Weekender: Is Veteran’s Administration Hiding Rendlesham Facts?

We have many reasons to thank our servicemen: for their bravery, for their focus and commitment, for their selflessness and now, it seems, for their unwitting decision to forfeit their basic human rights.
A court case is pending involving Tech. Sergeant John Burroughs and the Veterans Administration (VA) , who are preventing Burroughs from gaining access to his classified military medical records.

Burroughs is well-known as one of the soldiers who were present at the RAF-Bentwaters UFO incident, and was the only witness to have been present on both nights when a craft-of-unknown-origin was observed near the East Gate of RAF Woodbridge. He has since suffered serious health problems which are consistent with exposure to a form of high-power exotic radar, electromagnetic (EM) and electronic counter measures (ECM) systems. It is not known exactly under what circumstances the exposure took place.

Burroughs now requires a heart valve transplant in order to repair heart damage caused by a rare form of radiation, but his medical team have been unable to access his full medical history and therefore cannot accurately assess his case. A seemingly impenetrable wall of secrecy is surrounding his military medical data, to the extent that the VA even attempted to deny that Burroughs was in the Air Force during the period in question. The information is obviously highly classified, but the question remains as to whether a man’s health should be jeopardised in order to maintain strict levels of confidentiality.

One can only imagine what the VA are trying to hide, as evidence emerged which indicated that Sgt. Burroughs’ service records were deliberately altered and the records falsified. Burroughs’ attorney, Patrick Frascogna, Esq. cannot conceive what it is that the authorities are trying to cover up.

“What is curious is that if the VA was trying to cover up something simple,” he said in a recent statement, “they’d give John his disability and ask him not to talk about it. But they refuse to release the information to the extent of claiming it does not exist. What could cause that level of concern by the VA?”

What indeed? Despite the intervention of former Navy fighter pilot and Vietnam POW, senior senator John McCain (R – Arizona),who successfully campaigned to have the records accurately restored, the vital medical evidence is still being withheld. Senator McCain’s office even requested the release of the documents through the Freedom of Information Act, (FOIA), but the request was denied. Sgt. Burroughs is grateful for the support he has received from McCain, and remains incredulous that even a senior politician was unable to sway the VA’s decision.

"I am deeply grateful for the effort taken by Senator John McCain and his staff to assist me in getting my service record form DD214 returned to truthful status,” Burroughs said. “It’s unfortunate that even he thus far has been unable to obtain my entire service medical record for my doctors and case workers to properly evaluate my Veterans Administration Medical Data Secrecy 11-18-13 Page 2 of 5 condition.”

Attorney Frascogna is endeavoring to put together a federal lawsuit to force the VA to release the relevant documents.

“It’s unconscionable that U.S. policy makers would wrap media presentation of their policies in the protection of the American Flag and the duty, honor and sacrifice of the working class U.S. servicemen, then conveniently deny their existence when time comes to provide them with protection and care in return, " Frascogna said in his statement. "Their hypocrisy apparently knows no bounds.”

Frascogna believes that there must be other veterans who are also affected by the VA’s refusal to release sensitive military medical records, and so he is considering the possibility of a class action suit.

"At stake is the health and life of all veterans denied proper medical care due to the classification of their medical data, which “may just as well contain data embarrassing to government policy makers as anything that would compromise national security,” observed Mr. Frascogna.

This seems a very poor way of repaying a veteran after almost thirty years of military service, especially when that term resulted in a serious health condition that the authorities refuse either to acknowledge or to assist with treatment.

John Burroughs has dedicated much of his life to the Air Force; he was born in Bloomington, Illinois, and joined the United States air Force (USAF) in 1979 immediately after he graduated from high school. He was deployed in various different locations during his military career, including postings at Luke AFB, Osan AFB, Grissom AFB, Castle AFB, with Reserve assignments at Davis-Monthan AFB Prime Beef , Williams AFB, Reese AFB and Luke AFB as a IMA. He also served overseas in Italy and the Middle East, often working on secret assignments that remain classified to this day.

Burroughs was posted to RAF Bentwater in England in July 1979, and was serving as a Security Police Law Enforcement Patrolman when his life-changing encounters with the unidentified craft occurred in December 1980. Burroughs continued his military career after the incident, and retired in 2006 as a Law Enforcement Supervisor, Patrolman, and K-9 handler both explosive and narcotics. Whether his current health issues relate directly to this incident is not clear, but it might explain the unusually heavy veil of secrecy covering Burroughs’ military records. Certainly Burroughs began to suffer from a variety of symptoms immediately after the event, including eye, throat, and gum disorders and, a few months later, he was admitted to the emergency room at a civilian hospital where his uncommon heart condition was identified.

Surprisingly, in spite of these disabilities, the officer was allowed to continue with his active military service until 1988. He was given a clean bill of in 1979 before being posted to RAF Bentwater, having passed the USAF entrance physical, but the physical examination conducted in 1988 before he exited active service for the reserves revealed vision and heart damage. This means that Burroughs must have somehow incurred these physical impairments during his active service.

The heart problems have continued to deteriorate but due to the unusual nature of the condition it has been difficult for doctors to provide an accurate evaluation of his case without a full medical history. Burroughs’ symptoms are consistent with exposure to a specific form of EM radiation in the millimeter range, but this type of heart damage would be unknown to a typical VA medical case reviewer. Burroughs’ VA doctor in Prescott was unable to recover any relevant records which would have helped her to understand the nature of his condition, and when pressed to obtain the information she replied “Someone above my pay grade will have to make that decision.”

Though John Burroughs now faces a personal crisis, he is also conscious that there are wider implications to this situation, and he wants to do everything he can to highlight an issue which may well be affecting other ex-military personnel. It seems inconceivable that servicemen who have devoted their lives to the defense of their country should be treated with a total lack of consideration or respect by the very country they have faithfully served.

“I did not sign up for this,” says Burroughs. “Nowhere in my contract did it say that I should face a classified phenomenon, get my life in danger and then through a lack of treatment from the VA be left to die. Nor did my fellow servicemen and women sign up for that program. This is bullshit,” Burroughs asserts. “That is just not acceptable to me, in any way, shape or form.”

John Burroughs will be undergoing heart surgery on December 18, 2013, and Unknown Country wishes him every success both for his treatment and forthcoming legal action. A Dreamland interview with Linda Moulton-Howe, a researcher who has been working with John and his attorney for the past three years, will be aired on Unknown Country later this month.

Subscribe today to gain access to what promises to be a fascinating report.