The Andreasson Affair (3 page)

Then in August 1975, she read an article about the Center for UFO Studies in a local newspaper. The news story reported that Center Director Dr. J. Allen Hynek was requesting UFO reports for scientific study. Betty sat down and penned a fateful letter, describing the sketchy details of what seemed to have been a CE-IV:

Dr. Hynek received Betty's letter and filed it for some months before resurrecting it and sending it to MUFON's Humanoid Study Group,
⁵
which had requested copies of all such CE-IV cases from the files of the Center for UFO Studies in order to prepare a computer-generated listing.

After some discussion, the study group decided that Mrs. Andreasson's account might be worth looking into. Because Betty's UFO experience had occurred in Massachusetts, the study group had asked MUFON investigators in that state to enquire into the case for them. In January 1977 Field Investigator Jules Vaillancourt initiated an investigation.

It soon became evident that to produce any meaningful results, we would have to be able to unlock whatever memories were still buried in Betty's and Becky's unconscious minds. We recalled that a similar problem had come up with the classic UFO abduction case involving Betty and Barney Hill that was described in John Fuller's
The Interrupted Journey
.
⁶
Although remembering an initial CE-IV, the Hills nevertheless could not account for a portion of time immediately afterward. It was recommended that they secure the services of a psychiatrist, Benjamin Simon, MD, and during the course of his treatment, Dr. Simon used hypnotic regression to help the Hills consciously recall the missing hours. A similar procedure seemed indicated for the Andreasson Affair.

Harold J. Edelstein, who directs the New England Institute of Hypnosis
⁷
, is one of few persons who have pursued the art of hypnosis as a full-time career. Patients are referred to him from a number of local hospitals, including the Sydney Farber Cancer Center and the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Psychiatric Department. In addition to his work within the institute, he serves as staff member to Comprehensive Psychological Services (Burlington, Massachusetts) and as faculty instructor at three
colleges, and also serves a number of law-enforcement agencies. Harold is, in short, a well-recognized expert in the practical use of hypnosis.

He became involved as a consultant in UFO research through the influence of one of our MUFON investigators, Merlyn Sheehan. (While being treated for cancer at the New England Baptist Hospital, Merlyn's doctor referred her to Dr. Edelstein to relieve the nauseating side effects of chemotherapy treatments.) Though this was Harold's first experience with a UFO investigation, his warm personality and keen insight into human behavior soon enabled him to establish complete trust on the part of Becky and Betty—no simple task, as both women initially had severe misgivings about hypnosis.

Both Betty and Becky were good subjects, and after a few sessions, it would only take a few minutes to put either of them in a deep trance. Dr. Edelstein feels it would be unethical to describe in a book for general readers the exact methodology that he used to induce hypnosis. I can report, however, that he employed such devices as key words and slight pressure with his hands. (I remember that he once pointed his finger at Betty to show us her reaction: She went out like a light, and her body went limp like a rag doll.) During deep trance hypnotic regression sessions, Betty and Becky relived their traumatic experience in great detail. They each expressed natural apprehension, fear, wonder, concern, pain, and joy. Their facial expressions, voice tones, and tears were obviously genuine.

The MUFON state director, Joseph Santangelo, kept me abreast of developments. Initially skeptical, I nonetheless was curious and listened carefully to tapes made of the hypnosis/debriefing session. It soon became apparent to me that both witnesses were wholly sincere. When preliminary lie detector tests indicated that the witnesses were indeed telling the truth, I joined the team as a principal investigator and began attending sessions on June 4, 1977.

If you belong to the majority of adult Americans that believes UFOs exist (nearly 57 percent according to a 1978 Gallup poll), you may find it easier to believe that Betty's story, though certainly fantastic, is not fanciful. But even if you belong to the still-skeptical minority, even though you may not share all of the conclusions we eventually drew from this
investigation, I think you will find the evidence too substantial and compelling to be easily dismissed. Intricate elements of their story remained consistent over 12 months of cross-examinations. Subtle similarities with other reported CE-IVs added further corroboration. A rather unusual feature in this case is the abductee's artistic ability. When Betty attended Westminster Elementary School, art was her favorite subject after math and spelling, and she won first prize in many art contests. During our later investigation, she was able to provide detailed sketches relating to her experience, some depicting the interior of the UFO. In combination, these sketches produced powerful corroboration of her account of her experience.

Much of this book consists of actual transcribed words of the hypnotized witnesses as they related and relived their CE-IV to my colleagues and me. Other than editorial comments provided for clarity and organization, most of the account is taken directly from the transcribed hypnotic regression sessions—which have been rearranged so as to provide a strictly chronological sequence of the original experience.

Is the story of the Andreasson Affair true? For now, at least, each reader must draw his own conclusions—until the time when an even more substantial CE-IV casts a more definitive light on Betty's experience. You may find the account incredible and even incomprehensible in parts. But one thing has been established beyond the shadow of a doubt: The witnesses believed it happened.

And so, for that matter, do I.

When the bright light first flashed through the kitchen window, Becky had returned into the living room in response to her mother's commands. (See
Figure 2
shown on
page 32
.) Looking down the hallway into the kitchen, she noticed a dark silhouetted shape bobbing in front of the light source shining through the kitchen window. Then, everything went black. At that same moment, Becky, her grandfather, and all family members except Betty found themselves unable to move, unaware of anything else.

In the pages that follow, I will let the witnesses tell their story themselves.

Jules:
(investigator) What's happening, Betty?

Betty:
There's some…the lights are back on now and, ah, there are
beings
standing there and they're talking with me, but not with their mouths. They've got big heads!

Joseph:
(investigator) How did they get there, Betty?

Betty:
They came through the door.

Joseph:
Did you open the door for them?

Betty:
No.

Joseph:
Did
they
open the door?

Betty:
No.

Figure 2:
The ground floor of the Andreasson house at the time of the encounter

The four entities that had passed by the window entered the house by going through the kitchen door—not through the frame, but through the kitchen door itself. They passed through its solid wood as if it were nonexistent.

Betty:
They came in like follow-the-leader.… They are starting to come through the door now…right through the wood, one right after the other. It's amazing! Coming through! And I stood back a little. Was it real? And they are coming, one after another.… Now they are all inside.

It was difficult for us to visualize what Betty was describing. Thus, after each session, Dr. Edelstein induced a posthypnotic suggestion within her that she would remember the details of what she described while under hypnosis. Her ability to draw was fully utilized, and she supplied us with detailed pencil sketches, many of which are reproduced in this book. (See
Figure 3
.)

Betty:
I was wondering. How did they ever do that? How did they get in here like that?

Betty balked, as her mind frantically tried to grasp some logical explanation for what was happening. Then her strong Christian beliefs abruptly surfaced to provide a desperately sought rationale.

Figure 3:
Betty's rendition of how the entities appeared through the closed kitchen door. They “moved in a jerky motion, leaving a vapory image behind.” Drawn April 10, 1977
.

Betty:
I'm thinking they must be angels, because Jesus was able to walk through doors and walls and walk on water. Must be angels.… And Scriptures keep coming into my mind where it says, “Entertain the stranger, for it may be
angels unaware
.”

Although Betty is far from being fanatic in her beliefs, her pronounced fundamentalist Christian orientation undoubtedly colored her perception and interpretation of some of the events that befell her.

The four entities hardly resembled conventional depictions of angels. They were identical, except for the leader, who appeared taller. The creatures had gray skins, and large, outsized pear-shaped heads. Their faces were mongoloid in appearance.

Betty:
And the taller one…his eye seems to…his left eye seems to quickly go up into a slit. [See
Figure 4
shown on
page 34
.]

Large, wraparound catlike eyes stood in stark contrast to less prominent facial features: holes for noses and ears, and fixed, scarlike mouths. They wore shiny dark blue, form-fitting uniforms. Each left sleeve was
adorned with an emblem that resembled a bird with outstretched wings. (See
Figure 5
.) Their three-digited hands were gloved (See
Figure 6
), and they wore high shoes or boots.

Figure 4:
The leader, as he appeared in the kitchen (May 18)
.