SCIENTOLOGIST PLOT DETAILED IN COURT FILE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP88-01315R000400410012-3
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 1, 2004
• Sequence Number: 12
• Publication Date: October 26, 1979
• Content Type: NSPR

AR'TLt?I,EPP'AD ~~Ied"
.i,A,E A oved For d~~i 13~~ iA~ a b~ ~ R00040cta er
Sci~ntoOgist
';lot Detailed
. &-% rt.file.
Document Theft Ring
crated for Years
The:leadership,of the Founding
Church, of Scientology engaged fn a,
massive conspiracy far,at;leastfouri,
years to steal secret documents from
government agencies, trade associa-
tions, Washington-law-offices-and--
various newspapers,;-court.,.docu
ments released late yesterday show.
The documents also indicate that
a second .conspiracy,-occurred,from.
June 1976 into July 1977 in'a'.Scien-
tology attempt to cover up the wide-
spread, highly organized documents:
thievery ring.
The factual accuracy of the docu-
ments has been agreed. to by the
Scientologists' lawyers ;
The Scientology plan to infiltrate
136 government agencies, plus
numerous other groups,, began;: to
unravel in mid-1976 :....
Three federal grand juries investi
gated various aspects of the=Scien-
tologists' .activities and prosecutors
,spent the last 2' years working to-..,.,
ing today in the criminal conspiracy-
case against nine top Scientologists . , i
Sue Hubbard, wife-of`-`church
fo.tin r,~ L; Rcsix 31a1x40t.0. gave
gigree*d~t:ittxert~gi3ltlx Bt?, atttti eyar+
accept.. verdicts. of guilty from.U.S.a
the conspiracy in. whfch:Scientolo
gists gave awards to church-..mem-
bers who succeeded` in',re'moving
thousands of classified-documents
The court papers were unsealed,
late yesterday, by Richey, in prepara-,
tion fora hearing today at which they
judge is expected to.find each of the,
Scientology defendants guilty of:one:
dictment.:., :.i.. K..
-Internal- Revenue Service creden-,,,
flouse.nere arouse' 101113
of a law librarian AIPM
the two were released, the-investiga- The thrust. of the Scientology theft
lion begun that day --June 11, 1976 plan was three-fold
- resulted in the arrests that proved ; o Illegally photocopy any docu:
crucial to untangling the secret ments relating to-.iuvestigations ofJ
dots. Scientology for possible tax viola--,
The Scientology documents show . tions and other crimes
,'.at church officials wanted to pene- o Illegally'-photocopy any docu:
gate the government. illegally to
fight what the church considered
ill-:gal harassment, including
numerous tax audits, designed to
The scope of the conspiracies be- association operations that-might:-
carne evident to prosecutors in June embarrass them when leaked to the ,1
.977 when Michael Meisaer, one of
house,.became disgruntled with his
Scientology superiors
Meisner surrendered. to-;FBI:
agents on June 20,.1977,.4er. escap-
ing from-. a' -Los Angeles: apartment
where 'the Scientologists. had kept.
him under nearly: constant guard:
while coaching him. n. a cover.. story=
to give federal investigators
Had an agreement.not?been
reached to have. guilty - verdicts-
entered. against the. Scientologists
without a trial,..Meisner, who..re-
mains. in the federal- protectiv=e
custody, would have-been. the star
witness
He identified numerous other
Scientology 'operatives;.including a
woman who obtained copies of CIA,
Defense Intelligence"Agency and
o Cher.:.security agency..documents
while- employed- by- the. Drug En-;,
forcement.Admimstratioa.
. That woman, Nancy Douglas, re-
layed the documents to-other Scien-
tologists in Washington who-
forwarded t=hem -up. the. chain of.,
command to the Los. Angeles office
of the military-style church-hier-
archy:. Sh,e- also is' under federal
protection.
Methods. used :included placing.
Scientologists=as secretaries and
other low level employes.in-various,
agencies to copy documents surrep-
tiously, forging identification cards
for entry__into government build
ings, forced. entry, electronically ,,J
bugging offices, and even the impor
tation of a lock-picking' expert. from.-
Los Angeles to crackextra tough file;
Scientologists in 1976 were dozens in
the Justice 'Department and. the
includin- _
ternal Revenue Service
I
,
n
the office of then-Deputy Attorney, I record"'- an account of-the facts of
General Harold B. Tyler Jrthe case that will be presented' in -1
lieu of testimony.
please 2005/01/13 : CIA-RDP88-01315R000400410012-3
ments that might be used to intimi
date so-called enemies" of the.,'
church
While some of. the burglaries at
Justice-and IRS had been mentioned<
in the indictments handed up by a _
federal grand jury Aug.- 151978,
many others-were not publicly con
firmed until yesterday-
They ,
include infiltration by Scien?
tologists working as: employees at
Coast Guard Intelligence, the Drug .,
Enforcement Administration, IRS of-
fices-ia Los Angeles and London;..
Interpol offices here and in London,
the office of the district attorney in
Los Angeles, the California Attorney-
General's Office and the San Diego
Police Department.
When the Scientologists learned 1,
through church lawyers that the
Internal Revenue Service was plan-
ping a November 1974 conference
about the tax-exempt status of the -
church's branch in Hawaii, an ex-
pert at bugging rooms was flown
here by the church to plant a device
to eavesdrop on the IRS conference. - :
The documents say that the Scien-
tology electronics man was taken
into IRS headquarters by another -!
Scientologist with phony IRS creden-
tials who. acted as a-lookout while;
;the :bugger implanted- a-transmitter
in-an. electric. socket in..the confe
ence. room wall. The.entire confer==
ence.then was broadcast. to, an: FiUL-
radio`in a Scientologist's:car oppo=-..
site- the IRS headquarters at 111t'
?
Constitution Ave.. NW. =.]
-The American Medical Associa -- {
tion headquarters in Chicago and.-
:th&. offices of the AMA's lawyers' .1
heree also were "Penetrated"' by
Scientology agents called "mission
?aires" by the church.
," The outline-of the government's',;
case. against. the - Scientologists is
agents.to question the two Aithoughi
 Approved For R+ I e4 Q /~Q ~ p - [ PO?.
.tutors led by-Assistant US,..=Attorney
:Raymond Banoun and agreed upon
by attorneys for the Scientologists,
who continue to'contend that they
-.were prosecuted for religious .rea
sons.-/
Had the-defendants' pleaded
.guilty, they would have lost the
right to appeal:.
The agreement calls for. thej
church's..No. 2 official, Hubbard, to.
be found guilty of one count of'con-
spiracy to obstruct justice, obstruct;
an investigation, to harbor a fugitive
and to make false declarations be-'
fore the grand jury.
That crime carries a possible sen-
tence of up to'five years in jail and a
$10.000 fine.
Other defendants expected to ac-
cept a verdict on that charge are;
Henning Heldt, the British-based
church's,.top U.S. official, 'Duke"
Snider,_ Richard. Weigand, Gregory
.Wiilardson.....Gerald Bennett Wolfe
and Cindy Raymond.
Mitchell Hermann, also known as
'Mike Cooper; who oversaw-.'many- of,
the burglary operations.here,'is ex`
pected to=be found guilty of conspir'
?acy to intercept oral communica
tions,.burglarize and steal.
Sharon.,..Thomas; who was em={
ploye, as: a Justice Departments
secretary, and was one of the princi-
pals involved in the illegal photo-
copying- of government documents;',
which ':the ' Scientologists^ code-i'
named "Judys;" is expected'.to be If
found guilty of theft of government I
documents. That crime carries a J
penalty of one year and a $1,000 fine...';
Approved For Release 2005/01/13 : CIA-RDP88-01315R000400410012-3