FBI-UAP-D014, Correspondence Relating to UFO Sightings, 1967, 1974
Official description
This file contains two pieces of correspondence. The first, dated 9/22/1967, relays a description of an incident provided by an eleven-year-old child in which they heard a “weird” noise and saw a “flash of light.” The second, dated 9/30/1974 and 10/10/1974, is an exchange of letters between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Mr. Larry Bryant regarding an “alleged April 8, 1954 sighting of an occupied unidentified flying object (UFO).” The FBI’s response to Mr. Bryant’s inquiry indicated that it maintained no record of such an event, and that, circa 1974, the Bureau does not collect information regarding UFO sightings.
✦ AI summary
This 5-page FBI file contains two unrelated pieces of UFO-related correspondence handled by the FBI's Chicago field office, spanning 1967-1974. The first item is a 22 September 1967 memorandum from Special Agent Leonard Trevirianus documenting a phone call from an 11-year-old boy, Tom Mitchell, who reported hearing a 'weird' noise and seeing a flash of light moving north across the sky from his Chicago home around 8:30 PM on September 16, 1967; he offered no further details but described it as a UFO. The report was passed to Sergeant Eugene Ripka of the Army-Air Force 755th Radar Squadron in Arlington Heights, Illinois. The second, more substantive item is a September 1974 letter from UFO researcher Larry W. Bryant of Arlington, Virginia to the FBI's Chicago Special Agent in Charge, requesting FBI follow-up documentation on a U.S. Army report of an alleged April 8, 1954 landing of an occupied UFO pursued by U.S. Coast Guard personnel -- in which the object reportedly landed briefly, its occupant walked around before re-boarding, and at least three civilian witnesses observed the event -- as well as any other UFO case files from 1954 and the current address of the principal witness, Chicago resident Mrs. Lelah H. Stoker. The FBI's October 10, 1974 reply from Special Agent in Charge Richard G. Held states the Bureau has no information on the described sighting, does not generally collect UFO sighting information (since UFO investigation is not among matters Congress has delegated to the FBI), and has no record of Mrs. Stoker's current address or phone number.
Generated with AI from the official file — may contain errors.
▸Transcript(5 of 5 pages legible)
[PAGE 1] MATERIAL MARKED N/A [not applicable] HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM THIS FILE. FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION. Bureau File Number [redacted]. FBI Automatic Declassification Guide, issued [2007]. [PAGE 2] OPTIONAL FORM NO. 10, UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT Memorandum. TO: [SAC] CHICAGO. DATE: 9/22/67. FROM: SA [Special Agent] LEONARD TREVIRANUS. SUBJECT: UFO -- MISCELLANEOUS. TOM MITCHELL, 7825 South Colfax, Chicago (375-9258) telephonically advised the writer at 9:40 PM on September 16, 1967, as follows: He is eleven years of age. At approximately 8:30 PM he heard a 'weird' noise and looked out the window of his residence and saw a 'flash of light going north in the sky.' He could furnish no additional information but claimed this to be a UFO. The above information was furnished to Sergeant Eugene Ripka, Army-Air Force 755th Radar Squadron, Arlington Heights, Illinois, telephone 763-8638. CLT/cah (1) Buy U.S. Savings Bonds Regularly on the Payroll Savings Plan. [PAGE 3] [Envelope, addressed:] 2904 South 13th Road, Apt 2, Arlington, Virginia 22204. TO: Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Chicago, Illinois. FIRST CLASS U.S. MAIL. [Postal markings, illegible handwritten annotations.] [PAGE 4] [Letterhead: Larry W. Bryant] 2904 South 13th Road, Apt 2, Arlington, Virginia 22204. [Dated ~September 30, 1974] To: Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Chicago, Illinois. Dear Sir: Through inquiry of the Department of the Air Force, I have obtained a copy of a U.S. Army report of an alleged April 8, 1954 sighting of an occupied Unidentified Flying Object (UFO) which was pursued by U.S. Coast Guard personnel, landed briefly on the ground (discharging the occupant, who strolled about and returned to the object), and which was seen by at least three civilian observers before it departed. The report's distribution notation cites your office as receiving a copy. So that I might complete my research into this case, will you please send me a copy of any documentation of all FBI follow-up actions that may have been taken on the matter? Also, does your office possess any other UFO-sighting case files covering the period January 1, 1954 through December 31, 1954; and if so, will you please send me a copy of your records of all those files? Finally, will you please tell me the current mailing address and/or telephone number of the principal observer, Chicago resident Mrs. Lelah H. Stoker, of the aforementioned sighting of April 8, 1954? Yours sincerely, Larry W. Bryant [Handwritten file-routing annotations: SEARCHED / INDEXED / SERIALIZED / FILED, dated OCT 10 1974] [PAGE 5] [FBI letterhead] 219 South Dearborn Street, Chicago, Illinois 60604. October 10, 1974. Mr. Larry W. Bryant, 2904 South Thirteenth Road, Apartment 2, Arlington, Virginia 22204. Dear Mr. Bryant: I have received your letter dated September 30, 1974, regarding UFO sightings. I am sorry to advise you that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has no information regarding the UFO sighting you describe in your letter, and, in fact, the FBI does not collect information regarding UFO sightings in general. As you are probably aware, the FBI is the investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice, and is authorized to investigate only those matters specifically delegated to it by Congress. UFO sightings are not such matters. In addition, our files contain no information regarding the current residence or telephone number of Mrs. Lelah H. Stoker, mentioned in your letter. Very [truly yours], RICHARD G. HELD, Special Agent in Charge. [File references: Chicago (100-44501); 100-36363; JMF:nss]
Generated with AI from the official file — may contain errors.
Source: U.S. Department of War / AARO — public domain · war.gov/ufo
