FBI Vault File 65-81170: Majestic 12
The FBI Vault's 24-page Majestic 12 file compiles 1988 and 1991 FBI correspondence about purported MJ-12 briefing papers alongside copies of the disputed papers. FBI personnel asked whether the material was classified, Salt Lake City initially considered it a hoax, and a later FBI note states that the document was bogus and the case should be closed. The file documents the Bureau's handling of the claim; it does not authenticate the purported 1952 briefing.
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Document Intel
Source status, provenance, and extraction context.
- Source / agency
- Federal Bureau of Investigation
- Type
- FOIA
- Classification
- Partially Declassified
- Reference #
- 65-81170
- Published
- FBI correspondence dated 1988 and 1991; disputed enclosure dated November 18, 1952
- Content Type
- application/pdf
- Pages
- 24
Structured Analysis
Claims and source material extracted from the document text. Timeline context is surfaced in document intel.
The Dallas FBI office asked FBI Headquarters to determine whether the purported Majestic 12 document remained classified before Dallas conducted further investigation.
The Bureau is requested to discern if the document is still classified. Dallas will hold any investigation in abeyance until further direction from FBIHQ.
The reproduced briefing sheet identifies itself as an Operation Majestic-12 preliminary briefing for President-elect Eisenhower, dated November 18, 1952.
SUBJECT: OPERATION MAJESTIC-12 PRELIMINARY BRIEFING FOR PRESIDENT-ELECT EISENHOWER. DOCUMENT PREPARED 18 NOVEMBER, 1952.
The reproduced briefing page carries a large diagonal BOGUS annotation, signaling the FBI's rejection of the purported briefing.
BOGUS
The FBI file includes a closing note stating that the purported Majestic 12 document was bogus and that the case should be closed.
THIS ADVISES DALLAS THAT THE DOCUMENT WAS BOGUS AND THE CASE SHOULD BE CLOSED.
An October 31, 1991 Salt Lake City airtel sent FBI Headquarters a nine-page document dated November 18, 1952 and sought a determination of Defense Department interest.
Enclosed for FBIHQ is the below mentioned 9-page document dated 11/1B/52.
Salt Lake City reported that a member of the public found the papers on a lobby floor and that the field office initially dismissed the document and its classification markings as a hoax.
Based upon the contents of the document and the manner in which it was recovered, Salt Lake City initially dismissed the document and its classification markings as a hoax.
The Salt Lake City office nevertheless submitted the papers to FBI Headquarters after Defense Department comments reportedly appeared to support a portion of the material.
salt Lake City is submitting the enclosed document to FBIHQ in order for the latter to further determine any DOD interest
In a November 15, 1991 liaison letter, FBI official Harry B. Brandon III told Air Force investigators that the papers might be a hoax but asked them to identify the originator and current classification.
although this document may represent some type of hoax, it is our responsibility to insure that all incidents involving the mishandling of classified data receive adequate investigative attention.
Chronology extracted from the document text.
FBI requests Air Force investigative assistance
Harry B. Brandon III asked the Air Force Office of Special Investigations to identify the originator and current classification of papers that might be a hoax.
Salt Lake City sends papers to FBI Headquarters
The field office transmitted the nine-page document and asked FBI Headquarters to determine whether the Defense Department had an interest in it.
Majestic 12 papers delivered to the Salt Lake City FBI office
A member of the public reported finding the papers on a lobby floor and delivered them to the Salt Lake City field office, which initially treated them as a hoax.
Dallas FBI office requests classification determination
Dallas asked FBI Headquarters to determine whether the purported Majestic 12 document remained classified before continuing its investigation.
Purported Majestic-12 briefing dated
The disputed briefing sheet identifies itself as a preliminary briefing for President-elect Eisenhower; the FBI file reproduces it with a BOGUS annotation.
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