CIA Initiates Surveillance of Civilian UFO Groups: APRO and CCSI Targeted
Following the Robertson Panel's recommendation, the CIA began surveillance of civilian UFO groups. A February 9, 1953 memo targeted the California Committee for Saucer Investigation (CCSI) and APRO, citing subversive potential.
Background
Implementing Robertson Panel Recommendations
Following the Robertson Panel's recommendation that civilian UFO groups 'should be watched because of their potentially great influence on mass thinking,' the CIA acted quickly. In a February 9, 1953, Office Memorandum to the Contact Division's assistant for operations, a redacted staffer was emphatic in citing the California Committee for Saucer Investigation (CCSI) for potential scrutiny.
As evidence, he pointed to a German rocket scientist then working in the United States, Dr. Walter Riedel, who was apparently a member. Riedel mentioned that CCSI was planning a deliberate hoax in the Los Angeles area to track witness reporting patterns.
APRO Also Targeted
The Aerial Phenomena Research Organization (APRO), the Tucson-based civilian investigative group headed by Coral and Jim Lorenzen, had garnered nationwide interest and was deemed 'in a position to feed a potential public frenzy.'
Significance
First documented CIA surveillance of civilian UFO organizations, implementing Robertson Panel's controversial recommendation.