THE UNDERGROUND NAZI INVASION OF THE UNITED STATES - Part 36
The day after the spill, leaders of the fishing community and
fish processors telephoned for my help. I immediately flew to
Valdez to do what I could. In addition to helping the fishermen,
I assisted this Committee with housing and support services
during their on site investigation, and also provided a network
of information to members of the media who were attempting to
provide accurate coverage. As with most disasters, even the oil
spill brought out the best of people in Alaska trying to help. I made
numerous new friends, and put old friends together with new ones.
The evidence continued to mount.
The more information I was provided, the more disgusted I
became. The more disgusted I became, the harder it was to ignore
the information that employees provided me. What I perceived as
the "Sovereign State" of ALYESKA, continued to operate as a
company WITHOUT ACCOUNTABILITY, BEYOND REGULATION,
ABSENT OF CORPORATE CONSCIENCE. I desperately wanted
to go on with my life, to leave behind me the disillusionment that I
felt, to do what other men at my age are doing -- walking on the
beach with their wife, enjoying the hard earned fruits of their labor.
Instead, THE FRUITS OF MY LABOR WERE STOLEN FROM ME,
and the peace and contentment I tried to achieve were REPLACED
by worrying and concern for those people who turned to me for
help. Personally, these were terrible, dark nights for Kathy and me.
And it went on for years.
One day in April, 1990, a Dr. Wayne Jenkins came to me. He
described his company, Ecolit Group, as a well funded group of
attorneys who wanted to help me. They would provide me the tools
to protect those workers who had turned to me for help, Ecolit
could help protect their jobs, and supply me support staff and
assistance to manage what had become a full time, financially
costly, job of protecting whistleblowers and coordinating
government investigations. I thought it was too good to be true.
As I wrote in a note to my Anchorage attorney and faithful
supporter, Julian Mason, Ecolit was "the stuff that dreams are
made of." This Ecolit Group showed up in answer to a dilemma
that seemed to have no end for me. I was tired, almost broke,
and broken in spirit. I wanted to be able to turn the reins of these
responsibilities over to someone else. My wife had been caring
for her invalid parents in Washington State without my help. It
seemed as if we had spent a decade fighting to keep what we had,
losing our assets, and becoming the only hope for many Alaskans
who turned to us for help, for no one else was there for them to
turn to.
The Ecolit Group seemed such a perfect answer. Dr. Jenkins was
anxious to learn all about my Congressional contacts, my
informants, interested media, and my plans. He expressed moral
outrage at the environmental wrongs being committed by the oil
industry, and was anxious to provide legal support to stop the
polluting, the dumping and other wrongs that I revealed to him.
Now that I have had the opportunity to review the transcripts and
tapes of my meetings with Wayne Black, I am embarrassed at
many of the things that I said trying to get him interested in helping
to do the right things without compromising my sources.
Obviously I did compromise many of them. Inadvertently, of
course, but nonetheless, I let them down and I will always have
to deal with that. I also let this Committee down. In my zeal to
find an answer to the problems I was facing -- no resources, and
increasing obligations to more and more people -- I exaggerated my
influence with this Committee and I exposed information that I
had been entrusted with by Committee staffers. In my business
activities I knew that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably
isn't true. In this instance, I failed to recognize the warnings that
should have tipped me off to Ecolit's true purpose.
Yet, I could never have known nor little imagined the extent
of the betrayal of my trust. The details of the Wackenhut
surveillance are now well known. Alyeska authorized the stealing
of our trash, MONITORING and taping our telephone calls,
concealing video cameras in HOTEL rooms, STEALING OUR
MAIL, and ILLEGALLY obtaining our personal and financial
information. Alyeska successfully launched an internal "witch hunt"
to target everyone who had communications with me. By ILLICITLY
obtaining AT&T TELEPHONE RECORDS they identified the people
who we called nationwide and people who called us, and --
worst of all -- violated my confidences with people who trusted
me. Bob Scott was FIREED, LOST HIS HOME, LOST HIS RETIRE-
MENT (Note: Do I sense an impending MULTI-BILLION dollar lawsuit
against ARCO, EXXON and their corporate collaborators here? I
believe that it's inevitable as their criminal conspiracy continues to
crumble. - Wol.). Others have lost their jobs, become suspected
of being sources of information and now live in fear of being moni-
tored by their employer. All that I tried to do to help stop Alyeska's
wrongdoing was being turned upside down by them.
I am repeatedly asked how all this makes me feel. When I first
learned of the surveillance activities I was afraid for my family and
friends. Next I became angry, furious that Alyeska would stoop
to DISHONESTY, DECEPTION and THEFT out of paranoia that
THE TRUTH would somehow find its way to the public. It is the
classic psychological projection when Alyeska justifies their
elaborate sting operation by claiming that I had "stolen" docu-
ments. I never picked through Alyeska's trash, broke into its
offices, taped their phone calls. I never posed as one of their own.
I never attempted to destroy their careers, or worse, invade their
families' privacy. I have always done exactly as I said I was
going to do -- insist on responsible environmental management of
the oil industry in Alaska. Today I am simply saddened and
disgusted; but, in a strange way, grateful and relieved that this
entire incident has come to light because it demonstrates better
than I could ever do that Alyeska, AND ITS OWNERS, cannot
be trusted.
The last ten years of my life have been spent trying to warn
the public that ALYESKA and EXXON CANNOT BE TRUSTED
with OUR natural resources, they CANNOT BE TRUSTED as
business partners, and they CANNOT BE TRUSTED about their
alleged claim that we desperately need more oil. It is now up
to the CONGRESS (who should be the TRUE ruling body in
America, NOT the President, NOT the CIA, and NOT the repre-
sentatives of 'special interest' groups such as the Oil Companies
which have enough money to 'buy' their way into the Media or into
the White House. - Wol.) to sort out the truth from all the lies.
In 1988, ARCO, EXXON and British Petroleum failed to tell this
Committee about the existence of the Pt. McIntyre billion barrel
oil field directly under the West Dock, virtually within sight of
the Alyeska Pipeline, while they were testifying that Prudhoe Bay
was running dry. In fact, both ARCO and EXXON knew that they
had discovered the Pt. McIntyre field years earlier. In 1989, my
General Partner, EXXON, told me that our Pt. McIntyre leases were
dry. I sold my interest in the leases for what EXXON told me was
a fair price. Several weeks after selling EXXON my interests, the
major discovery was announced. ONCE AGAIN, they LIED to you,
they LIED to the Congress, they LIED to the public, and they DE-
FRAUDED us all.
The public relations departments of the oil industry, their
lawyers and lobbyists desperately want this Committee and
the public to believe that I attempted to humiliate the oil industry
in retaliation for the economic losses I suffered. Alyeska and
the oil industry have tried desperately for years to convince
themselves and the public that I am an extortionist -- a busi-
nessman motivated to expose environmental wrongs for personal
profit. The truth is that the oil companies were and continue to
be motivated to ignore environmental wrongs to INCREASE cor-
porate assets. Do not misunderstand me, I believe that responsible
oil development is necessary to our national interest. However,
Alyeska and its oil company OWNERS believe that in order for
someone to be "for" the oil business, one must also be "against"
environmental protections that might stand in the way of
corporate PROFITS. I refuse to believe that fallacy, and I
certainly refuse to conduct myself and my activities in a manner
that these members of the oil industry find acceptable.
I refuse to believe that the only way to advocate for a clean
environment and regulatory compliance is to take a vow of poverty
and join a not-for-profit environmental organization. I also refuse
to believe that I must choose between pursuing the economic
damage that I have been caused by Exxon and the other Alyeska
owners and insisting that they clean up their environmental act.
Most importantly, I refuse to believe that any citizen of this
country has to tolerate the INVASION of privacy that I have been
subjected to simply because I have exercised my Constitutional
RIGHTS and responsibilities as a citizen to petition Congress,
and to assist the news media in the presentation of facts and
evidence that certain members of the oil industry have chosen to
ignore. I may not ever be able to walk on the beach with my wife
in peace or to recoup the money that I have been cheated out of,
but both my wife and I will know that we have done everything
within our power to keep the beaches clean for our children and
grandchildren.
As a final note I want to state publicly how deeply my wife and
I appreciate the courage and honesty of the FORMER Wackenhut
employees and investigators who came forward and told the truth.
The nation and Alaska are better because of the integrity of
these people. Had it not been for Rafael "Gus" Castillo, Ana
Contreras, Sherree Rich, Ricki Jacobson, Adriana Caputti,
Mercedez Cruz, and others, none of this would have come to light.
These are brave individuals, who had nothing to gain by coming
forward, but had much to lose. Each of these employees, like the
many Alyeska employees who took similar risks to bring forward
the truth about Exxon and Alyeska's activities, have more
integrity than the OIL INDUSTRY could ever buy and more courage
than Alyeska could ever defeat. Thank you for giving me the
opportunity to testify and I will be glad to answer any questions
that you may have.
SUPPLEMENTAL STATEMENT OF
RICKI SUE JACOBSON BEFORE
THE UNITED STATES HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED
STATES CONGRESS COMMITTEE ON
INTERIOR AND INSULAR AFFAIRS
November 4 and 5, 1991
Committee On Interior and Insular Affairs
United States House of Representatives
1324 Longworth House Office Building Washington, D.C.
Good afternoon, Chairman Miller and Members of this Committee.
My name is Ricki Sue Jacobson. I am here today in response to the
Committee's subpoena regarding my employment with Wackenhut
Corporation. I reside in Miami, Florida with my three children and I
am currently training to be an executive secretary.
I accepted employment with the Wackenhut Corporation in
November of 1989. I had no previous investigative experience.
Until that time, I had worked as a realtor since approximately
1976. However, in early Fall of 1989, a friend of mine suggested
to me that I would make a good investigator and recommended
that I contact an acquaintance of hers if I were interested. Her
acquaintance was Mr. Wayne Black. At that time, Mr. Black was
not with Wackenhut Corporation, but was operating his own practice.
I contacted Mr. Black and he explained that his firm was being
BOUGHT OUT by Wackenhut and that he would soon be employed
there. After several meetings and discussions, and once Mr. Black
had joined Wackenhut, I was hired as an entry level trainee. For
licensing purposes, my position was known as "private
investigator intern".
At the time my employment began, Mr. Black told me that my
duties would basically involve property and asset searches,
especially since I had a good real estate background. He also
indicated that I would occasionally be doing "witness locates".
In the initial weeks of my employment, I worked with more
experienced investigators. During this period, I also worked on
some surveillance assignments. In approximately February or
March, 1990, Mr. Black asked if I would like to travel to Alaska
on an assignment. Originally, I hesitated because I do not like
being away from my children for long periods of time. However,
after being assured by Mr. Black that I would be gone only
briefly, I agreed. I was not told the name of the client or the
nature of the operation. I was given only the case number, which
was 427.
Mr. Black briefed me for my assignment during March of 1990
and I was due to leave around March 20, 1990. In my briefing, Mr.
Black told me I would be attending an environmental conference in
Anchorage, that I would be travelling under an assumed name, and
that I was to have no public contact with Mr. Black or Mr. Rick
Lund while in Anchorage. Mr. Lund was an investigator under
contract with Wackenhut who often worked with Mr. Black. My
assumed name was "Ricki Eidelson". Eidelson is my maiden name
and Mr. Black suggested I use it since it would be easy to remember.
In the course of my briefing, I was also instructed by Mr. Black
to become generally familiar with various ecological groups
because I would be attending the conference pretending to be an
ecological researcher for an environmental group in Miami. The
environmental group I would be representing was called "Ecolit"
and was a fictitious organization created by Wackenhut for the
purpose of this assignment. After preparing in accordance with my
instructions, I Pago travelled to Anchorage on or about March 20,
1990. Prior to my departure I was given false identification docu-
ments to support my assumed name. These documents included
a Florida driver's license issued in my fictitious name, business
cards from Ecolit, and luggage tags. Mr. Black and Mr. Lund
travelled on board the same plane, but we had no contact with
each other, as per the instructions I had received. Mr. Black's
assumed name was Wayne Jenkins, also supposedly with the
Ecolit group. I believe Mr. Lund's assumed name was John Fox,
though I am not certain. At this time I still had no knowledge of
the client's name, the nature of the operation or effort of which I
was a part, or the name of any persons who might be the subject
of any investigation to be conducted by Wackenhut.
After my arrival in Alaska, I travelled to my hotel, the Captain
Cook, and registered. Mr. Black and Mr. Lund also travelled
to the hotel, though separately from me. Shortly after we arrived
at the hotel, Mr. Black and Mr. Lund met with me in my room and
discussed various details of my assignment. The essence of their
instructions was that I was simply to attend, and take notes at,
the environmental conference scheduled to begin the next morning.
However, in the course of this meeting, Mr. Lund also asked that
I attempt to see the conference registration list and to let him know
if the name "Charles Hamel" appeared on that list. This was the
first time I ever heard the name "Charles Hamel", and nothing
further was said about him. When I inquired later about the list, I
was told that a registration list was not available and I therefore
reported to Mr. Black and Mr. Lund that I was unable to determine
whether Mr. Hamel had registered at the conference.
On March 22, 1990, the third day of the conference, while I
was seated with other conference attendees in the dining room of
the hotel, Mr. Black approached me and whispered "the guy we
want you to eyeball is in the lobby." I believe these were Mr. Black's
exact words. He then motioned for me to follow him. I was
surprised because I did not know anything was expected of me
beyond my attendance at the environmental conference. However, I
walked to the doorway of the dining room and Mr. Black pointed
out Mr. Hamel standing in the lobby. Mr. Hamel was speaking with
a man and a woman. I observed them for a few moments, but did
not overhear their conversation. When they left the lobby, I returned
to the dining room and later reported my observation to Mr.
Black.
During the evening of March 22, 1991, the day the conference
ended, I visited a local restaurant and bar with a fellow
conference attendee. Upon my return to the hotel, I noticed
Charles Hamel standing in the lobby area. Believing that Mr.
Black and Mr. Lund would be interested in Mr. Hamel's
whereabouts, I contacted one of them (I do not remember which)
and advised him of Mr. Hamel's presence in the lobby. I was
instructed to keep Mr. Hamel under observation and, if he left
the lobby area, to follow him. After a short time, I followed Mr.
Hamel into the hotel bar. He was in the company of another
gentleman and I learned later that his name was Rick Steiner. I
sat a few stools away from Mr. Hamel and Mr. Steiner and, after a
few moments, I used the phone in the bar and called Mr. Black or
Mr. Lund (I do not remember which), and notified him of my
whereabouts. A few moments later, Mr. Black and Mr. Lund entered
the bar separately, as if they did not know one another, and took
separate seats. After approximately twenty to thirty minutes, Mr.
Hamel and Mr. Steiner left the bar. My observation terminated at
that time. However, I believe either Mr. Black or Mr. Lund
followed Mr. Hamel and Mr. Steiner out of the bar. During the
time I was in the bar, I do not recall engaging in any direct
conversation with Mr. Steiner or Mr. Hamel, and I do not believe
I did. However, I recall having brief eye contact with one or
both of them in the course of various comments I was exchang-
ing with the bartender.
Sometime after I returned to my room that evening, Mr. Black
and Mr. Lund came to my room and we discussed the events of
that evening and our travel arrangements home, now that the con-
ference had ended.
I left Alaska on the morning of March 24, 1991. While waiting
to board my flight in the Anchorage Airport, I noticed Mr. Hamel
in the concourse area. I was very surprised that I happened to be
booked on the same flight. After being seated in the coach
section, Mr. Hamel noticed me and apparently recognized me. After
exchanging a few words, he invited me to sit with him and I did.
I was very nervous because my assignment was over and I did not
know how to handle this particular situation. Since Mr. Hamel had
just been the subject of our surveillance in the bar, and because
I wanted to be very careful, I introduced myself using my assumed
identity and purpose.
Mr. Hamel's destination was Seattle, the first stop on my
flight to Miami. During the time we sat together, Mr. Hamel very
candidly discussed many things of concern to him, including a
lawsuit with Exxon, his own oil leases and problems he
encountered with water being mixed with his oil. He also
mentioned that he had various sources inside Alyeska Corporation
feeding him various types of sensitive information. He discussed
secret meetings and even the SUICIDE [?-Wol.] of one person
involved. I did not understand much of what he was saying and
felt very astonished and uncomfortable at the great degree of trust
he was showing a complete stranger. In addition to these discus-
sions, Mr. Hamel asked me a lot about myself and about Ecolit.
In the course of that part of our discussion he mentioned that he
would be coming to Miami and that, when he did, he would visit
Ecolit. After I returned to Miami, I reported my experience with
Mr. Hamel to Mr. Lund and then to Mr. Black and subsequently
dictated a memorandum to Mr. Black containing the same
information. I maintained no activity logs during my stay in Alaska
because I was told by Mr. Black that none of the usually required
activity logs were to be maintained in connection with the Alaska
trip. Several days after my return to Miami, at the direction of Mr.
Black, I contacted Charles Hamel one or two times at the number
Mr. Hamel gave me on the airplane. The purpose of my phone call
was to attempt to arrange an introduction between Mr. Hamel and
Wayne Black (posing as Wayne Jenkins of the Ecolit Group). Mr.
Black was present during my calls to Mr. Hamel and spoke with Mr.
Hamel himself once the introduction had been made. Subsequently,
it is my understanding that he made several additional phone
calls to Mr. Hamel. I witnessed approximately two of the calls
made by Mr. Black (Jenkins) to Mr. Hamel. I observed at least one
of these telephone calls being recorded by Mr. Black. The device
used was a wire with a suction cup attached to the receiver and
the other end attached to a small tape recorder on Mr. Black's
desk. I know other phone calls to Mr. Hamel were recorded because
Mr. Black played for me the tape of at least one of the phone calls
which he made to Mr. Hamel.
In the days immediately following my return to Miami, Wayne
Black arranged to establish an official Ecolit office in Miami, in
the Coconut Grove area. This was done because Mr. Hamel had
stated to me on the airplane that he would be coming to Miami and
would come by to see Ecolit's offices and get to know more about
the group. However, within a few weeks after my return, Mr. Hamel
had indicated that he would not be coming to Miami. Therefore,
Mr. Black determined that we would have to travel to Washington,
D.C. in order for him to meet Mr. Hamel. At that point, Mr. Black
directed me to travel to Washington with him to make the
introduction. I did not really want to go, and I DID NOT want to be
a part of any further deception of Mr. Hamel. In fact, on April 30,
1990, I wrote a letter to Mr. Black explaining this and I have provided
that letter to this committee in response to the subpoena served upon
me. Nevertheless, after much discussion, Mr. Black did succeed in
convincing me to travel to Washington with him and to introduce him
(as Wayne Jenkins) to Mr. Hamel with the understanding that I would
not again be asked to have contact with Mr. Hamel or to engage
in any further deceit pertaining to Mr. Hamel. I wrote Mr. Black an
additional letter, on May 6, 1990, which he received on Monday,
May 7, 1990, confirming my earlier statements to him that I was
uncomfortable about my role in the Hamel matter, that I was above
my head in terms of my experience as an investigator, and that
I wanted no further contact with Hamel or this case. I would add,
however, that at this point in time, May 6, 1990, I still had
received no information from Wackenhut regarding the identity of
the client or the nature or purpose of the operation. My letter of
May 6, 1990 was provided to this committee in response to the
subpoena served upon me.
I arrived in Washington, with Wayne Black, on approximately
May 9, 1990. Mr. Hamel picked us up at a restaurant in downtown
Washington and drove us to his office. Wayne Black was introduced
as Wayne Jenkins of the Ecolit Group, and Mr. Hamel introduced
Mr. Black and myself to several other persons present at Mr.
Hamel's offices. Mr. Hamel picked up his mail at his offices and
placed the mail and several other items, such as newspapers, in
the back seat of his car. He then drove us to his home in
Alexandria, Virginia. During the time we were riding to Mr. Hamel's
home, Wayne Black was seated in the back seat and I was seated
in the front passenger seat. At one point during our trip, I looked back
and observed Mr. Black going through Mr. Hamel's mail. I did not
see Mr. Black actually take any of the mail. After we arrived at
Mr. Hamel's home, Mr. Hamel took the mail and other items into
his home and placed them on his desk in the livingroom of his
home. Nearby, on the floor, were many other stacks of papers.
Mr. Hamel left the room twice while we were there. During each
of his absences, I observed Mr. Black leafing through Mr. Hamel's
mail and the numerous papers stacked on the floor. Mr. Black was
very happy about the opportunity to observe Mr. Hamel's mail and
papers and commented to that effect several times. I became
extremely nervous and apprehensive and very much regretted being
there.
After a while, Mr. Hamel reappeared with his wife and we all
chatted for awhile, primarily about Ecolit. Mr. Hamel seemed
quite suspicious about Ecolit and asked many questions of Mr.
Black. After awhile, Mr. Hamel and his wife invited us to join
them for dinner at a nearby restaurant. Just prior to departing
for dinner, Mr. Black used the bathroom in the Hamel home.
A short time later, while walking to the restaurant with Mr. and
Mrs. Hamel, Mr. Black quietly stated to me that he intended to
tape the dinner conversation. Specifically, he advised me not to
talk too much so that the tape would not contain too much
unnecessary chatter. Sometime after we reached the restaurant,
Mr. Black went to the restroom and after he returned he whispered
that the tape had not worked, that the conversation did not
record. Based on this, I concluded that Mr. Black had wired
himself at the Hamel home and attempted at the restaurant to
tape the dinner conversation with the Hamels.
After dinner, we walked back to the Hamel home and Mr. Hamel
drove Mr. Black and me around Alexandria and then to the airport.
On the flight back to Miami, Mr. Black removed from his brief
case two long envelopes, bearing metered postage, which he
indicated he had taken from Mr. Hamel, although I cannot recall
whether he stated the items were taken from Mr. Hamel's car or
his home. I reacted with surprise and asked how he could have
taken the items and he responded that "they were stolen anyway"
and that they did not really belong to Mr. Hamel.
After returning to Miami, I discontinued all contact with Mr. Hamel.
I resigned Wackenhut on or about June 25, 1990. Between the time
of my return and my resignation, among other duties, I continued to
man the undercover Ecolit office and, on one occasion, I was
asked to -- and did -- examine trash which I was told had been taken
from Mr. Hamel's residence. I resigned in writing and my resignation
letter has been provided to this committee in response to the subpoena
served upon me. I have had no further contact with the investigation
pertaining to Mr. Hamel, or with the Wackenhut Corporation except
in connection with these proceedings.
I hope that this information is helpful to the Committee and I will be
happy to try and answer any questions which you may have.
/s RICKI SUE JACOBSON
SWORN TO AND SUBSCRIBED before me the 1st day of
November, 1991 in the County and State aforesaid.
/s JACK B. GERBER NOTARY PUBLIC My Comm. expires
April 26, 1992
