SUBJECT: UFO STORIES FROM ANNAOLIS, MD                       FILE: UFO3349






05-18-90 - ANNAPOLIS, MD

Lewin Maddox didn't know what to expect when a neighbor led him into an old
barn in Pasadena during the winter of 1944. What he saw looked like a
helicopter with a wheel instead of a blade to keep it aloft. He was
intrigued but didn't think much of it. Three years later, however, in the
midst of national hysteria over an invasion of unidentified flying objects,
Maddox learned that the curious object had been seized by the Air Force.
"The Air Force apparently thought that it might be a prototype to a flying
saucer," the Glen Burnie resident recalled. "It was seized and taken to the
Aberdeen Proving Grounds. But a week later, they decided it couldn't
possibly have flown." Government officials located the man who had apparently
constructed the odd machine, effectively ending the debate and the county's
day in the UFO glow. Now, four decades later, local UFO enthusiasts say they
have sighted hundreds of unidentified flying objects in the Chesapeake Bay
region. At a recent Maryland State Conference on UFOs held at the Maryland
Hall for the Creative Arts, more than 60 believers gathered to share their
views and experiences on the curious phenomena. "We are very serious people
studying UFOs as a scientific element," said Bob Oechsler, of Edgewater,
president of the local chapter of the international Mutual UFO Network. "We
have had numerous sightings in the last two years. It's not a question of
believing, it's a matter of looking at the factual evidence." The evidence
for Oechsler and his followers is concrete, hundreds of photographs showing
strange glowing objects of all shapes and sizes, videotapes of flying
machines, and dozens of accounts from residents who allegedly have been
"abducted" by aliens. "We have had medical examinations performed on people
who have been abducted," Oechsler said. "Many people claim that UFOs are just
a bunch of lights at night. But the credible evidence's there." Two years
ago, a rash of UFO sightings over the Chesapeake Bay led to the establishment
of the local chapter of MUFON, headed by Oechsler and Debbie Regimenti of
Annapolis. Both say they have seen numerous UFOs. The group now claims a
dozen members and meets every month to discuss the latest sightings in the
region. "The Chesapeake Bay's a hot area for sightings," Regimenti said. "We
try to document the sightings and look for reasons that (aliens) are here."
The first to admit that many sightings of unidentified lights can be
explained by ordinary means, Regimenti also said that the evidence pointing
to the existence of UFOs can no longer be denied. "The government's
completely stopped claiming that UFOs aren't real," Regimenti said. "Once
they remove the stigma and allow them to be acceptable, then we are on the
right road." Several months ago, Regimenti and Oechsler completed a report
documenting their sightings and accounts from dozens of other county
residents. Entitled the "Chesapeake Connection," the report will be
presented at the annual MUFON symposium to be held in Florida this summer.
"It's such a complex issue," Regimenti said. "We don't know who they are,
but we are looking for clues. All I can say is, don't laugh at your next door
neighbor when he says he saw something strange. Keep an open mind."

      
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