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The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission recently provided a 2020 "no enforcement action" letter issued to the Peter Thiel-operated start-up investment firm Mithril Capital in response to a Freedom of Information Act request submitted by Expanding Frontiers Research. The 2023 request stemmed from a 2019 Business Insider story indicating the corporation was under investigation by the FBI for financial misconduct, followed by a 2023 story in which the media outlet reported Thiel became an FBI informant in 2021. The 2020 SEC letter sent to Mithril Capital legal counsel, indicating no enforcement action would be recommended: The SEC advised EFR in September 2023 it identified approximately four gigabytes of records potentially responsive to the FOIA request. For the sake of time and expense, EFR narrowed the scope of the request to interview transcripts compiled from investigations conducted, final reports composed, and documents issued that clarify the conclusions, recommendations and/or consequences resulting from investigations. The SEC subsequently provided the letter in a recent email. It was explained a six-page case closing recommendation was being withheld in full under FOIA Exemption (b)(5). The Commission asserted the withheld records are exempt due to their potential involvement in future litigation. EFR is appealing the ruling. In June 2023, when EFR originally submitted the Mithril Capital FOIA request to the SEC, a similar request was simultaneously sent to the FBI. The Bureau advised in September it identified 533 pages of potentially responsive records. EFR then narrowed the scope of the request to the first 48 pages in an effort to more efficiently get a look at some of the material and gauge the potential value of the remaining records. As of this writing, a final response has not been issued by the FBI. The controversial Peter Thiel became a topic in the UFO subculture due to his alleged interest in the merging of venture capitalists, intelligence agencies and UAP start-ups. Eric Weinstein, a previously reported hedge fund manager of Thiel Capital, publicly expresses interest in UFO subject matter, including participating in a joint appearance with Harvard Prof. Avi Loeb at Bitcoin 2022. Weinstein and Loeb reportedly “postulated about other cultures living in the stars,” and “focused on the cultural implications of using Bitcoin, specifically as a means to diversify the human race across the cosmos.” EFR reported in February 2023 on the activities of people and organizations simultaneously promoting questionable investment advice and dubious beliefs about extraterrestrial beings. Loeb is controversial in his own right, garnering both support and criticism for his Galileo Project, an initiative claiming to be seeking evidence of extraterrestrial technological signatures. As reported by EFR, the FBI provided four heavily redacted of 28 total pages responsive to a FOIA request submitted on the Galileo Project. EFR's appeal of the withheld material and 24 pages was denied by the Department of Justice. As reported in the July 26, 2021, edition of the International Business Times, the Galileo Project received $1.7 million from private donors to look for possible evidence of artifacts or equipment made by defunct or active extraterrestrial technological civilizations, the FBI noted in records it released to EFR.

The FBI recently notified Expanding Frontiers Research of the existence of 56,463 pages of records potentially responsive to Theodore John Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber. The law enforcement agency also has potentially responsive digital media files in its custody, the FBI added. The notification was in response to a Freedom of Information Act request submitted by EFR. Records on the convicted domestic terrorist were first requested in 2023. In June of that year, over 140 pages of previously released material was provided in response. The records are available for viewing, along with ongoing correspondence received from the FBI. EFR immediately followed up with a request for all records not included in the initial June 2023 response. In a letter dated March 28, 2024, FBI responded, advising of the existence of the tens of thousands of potentially responsive records, adding the material could be processed for release at an estimated cost of $1,720. The records could be provided in 113 monthly releases, consisting of about 500 pages each. Digital media files could be contained and provided on an estimated two compact discs. A number of options are available for ways to proceed. First of all, in a second letter dated March 28, 2024, FBI advised it denied an EFR request for a fee waiver which was part of the original request. So our first strategy included appealing the fee waiver. The appeal was submitted and remains pending as of this writing. In the event the Department of Justice upholds the Bureau's fee waiver denial, we could always simply withdraw the request. It's an option. Other options include reducing the scope of the request, as EFR successfully executed in other FOIA cases in which we were notified of massive amounts of responsive records. Those cases include working with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission when we were notified our request for records responsive to the Joseph Firmage-controlled ManyOne corporation involved some 138 boxes of hard copy and electronically maintained records. The SEC estimated 1,500 hours might be required to process and research the material. EFR subsequently reduced the scope of the request to transcripts of interviews conducted during the course of SEC investigation and any resulting reports compiled. The negotiation ultimately led to records obtained and shared in a February 2023 blogpost, and another in April 2023. The second post resulted from records withheld during the initial release yet successfully obtained on appeal, leading to more information to report in April. While we are pleased with such results, and feel it head and shoulders above what often masquerades as research and reporting in fringe genres, the saga demonstrates how a great deal of responsive records, covering a gamut of issues, never see the light of day. Resources such as labor, time, and money factor into untold numbers of records sitting unread in classified archives - which leads us to yet another option for dealing with the Kaczynski files at the FBI: pay for the records in the event our fee waiver appeal is denied. After explaining the Unabomber records situation in a public post at our Patreon and initiating a poll on X/Twitter, the option to request all of the responsive records from FBI is currently leading in the poll. By a wide margin, actually, but there are indeed some circumstances to consider. There is a lot of time involved. At 500 pages released per month for 113 months, that's over nine years, even if it stays on schedule, and it likely would not be up in the queue for a long time, which is to say it could take quite a while to even get started. That's not to say requesting all the records is out of the realm of possibility, but it should be clarified and understood the situation amounts to more than paying the fee and receiving the records. That stated, there are indeed principles of open records access involved, and Expanding Frontiers Research is indeed an advocate of such access and government transparency. Some of our core work involves fighting for it. An argument can be made the very existence of the records begs their processing and release. In the event EFR current board members passed their responsibilities on at some future point during the records release to successor directors, a legacy of such activism and organizational purpose could be considered worthwhile and of value. Another consideration is of course the money. Funds would have to be raised. EFR asked the FBI for further explanations of potential terms and conditions and has not received a response as of this post. At the risk of sounding negative, our past experience has indicated complex and large records requests can have years of waiting just to get started processing. It is therefore important to get as much clarification as possible from the Bureau before arriving at a decision. Other considerations involve storing large amounts of files for public access on a website. Lots to think about, and we'd like to hear from you: our supporters and those who value our work. Let us know your thoughts and ideas. We are committed to weighing them quite heavily. Reducing the scope of the request also needs consideration, as there are many ways it could be done. Also, there's no rule that says someone can't request different parts of the 56,000+ pages and digital media files repeatedly; just because we reduce the scope now doesn't mean we can't request more later. Thank you for your interest and support. We look forward to hearing from you!

Records responsive to Joseph Paramore Firmage were obtained Sunday from the Salt Lake City Police Department (SLCPD). The law enforcement reports reflect circumstances and charges surrounding his 2023 arrest for financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult. As reported by KSL, Firmage was accused of neglecting an 80-year-old woman, including leaving her without utilities while trying to take charge of her finances and assets which included her home. The police records obtained by Expanding Frontiers Research (EFR) indicate Firmage was arrested at another point in 2023 with “at least” ten empty bottles of vodka and one full bottle in his car, along with multiple pieces of mail and financial items not belonging to him. According to information documented by Salt Lake police, Firmage was residing in the basement of the home of the victim of his alleged financial exploitation. The SLCPD records on Joseph Firmage were electronically received Sunday, March 24, in response to a February request submitted under the Utah Government Records Access and Management Act, or GRAMA. The recently obtained records: Joseph Firmage rose to popularity in the UFO subculture when he claimed to experience an otherworldly encounter. He and partners subsequently constructed an investment scheme to manufacture an anti-gravity device. One lawsuit related to the failed venture remains open, Marmer v. Firmage. The suit echoes previous allegations that Firmage and associates ran a Ponzi scheme while falsely claiming to be awaiting government grant awards for the purported development of futuristic technology. Records obtained by EFR from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission contain testimony of an associate and investor who told the SEC some $59 million was raised from investors for the Firmage-operated ManyOne and related ventures in the years surrounding 2012. The SEC material contains interviews conducted in 2016 and 2017 that paint a picture of corporate associates characterized by unreliability and ambiguity, ultimately failing to deliver on either the products promoted or an ever-promised imminent financial windfall for investors. SLCPD files obtained Sunday indicate multiple legal challenges for Firmage, including failing to appear for a court hearing. This and other circumstances, such as violating court orders while continuing to try to influence and indirectly communicate with the victim of the alleged financial exploitation, resulted in additional charges sought against the man who described himself as a candidate for president of the United States. A recent inmate search for "Joseph Firmage" conducted at the website of the Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office included the following result: A Nov. 20, 2023, report composed by an SLCPD detective explained how the reported victim of Firmage was “continually receiving phone calls without stop” after Firmage's related arrest. While the detective was with the victim to help them set up a new phone, the officer documented one specific number kept calling the old phone. This prompted the detective to answer one of the incoming calls. The detective quickly surmised the caller - that identified himself as John Tulip - was acting on behalf of Firmage and in violation of protective orders. SLCPD documented in a transcript of the call that Tulip stated he was trying to check on the victim and see if he could get some phone numbers for Firmage. “I'll pass on the information to him that he caught a charge,” the detective told the caller. “Another charge because of your call.” “Please don't call again,” the detective reiterated, “'cause every time you call her it's gonna catch him another charge.” The detective documented in a subsequent Dec. 6, 2023, report they checked jail phone records and examined calls taking place with Firmage, who was observed encouraging people he spoke with to advise the victim that law enforcement was trying to make her a ward of the state and declare her mentally incompetent. The circumstances were identified as being in violation of the protective order. As shown below, Tulip numbered among those talking by phone to Firmage while incarcerated. In a report dated Nov. 16, 2023, the detective documented an arrest of Firmage stemming from failing to appear in court, triggering a new warrant for exploitation of a vulnerable adult. In an ensuing conversation with Firmage, the detective addressed accusations he controlled the victim's finances while neglecting to pay her utilities. Firmage stated he got the water turned back on, the detective wrote, noting it was paid by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and that he said he paid the gas bill that day. "You paid the gas bill today?" the detective documented asking Firmage to reiterate, adding they would have someone confirm it. "Joseph then stated he is having someone pay it," the detective noted, apparently documenting Firmage walking back his statement. ------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for your interest in our work here at Expanding Frontiers Research. Please consider joining the EFR Patreon. Your donations help fund fees associated with our FOIA and GRAMA work, the costs of producing our YouTube show, maintaining our website, and general operating expenses. As a patron, you are provided and kept updated on the records we obtain, receive instructional information about submitting records requests, and much more. Expanding Frontiers Research is a Utah nonprofit corporation, tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code.

The Utah State Records Committee voted unanimously Thursday that Uintah County must release PhenomeCon contracts sought through a public records request by Expanding Frontiers Research. The records must be produced, excluding select personal information, as requested by EFR. Audio of the March 21 hearing is posted on a public notice website and the case involving EFR begins shortly after the 31-minute mark. The Committee ruling is about 52 minutes into the recording. "It's a win for Expanding Frontiers Research and for transparency in Utah," executive director of EFR, Erica Lukes, posted on social media following the ruling. The original Oct. 20, 2023, request sought records from the Uintah County Office of Travel and Tourism pertaining to 2023 PhenomeCon, a paranormal-themed conference sponsored by the county. The Tourism Office responded with three pages, prompting an appeal from EFR, which argued the response was incomplete. In a December 2023 response to the appeal, the Uintah County Chief Administrative Officer provided an additional 92 pages. The records, termed "Talent Agreements," are contracts undertaken between Uintah County and PhenomeCon speakers and service providers. The 92 pages of contracts were heavily redacted, almost completely blacked out, as shown below. In the response to the appeal, the Uintah County Chief Administrative Officer wrote, “The redactions to the contracts are being made as per the agreement in the contracts that the terms would remain confidential.” In what became Jack Brewer v. Uintah County, the county counsel further suggested in Thursday's hearing the decision to withhold the redacted terms of the contracts was to honor a confidentiality clause within them. Keeping those terms confidential was necessary, it was argued, as not to impair any individual’s competitive business strategies if all of these terms were to be disclosed. The service providers were notably compared to magicians with trade secrets to protect. EFR argued Uintah County and its service providers lack the authority to enter into contracts that effectively block the Utah Government Records Access and Management Act, or GRAMA. County governments do not have the authority to facilitate agreements that block public access to terms and conditions in which public funds are disbursed in exchange for services provided, EFR contended. It was suggested the records should be released in full, minus such information as phone numbers and addresses. After an "in camera" review of the contracts without redactions, the State Records Committee unanimously agreed. Expanding Frontiers Research is encouraged with the prioritizing of government transparency and open records access. This GRAMA case is about much more than dubious paranormal conferences. It is about all records are public unless expressly protected by statute, and that municipalities lack the authority to preemptively classify contracts as exempt from disclosure from their very creation.

Expanding Frontiers Research is pleased to announce the launch of the EFR Patreon page, a place where subscribers can view documents obtained through public records requests, discuss and share opinions on the material, and much more, all while helping us with the costs of funding the ongoing work. Patrons will gain access to records as they are obtained, viewing the process all the way from submitting requests to appealing select responses and ultimately publishing what we learn from the material released. Patrons are encouraged to submit their questions, in addition to participate in discussions. EFR aims to continue its practice of assisting researchers with composing and submitting public records requests to applicable agencies, municipal governments, and institutions that advance research and public understanding of salient issues. Learn more about the Freedom of Information Act, the EFR Archive, how we formulate our records requests, and how we interpret archived material and the records we receive. EFR will continue to provide newsworthy blogposts and informative YouTube content while offering increased service and benefits to patrons who help us fund the website, FOIA fees, and related expenses. We hope you will choose to join us and our financial supporters in continuing to build a dependable research community. We are committed to obtaining and publishing reliable information with demonstrated chains of custody, pertaining to the topics about which you care most. Join us today!

By Jack Brewer and Erica Lukes The body of a deceased individual was recovered on or about Feb. 29 in the vicinity of Skinwalker Ranch, according to the Uintah County Sheriff's Office. "Our agency did locate a deceased individual south of Fort Duchesne, however the circumstances are not suspicious and no further information will be released out of respect for the family," Chief Deputy Brian Fletcher told Expanding Frontiers Research in a March 4 email. EFR learned a body may have been recovered near 4500 East and 2800 South after an abandoned motorcycle was discovered nearby and reported to police months earlier. The motorcycle was reportedly called in to the sheriff's office on November 24, 2023. A source familiar with the incident told EFR the deceased individual may have been in the area at the time of their death because of an interest in paranormal phenomena purported to occur at Skinwalker Ranch. Urged to address whether that was the case, Chief Deputy Fletcher responded there would be no further comment. A request was submitted Friday to the Uintah County Sheriff's Office under the Utah Government Records Access and Management Act for all incident reports and related documentation of the scenes and circumstances. This is a developing story.

There is a section of the Expanding Frontiers Archive titled the Barry Greenwood Special Collection. It hosts records brought to us by the longtime archivist and researcher. Within the section is a pdf titled AAWSAP-BAASS-MUFON Document Collection, 2008-2009, a compilation of information received by researchers Curt Collins and Roger Glassel to support their co-authored blogpost, The Pentagon UFO Program’s Secret Partner, as explained per Glassel. The 70-page document collection contains two contract agreements (see page 3 and page 33) apparently drawn up between Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies, a now disbanded government contractor, and the Mutual UFO Network, a 501(c)(3) public charity ostensibly dedicated to the scientific study of UFOs for the benefit of humanity. Much evidence exists to challenge the effectiveness of that mission statement. A precarious BAASS-MUFON collaboration was undertaken during the Advanced Aerospace Weapon Systems Application Program, or AAWSAP. Thanks to the Freedom of Information Act, the project is now conclusively known to have been a Pentagon-funded initiative under the direction of the Defense Intelligence Agency, but that information was not always public knowledge (Learn more about the AAWSAP in the FOIA Documents section of our archive). BAASS acted as a funding conduit for the DIA and, arguably more importantly, did not disclose the source of the funds to the vast majority of people involved either directly or indirectly. This fact is omitted from the narratives sown by many latter day historians for what are probably a number of reasons. Moreover, many of the people who voiced concerns MUFON was under the influence of the intelligence community, even including then-director James Carrion, were shunned and criticized. This writer knows that to be the case not only as a researcher, but as someone who was regularly interacting at the time with members of MUFON and its rapid response team organized to investigate reported UFO sightings. There was much talk of issues ranging from discrepancies with chain of command to disappearing case files. To know people in MUFON circles was to know the organization was strongly suspected of being an intelligence asset. Carrion resigned as International Director and went on to write that John Schuessler was aware of the source of the funds negotiated from BAASS to MUFON but would not disclose that source to Carrion or the rest of the governing board, only describe it as a “sponsor.” That means the MUFON investigators leveraged by BAASS and the AAWSAP were unaware the collection of reports they were compiling was under the auspices of the DIA. Witnesses who were interviewed would never have been informed the information was being collected for Uncle Sam. Furthermore, it appears at least some writers of research papers done at the time were not informed they were submitting work to the DIA. This becomes interesting in light of the fact a great deal of speculation contained in those papers would eventually be propped up as AAWSAP research interests and deliverables, leaving many reasonable questions about where the $22 million project budget went. Answers to such questions are not apparent in the FOIA releases provided by the DIA in 2022. From the BAASS-MUFON agreement pertaining to research papers: The second agreement includes the acquisition of the existing MUFON CMS (Case Management System), the organization's tool for collectively tracking and managing UFO reports and related research. The agreement also stipulated field investigation services would be provided by MUFON, along with all information and material derived from those services: For whatever reasons, authors who describe themselves as AAWSAP project personnel and journalists typically fail to address the above considerations while purporting to inform the public about the program. They tend to offer personal narratives in lieu of documents and contracts that give us tangible, verifiable circumstances to contemplate. Salient questions present themselves in the wake of such tactics and omission of information.

By Jack Brewer and Erica Lukes The Utah Office of the Attorney General withheld seven pages of records responsive to a public information request that sought emails exchanged between AG Sean Reyes and Brandon Fugal, who is a cast member of the cable television show The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch and the reported owner of the ranch. The response contended that releasing the records would jeopardize the life or safety of an individual. The AG Office issued the response in an email Monday that stemmed from a December request submitted by Expanding Frontiers Research (EFR) under the Utah Government Records Access and Management Act (GRAMA). “After a reasonable search,” the Attorney General's Office wrote, “we have identified 7 pages of records responsive to your request. However, these records have been classified as protected under Utah Code § 63G-2-305(11) because their release would jeopardize the life or safety of an individual. Due to their protected classification, the records cannot be released to you.” The request for the responsive records was subsequently denied and they were withheld in their entirety. The GRAMA response is available below: Substantial controversy surrounds AG Reyes and his relationship with Tim Ballard, embroiled founder and former CEO of Operation Underground Railroad, a purported anti-human trafficking group. Criminal investigations, civil lawsuits and sexual assault complaints followed the spinning of bizarre stories about conducting international undercover operations. Sean Reyes, who was also prone to suggesting the FBI abused its power in retrieving Top Secret documents from former President Donald Trump and fanned the flames of the stolen election "Big Lie" fire, has since withdrawn his candidacy for re-election. He is the third consecutive Utah Attorney General who will leave office amid criminal investigations and tarnished by scandal. In 2015, the Attorney General's Office was found to lack organization and be ineffective in filling records requests, among other managerial problems. Reyes vowed to improve the situation, but a 2023 ruling issued by Judge Randall Scanchy said he had "no expectation that a 'reasonable search' could even be conducted" for public records within the office. Other questionable activities undertaken by Reyes include lending his name and the prestige of his office to dubious Skinwalker Ranch tales. Reyes appeared multiple times on the related cable television show, as well as at the FanX Salt Lake event with Brandon Fugal in 2022, as depicted below. The Attorney General's Office emphasized in the past that Reyes's activities with Fugal were outside the Attorney General's official duties. EFR reached out and inquired if the Office might have any revisions to its previous stance, given the recently issued GRAMA response. The Attorney General's Office did not immediately respond to the request for comment. Brandon Fugal was emailed and offered an opportunity to comment on the circumstances for potential inclusion in this article. He did not immediately respond. Expanding Frontiers Research will appeal the denial of the request for the responsive records.

Expanding Frontiers Research (EFR) submitted public records requests to Uintah County in 2023 for material responsive to the county's latest PhenomeCon. The seemingly straightforward request led to more requests, two appeals, a scheduled mediation meeting - and it's far from finished. The requests were submitted under the Utah Government Records Access and Management Act, or GRAMA. PhenomeCon is a paranormal-themed conference held annually since 2021 in Vernal, Utah. As previously reported by EFR, hundreds of thousands of dollars - in tax money - have been allocated to the event that is sponsored by Uintah County, a community that was reeling from the sticker shock of a proposed 73% property tax increase. The County Commission recommended the tax increase to deal with deficits, inflation and to pay for ongoing government services like policing, snowplows, fuel, and employees. Commissioners said funding was simply no longer available to cover the necessary expenses. Following significant public backlash, the tax increase was shelved. Uintah County nonetheless pays cast members of The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch and other speakers tens of thousands of dollars to appear at the event out of those hundreds of thousands spent on PhenomeCon. About half the budget has gone to various appearances made during the event, along with stipends, lodging, and similar expenses. Proponents argue the conference increases tourism, even if many of its speakers traffic in dubious tales. Others are skeptical of those claims of local prosperity, however, and the county's lack of eager willingness to open its books and provide documentation of purported public financial benefit does not seem to help build its case. In the latest GRAMA requests to Uintah County, the Travel and Tourism Office responded with 14 pages, but only three of those pages directly pertained to PhenomeCon financial records. EFR appealed to the Uintah County Chief Administrative Officer on the grounds of an inadequate search and an incomplete response. The appeal resulted in obtaining an additional 140 pages of responsive records, 92 of which consist of heavily redacted contracts drawn up by the county with speakers and vendors. “The redactions to the contracts are being made as per the agreement in the contracts that the terms would remain confidential,” the Chief Administrative Officer wrote in a Dec. 1 response to the GRAMA request. A three-page Uintah County PhenomeCon contract entered into with UFO and Skinwalker Ranch personality Travis Taylor, indicating at least $3,500 in compensation was to be issued, and highly similar in appearance to the 90-plus pages of other agreements released in heavily redacted form to EFR: EFR again appealed the GRAMA response, this time to the State Records Committee, arguing Uintah County lacked the authority to undertake a confidentiality agreement with service providers that effectively obstructs the GRAMA. The very purpose of the state records act, EFR contends, is to ensure transparency and allow the public to know how the government conducts its business. Mediation is scheduled for early February and a hearing will be conducted in March with the Records Committee if a solution is not reached. EFR will publish and thoroughly report on 2023 PhenomeCon records obtained after its GRAMA cases are followed through to completion.

The Thurston County Sheriff's Office (TCSO) continued to provide records responsive to Ramtha's School of Enlightenment after the initial release was reported in September by Expanding Frontiers Research (EFR). The material was obtained as the result of an August 2023 records request. Dozens of total records have been obtained that reference J.Z. Knight's Yelm, Washington, 80-acre compound, stemming from a research collaboration between EFR Executive Director Erica Lukes and this writer. The article posted in September published law enforcement records documenting the erratic and often dangerous behavior of former Ramtha students, many obsessed with gaining access to J.Z. Knight and the compound. Records received since the first article was published include a police report submitted by an apparent student at Ramtha's School of Enlightenment who complained her mail, “normally sealed documents from the FBI,” was opened and documents were missing. Another responsive record indicated the Seattle FBI office alerted TCSO that, while scouring social media, it observed a post published by an account titled “WA Nazi Watch” that suggested the Ramtha group engaged in right-wing extremism. In yet another report obtained, a person was apparently shot in the back while exploring woods located near the Ramtha property after they and a friend set out to investigate rumors of aliens at the compound. More records provided by the sheriff's office indicated members of Art of Life, a group that split from Ramtha and became involved in a legal dispute with J.Z. Knight, filed numerous reports of harassment they claimed to believe were perpetrated by Ramtha disciples, yet officers were dubious of their reports. These circumstances and more are explored below. Multiple emails were sent to Ramtha's School of Enlightenment offering opportunities to comment for potential inclusion in this article. No responses were received. Opened Mail The morning of Jan. 2, 2019, the TCSO received a message via an email web application, Subject: Opened Mail. The sender was identified as Shannon Miramontez, who wrote, “Picked up open mail from chair in front of landlord's house last night at 8pm. I noticed a [sic] normally sealed documents from the FBI was open. There are missing documents from the large envelope. Landlord is currently not returning my phone call.” Sgt. Dave Odegaard spoke with Shannon shortly after receiving the report. In a subsequent inner-office email, the sergeant explained Shannon, the landlord, and other students from the Ramtha school used the same mailbox. The landlord, Teresa Rylko, would get the mail and place it all on a chair, apparently to be collected by recipients. Sgt. Odegaard noted that Shannon does not know if Teresa or another person opened her mail. Shannon had been unsuccessful in trying to reach Teresa, and Sgt. Odegaard was likewise unable to get in touch with her. EFR attempted to reach Shannon Miramontez by email and offer her opportunities to comment on the circumstances for inclusion in this article. No responses were received. It is not currently clear if or how the situation was resolved. Neither is it clear what type of documents the apparent Ramtha student was receiving from the FBI, what the purposes of the documents were, or why some of them may have been missing. Monitoring Social Media At 12:25 a.m. the morning of June 6, 2020, Sgt. Malcolm McIver emailed fellow officers he had just talked to Cliff Schroff of the FBI in Seattle. “He said they are scouring social media posts,” Sgt. McIver wrote, “and came across 'WA NAZI WATCH' that had a picture of Ramtha's School gate.” There was no threat expressed and the FBI wasn't sure what WA Nazi Watch was, but was passing the information on, as was the sergeant. Further investigation conducted by EFR revealed WA Nazi Watch was involved in social media circles on the former Twitter website X with accounts associated with Antifa, or anti-fascism. The account was apparently suspended from the social media site for unclear reasons. The WA Nazi Watch website posts information about the activities of people it identifies as fascists and right-wing extremists. The Ramtha group may have attracted attention due to reasons including bigotry expressed by J.Z. Knight as reported by the Southern Poverty Law Center and as previously explored in the September post at EFR. The FBI Seattle Public Affairs Office told EFR in an Oct. 24, 2023, email the FBI does not comment on correspondence from another agency obtained through a public records request. Asked to address Bureau activities from 2020 to present on monitoring internet social media for posts of concern, the Public Affairs Office responded: Generally speaking, the FBI cannot initiate an investigation based solely on First Amendment protected activity. As offensive as a statement can be, the FBI cannot open an investigation without a threat of violence or alleged violation of federal law. However, when the language does turn to a call for violence or involves federal criminal activity, the FBI is able to undertake investigative activity. The FBI may review, observe, and collect information from public sources as long as the FBI activities are done for a valid law enforcement or national security purpose, and in a manner that does not unduly infringe upon the speaker or author’s ability to deliver his or her message. Regarding social media, the volume of social media messages has simply exploded so we need cooperation from the public, the private sector, and, of course, our law enforcement partners to spot potential threats. Law enforcement agencies are not the only groups monitoring the social media posts of people in the vicinity of Ramtha. Knight's school employees keep a cautious eye out too. An Aug. 19, 2019, inner-agency email notified TCSO officers a phone call was received from Ramtha School of Enlightenment (RSE) legal advisor Mike Wright, explaining that an event for some 150 guests was scheduled from Wednesday the 21st to Sunday the 25th. “RSE has been monitoring social media,” the Sheriff's Office email explained, “and it was recently discovered on Facebook that a group of juveniles are planning to 'storm the event.'” The disruption was planned for Sunday morning. Wright apparently did not take the situation particularly seriously and just wanted to make the TCSO aware. The email rather interestingly continued, “RSE will have 1 armed security roaming the property, 1 security at the main gate, 3-4 internally non-armed security, and about 20 other staff to help with people who are attending. All of them will have a radio and can communicate with each other if a problem arises. In addition, there are sensors around the perimeter of the campus and security cameras all over.” Shooting April 3, 2023, Boyd Stacy submitted a report to the TCSO that in September 2022 he was hearing rumors going around about people seeing aliens and weird stuff occurring at the Ramtha compound. He and a friend headed out to investigate, apparently on all-terrain vehicles through the woods. After many hours of navigating the forest, they were reportedly “hit with spotlights” in a wooded area. Stacy reported this took place “behind Morgans 300 acre [sic] compound.” A confrontation ensued, the explorers ran, and Stacy was “shot in the back by the man with the AR-15.” Stacy indicated he knew the incident was previously investigated but was unsatisfied with the results. He emphasized he wanted the shooter held accountable and prosecuted. “I am documenting this because no sheriff office staff has tried to contact me while I was in the hospital,” Stacy wrote. The relationships among the various parties named in the report is not entirely clear. An April 3 TCSO email indicated the report was rejected. The incident “was investigated in September last year” by several deputies and detectives with the TCSO, the email stated, indicating the Office considered the matter closed. Missing Persons As EFR obtained increasing numbers of public records in its ongoing investigations of American cults, a recurring theme became reports of missing persons. Narratives in the reports often reflect circumstances where relatives in distant states stop hearing from a loved one and become concerned, or a family member who resides with the missing person describes how they headed off to an event and didn't return as scheduled. Reading these reports, one might develop a certain sense of mounting dread as law enforcement officers diligently log their efforts to locate the individual, systematically going from one source to the next who saw them before they went missing. One might also cultivate some empathy for the officers who do all this work, typically to discover the person is willingly taking up with a cult, simply doesn't want to talk to their family for whatever reasons, and/or is experiencing some type of mental health issue that may often be dealt with ineffectively by the surrounding community. Take for instance a 2012 report, in which a woman in North Carolina called the TCSO and reported her concern the family hadn't heard from a male relative in two years who was suspected of getting involved with the Ramtha group. An officer went through the process of eventually locating the individual to discover, according to the report, the man “was fine and didn't want to bother anybody so he never responded to any posts on MySpace or Facebook.” He subsequently “agreed that he would contact someone every six months to let them know he is OK.” Other missing person cases end much more tragically. Law enforcement officers must be emotionally prepared for a wide range of potential outcomes to their investigations. On Oct. 2, 2010, a deputy was dispatched on a missing person incident. A woman reported she was concerned for the safety of her friend and neighbor, Patrick L. Parsons, who suffered from depression. She nor the man's brother had heard from him in several days, she explained. A TCSO detective was quickly assigned to the case, who interviewed mental health service providers who had interacted with Mr. Parsons. The detective distributed bulletins, sought assistance from other law enforcement agencies in searching for the man's vehicle, and similar procedures. Efforts were also coordinated to identify his whereabouts through his social media activity, banking information, and cell phone use, but to no avail. It was learned, however, that Parsons was taking courses at Ramtha's School of Enlightenment. The detective contacted school administrator Mike Wright and discovered Patrick Parsons paid $500 on Aug. 27 via a website for an event scheduled to be held Oct. 27. On Oct. 5, 2010, just a day into the detective's investigation, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office notified the TCSO it located the vehicle. The case was subsequently, and sadly, resolved. From the TCSO files, written by the deputy who was originally assigned the missing person call: I contacted the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office and asked to speak to the on scene deputy that was handling the call. I was called by Deputy McCarty who identified himself as the responding deputy. I asked what condition and circumstances that Patrick was found. He informed me that earlier in the evening a passerby, who transients the area daily, of Milepost 9 and Doswallips Road in the Olympic National Forest [sic]. The passerby observed an unresponsive male in the driver's seat and called law enforcement. When aid and law enforcement arrived it was apparent that Patrick was deceased. Deputy McCarty told me that it appeared to him and the coroner that it was suicide. He said it appeared Patrick had cut his wrists and the knife was found in the vehicle. A journal was also located that had suicidal tendencies written within them. I asked if there was any indications of a crime or additional persons and he does not [sic] since Patrick had approximately $400.00 in cash, his identification including passport and other minor valuables within the vehicle. The coroner estimates that Patrick has been in the vehicle approximately eight to nine days. After receiving the information I asked if any of the family members had been notified. He said their dispatch may have received one phone call but was unsure if they were actual family. I told him I would notify the family and give them his information for further instructions. Jefferson County SO case number is 10-6338. Law Enforcement Challenges Among the clear challenges to law enforcement is that Ramtha followers become hostile and resistant to the very agencies that at times preserve their safety, defend their rights, and protect J.Z. Knight's property itself. In the immediate aftermath of a 2011 hit and run incident, Deputy K. Kimball reported how they followed the trail to a property where two men were encountered. The men acted with resistance and strongly urged the officer to leave. One of the men fled into a house, prompting the deputy to report, “Because I was alone, male's attitude and the unknown whereabouts of the other male, I detained the male subject and placed him in the back of my patrol car.” After logging several more twists and turns, including a third man and a woman emerging from a trailer to demand the officer leave, Deputy Kimball wrote: During a conversation with WSP [Washington State Police], the male that I detained, verbally identified himself as Ronald K Brooks... However, Ronald does not go by that name because he does not believe in it. Ronald goes by “August.” Ronald also stated that he did not have a social security number because he does not believe in the “System.” Ronald does believe in the constitution, but he stated that he was not a constitutionalist. Ronald claimed to be a “Rampster.” Ronald builds cement bunkers for JZ Knight and her followers. Ronald does recognize law enforcement, but only if they are doing what he believes is legal. Burglaries A potentially concerning circumstance among the dozens of TCSO records responsive to Ramtha's School of Enlightenment was reports of burglary or similar crimes perpetrated against property owners involved with Ramtha. A 2011 burglary was reported, for instance, when a woman “returned home after camping for a week at the Ramtha School and found her house ransacked.” The woman's shotgun and computer equipment were missing, with the point of entry surmised to be a removed pane of glass. Another burglary involved a 2017 case at the property of the then-recently deceased Joseph Duffield. The executor of the estate, Gary Stevens, reported the burglary, which occurred sometime between July 18-23. Joseph Duffield passed away in April, the report noted, and a memorial service was held for him on July 12 at the J.Z. Knight compound. Gary Stevens indicated that whoever burglarized the residence would have had to have some insider information about Duffield's death and the layout of the property. The responding deputy documented the manner rummaging was conducted in the home, various outbuildings, and an underground bunker of the property. The deceased owner was described as a “prepper,” reportedly stockpiling gold and precious metals. A metal detector of unknown origin was left in the wake of the crime. The officer concurred with the assessment of the executor, surmising the perpetrators had a desire to find something fairly specific, “which would be consistent with Gary's hunches.” To add insult to injury, trespassers once again descended upon the property within hours of the deputy clearing the scene. They were considered persons of interest, the officer noted, but there was no evidence directly connecting them to the burglary at the time of the report. Art of Life In the 2006-07 time frame, former Ramtha students were making noise of rebellion, criticizing the school and its methods. This included Enlighten Me Free, a website where grievances were aired and related information was posted. Among the groups that splintered from Ramtha was Art of Life Coaching Inc., reportedly founded by WhiteWind Weaver. JZK, Inc. successfully mounted a legal defense to prevent Weaver from using techniques and activities she learned while attending Knight's school or, in effect, what some viewed as taking Ramtha with her when she left. Weaver and her associates called the TCSO with multiple complaints of harassment they claimed to suspect were perpetrated by Ramtha followers. At one point in 2009, a deputy documented they had submitted some 19 reports of suspicious activity, three within the past year, such as vandalism and burglary which they attributed to Ramtha disciples. Deputies became doubtful and noted the lack of material evidence supporting ongoing claims of sabotaging vehicles, knocking on perimeter walls at night, items moved within the home, a large amount of cash stolen, and one instance where it was claimed the crotch had been cut out of pajamas. Responding officers, however, noted such inconsistencies as the lack of fresh pry marks on doors. In another instance, a carving on a table was claimed to have been recently left by vandals, but an officer noted the markings were not new. Deputies came to simply not believe WhiteWind Weaver and her peers. In at least one instance an officer designated the type of call on which they were dispatched as “mental.” This is unfortunate for all parties involved and could be argued does not reflect any better on the Ramtha School of Enlightenment than it does on Art of Life. After all, many of the people whose actions are explored in the two EFR posts on the Ramtha files were at some point students, which means they, in all likelihood, paid their money to the “school.” If it's not an impressive class of alumni, it's not solely the fault of vulnerable populations who went looking for enlightenment.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation released on Friday four heavily redacted pages of records responsive to the Galileo Project, resulting from a July 2023 Freedom of Information Act request submitted by Expanding Frontiers Research. The Bureau indicated an additional 24 pages of responsive records were withheld in full. Obtain the released records: The FBI cited FOIA Exemptions b(6), b(7)(C) and b(7)(E) for the withholding of material. Category b(7) pertains to records compiled for law enforcement purposes. Exemption b(7)(E) states information is exempt from disclosure if it would reveal techniques and procedures for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions, or if it would disclose guidelines for investigations and prosecutions if such disclosure could reasonably be expected to risk circumvention of the law. Responding to an EFR media inquiry about whether the FOIA release might indicate the undertaking of some type of investigation, the FBI National Press Office stated in a Friday email its standard policy is to neither confirm nor deny the existence of an investigation. In general, the statement continued, the FBI does not comment on the content of files released through the FOIA, and lets the information contained in the files speak for itself. The four pages released depict an FBI electronic communication labeled unclassified and titled “The Galileo Project's Research Approach to UAP”. As demonstrated below, the term “FOUO,” meaning “for official use only,” was marked off the top of the document. It is not immediately clear why text other than personal identifiable information was subsequently redacted, or what the additional 24 responsive pages might reveal, or why they were fully withheld. Neither is the origin or purpose of the electronic communication immediately clear. It was apparently approved by an “SIA,” or Supervisory Intelligence Analyst. A “deleted page information sheet” was included in the FOIA release, specifically noting the exemptions applied to each of the 24 pages withheld. A screenshot of the sheet: The Galileo Project is a search for extraterrestrial signatures headed by Harvard astronomer Professor Avi Loeb. Results reported thus far and Loeb's related assertions have received mixed support and notable criticism. The records released by the FBI state Loeb's endeavor raised $1.7 million from private investors to look for possible evidence of artifacts or equipment made by extraterrestrial technological civilizations, as reported by International Business Times in July 2021. Offered an opportunity to comment, Prof. Loeb called the FBI FOIA release “interesting” in emails exchanged Friday, emphasizing project members “do not hide anything and disclose all relevant information on our website.” Loeb stated he did not know about the records in the possession of the FBI and, upon being asked to make it perfectly clear he is unaware of anyone submitting the information or document to the FBI, responded that is “correct.” Expanding Frontiers Research will appeal the 24 pages fully withheld and portions of the redacted material released by the FBI.

Mark your calendars for December 29! Expanding Frontiers Research invites all our friends and supporters to join us for a look back at our young organization's accomplishments. Join me, Erica Lukes, along with Jack Brewer for a live highlight review and fundraiser edition of Expanding Frontiers. That will be on YouTube, Friday, December 29, 7pm Eastern, 5pm Mountain. Keep an eye on our website and social media accounts for more information as the date draws closer. Jack and I will be reviewing our top blogposts and most discussed videos, so drop your thoughts in the comment section below or hit us up online and let us know what you find most interesting about our articles and shows. Is there a particular guest you appreciate? Maybe our method of following the money in our investigative reporting? What would you like to see more of? Let us know! We will also be giving a summary of our ongoing FOIA cases and public records requests. Jack and I will explain specifically how your support benefits the organization and translates into breaking stories covered by local and national news outlets. We sincerely hope to see a big year-end turnout in the live chat for this big year-end show. Your support is meaningful to us, so please make plans to stop by the chat for a shout out and hello. As you think about your year-end giving, please consider a donation to Expanding Frontiers Research. Donations may be made through our secure PayPal link located on the homepage. Your financial contributions assist with FOIA fees, video production, website costs and similar operating expenses. We are a Utah nonprofit corporation, tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. EFR closes the year with a sincere 'thank you' to each and every one of you who support our work in so many different ways. We are grateful for each time our articles are cited, our videos are posted, our followers gather in show chat, and the many ways people express their support. Thank you. We deeply value your confidence, and we eagerly look forward to continuing to earn your respect.