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy and Sweeny Todd. I personally thought he was great in Charlie and the Chocolate factory and especially so in his appearance on the UK hit show “The Fast Show” a number of years ago.

Yeah, ok then. Just what has this got to do with what we do at Reality Uncovered? Well, it’s simple really. Johnny Depp isn’t dead and it turns out the story is nothing more than yet another rumour of the celebrity death kind. There have been quite a few of these latelty and it appears that this particular genre is something that is growing and growing. Stories like this start on the internet, usually with the sole intent of generating traffic for the story and for the people that started it. That and the juvenile thrill some people seem to get out of making up stories on the fly. Remind you of something? Regardless of the true motive of stores like this, it does highlight the speed at which stories like this (i.e. fake) can spread on the internet. Some people will read headlines like that and think, “Oh, Johnny Depp has died, shame” more or less like other people will read about crashed flying saucers and think “Wow, dead aliens are being kept in storage in underground US bunkers, cool!“

Hmm, I wonder how many hits “Poisoned Strawberry Ice Cream to blame for Eben Death” will generate? I guess we’ll soon find out…

Comments (1)

Filed under: Disinfo, Weird — Tags: Fake, Hoax, Internet, Johnny Depp, News, Strawberry Ice Cream — Stephen Broadbent @ 3:35 pm

May 7, 2009

How to Check Out a Hoax

Surprisingly, learning how to check out a hoax is quickly becoming a popular pastime for online Internet travelers. For the folks here at RU, uncovering hoaxes is more than just a hobby, it’s a passion. For that reason, we’ve decided to offer the Internet community a general guide for both amateur and expert investigators.

A Guide: How to Check Out a Hoax

If you’ve never investigated a hoax before, I’d like to share a little bit of what you’re in for. There’s an entire underground community of con artists and fraudsters who use the Internet, and a number of other resources, to launch, distribute and promote various hoaxes. However, the Internet isn’t the only tool con artists use these days. These people are the equivalent of the conmen (and women) that you’ll find in the city, who wait around bus stops and tourist attractions for the unsuspecting tourist – and then launch into a long story about their need for assistance. In the end, the tourist is left without a wallet – or worse, with an empty bank account.

The following four-step process can protect any potential victim, whether it’s a corporate millionaire looking to invest in cutting-edge technological proposals, or a regular Internet user just digging into the background behind some online claims. The approach in every case is the same.

Step #1: Identify the Source

Whenever you’re approached by someone, whether it’s online or in real life, who presents themselves as officially representing an agency or arrested organization, always ask for evidence. Once you’re presented with the evidence, don’t take it at face value. Anyone can fake an I.D. Every legitimate identification badge or card will have either/or a phone number, email, or address of the agency or organization the person is with. Record the person’s badge or ID number, and also note the agency contact information. Finally, until you’ve verified that the source is who they say they are - assume they are not.

Yes, this means if an FBI agent knocks on your door and wants to chat, you better get his ID and immediately jump on the phone to your local FBI headquarters to confirm that they sent out an agent. Someone email you, claiming to be with the FBI, CIA or Air Force? Ask for their identification and call the PR office of that organization to verify. Never deal with anonymous sources. Most frauds and conmen use anonymous sources, because there’s no way for you to verify they are who they say they are. Often, at this stage, you may even have an opportunity to report the con artist and have them arrested.

Step #2: Verify the Story

Second, if you are not the one in direct contact with the “source,” and the person who is in direct contact isn’t very diligent about verifying either identifying features or the story – then you can do so.

- Scan the story for any inkling of a name, organization, business or other verifiable tidbit of information. Most scammers “slip up” at some point and mention a real name, location and/or organization. Keep good notes – these are your leads.

- Try to get the “anonymous” source to email you directly. Trace the email by analyzing the header information, if you know how. If you don’t, contact one of the RU investigators and we can help. We’ll be publishing a “how-to” guide on how to trace email headers soon.

- Fully investigate the background of the anonymous source’s public “contact.” Most often, the person claiming that they are receiving information from an anonymous source are part of the con game themselves. You can usually identify the scammer’s motives by looking closely at the background of the people nearest to, and those promoting, the story.

– You will discover, as you take verifiable data from the story and trace those leads, that there’s a real danger of chasing ghosts. Only follow leads that are easily verifiable at first. If someone’s name is mentioned in the story as “telling someone” something – go to that person directly and ask them yourself whether they really said that. Typically you’ll learn that they don’t know what you’re talking about – because the original story isn’t true. However, by confirming that part of the original story is false, you are successfully disassembling the hoax. Remember, if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck – odds are, it’s a duck. This process lies at the very heart of how to check out a hoax.

Step #3: Use Caution, Logic and Reason to Guide You

The more outrageous the claim, the more caution you should use. If a con artist stops you on the street and claims they were mugged at knife point, beat up, and had all of their money stolen - logically you should ask, why is there not a single bruise or scratch on them? This is a very simple example of critical thinking skills, and it’s “critical” that you use them! Use your head – if it doesn’t make sense, it probably is fabricated.

And if the story is completely outrageous, concerning some elaborate story and involving elements that may be impossible to verify, back away very slowly from the perp and then run.

Step #4: Think With Your Mind, Not Your Heart

A larger version of such a scam would be a person approaching you with an alleged technological achievement, and claiming that the science that backs the technology is supported by physics. Even if they can produce a physicist who is willing to say that the technology is possible – you need to go back to step #1 and step #2. Identify the source (the physicist) and verify their legitimacy. Don’t throw away millions for a pipe dream – filling the bank accounts of scientific fraudsters. Use common sense.

Ultimately, what checking out a hoax involves is the ability to step back from the drama and emotion of a situation or discussion, and to take a look at the cold, hard facts. Don’t become emotionally invested in the answer, because if you do, you won’t be able to remain honest with yourself when you don’t find the answer that you wanted to find.

However, even if that happens – you can be proud that you stayed true to yourself, and you followed the process of careful verification to the letter. Doing so will save you a fortune, in more ways than one.