Abduction Of Linda Napolitano Part 2

File: UFO198

ABSTRACT: Budd Hopkins has made a number of public presentations of a purported UFO abduction case with multiple witnesses. The primary abductee is Linda Napolitano, who lives in an apartment building on the lower east side of Manhattan (New York City). She claims to have been abducted by extraterrestrial aliens from her 12th floor apartment in November 1989. It is claimed that three witnesses in a car two blocks away observed Linda and alien beings float out of a window and ascend into a craft. One alleged witness was United Nations Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar. It is also claimed that a woman on the Brooklyn Bridge observed the abduction. Linda has reported nose bleeds, and one X-ray displays an implant in her nose.

To date, Hopkins has provided no full, detailed written report, but he did publish a couple five page articles in the September and December 1992 issues of the Mufon UFO Journal and made a presentation at the 1992 MUFON symposium. We have made use of that information as well as records from other presentations, and we have interviewed the abductee. A number of serious questions arose from our examination. The case has many exotic aspects, and we have identified a science fiction novel that may have served as the basis for elements of the story.

Several prominent leaders in ufology have become involved, and their behavior and statements have been quite curious. Some have aggressively attempted to suppress evidence of a purported attempted murder. The implications for the understanding of ufology are discussed.

Budd Hopkins is the person most responsible for drawing attention to the problem of the extraterrestrial (ET) abduction experience. His efforts have been instrumental in stimulating both media attention and scientific research devoted to the problem. He has written two popular books (Missing Time, 1981, and Intruders, 1987), established the Intruders Foundation, and has made innumerable appearances at conferences and in the media.

Although Hopkins is neither a trained therapist, an academic, nor a scientist, he has involved such people in his work. John E. Mack, M.D., a Pulitzer Prize winner and former head of the psychiatry department at Harvard Medical School, has praised Hopkins' work and acknowledged his indebtedness to him (Mack, 1992a, 1992b). Hopkins has collaborated with university professors in co-authoring an article in the book Unusual Personal Experiences (1992), which was sent to 100,000 mental health professionals. He has testified as an expert witness at a hearing regarding the medical competence of a physician who claims to have been abducted (McKenna, 1992). Because of such strong endorsements and impressive affiliations, and because of his untiring work on behalf of abductees, Hopkins has become the single most visible figure in the UFO abduction field. His contributions, positive or negative, will be quickly noticed by those inside and outside ufology.

Last year, Hopkins made a number of public presentations about a spectacular UFO abduction case occurring in November 1989 and having multiple witnesses. The primary abductee was Linda Napolitano, a woman living on the 12th floor of a high-rise apartment building in lower Manhattan (New York City) [Hopkins has previously used the pseudonym "Linda Cortile" in this case]. It is claimed that three witnesses in a car two blocks away observed Linda and three ET aliens emerge from a window and ascend into a craft. Further it is claimed that a woman who was driving across the Brooklyn Bridge also saw the event.

The case has generated enormous interest and drawn international attention. It has been discussed in the Wall Street Journal (Jefferson, 1992), Omni (Baskin, 1992), Paris Match (De Brosses, 1992), the New York Times (Sontag, 1992), and Hopkins and Napolitano have appeared on the television show Inside Edition. The Mufon UFO Journal labeled it "The Abduction Case of the Century" (Stacy, 1992, p. 9). Even the technical magazine ADVANCE for Radiologic Science Professionals carried a discussion of Linda's nasal implant (Hatfield, 1992). We should expect continuing coverage of the affair not only in the UFO press but also in the major media.

In a short article previewing his 1992 MUFON symposium presentation, he wrote: "I will be presenting what I believe to be the most important case for establishing the objective reality of UFO abductions that I have yet encountered" (Hopkins, 1992, p. 20). During his lecture at the symposium he stated: "This is probably the most important case I've ever run into in my life" (tape recorded, July 1992). In his abstract for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Abduction Study Conference held in June 1992 he wrote: "The importance of this case is virtually immeasurable, as it powerfully supports both the objective reality of UFO abductions and the accuracy of regressive hypnosis as employed with this abductee." Because of Hopkins' renown, and because of his evaluation, this case warrants our careful scrutiny.

End of part 2