ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT POINTS TO MIND CONTROL

Polk: In 1078 A.D., a man named Hassan-I Sabbah formed an offshoot of the Ismailis. This new sect posed as a religious group and was called the Nizaris, although some called them Hashishin, or "users of Hashish."

     Sabbah used hashish, amongst other drugs, most likely, to bend followers to his will. After feeding them great quantities of mind-altering substances, and after lengthy bouts of hypnotism, he would lead them into a garden filled with exotic plants, food, wine and women. Believing that they were being shown a glimpse of heaven, Sabbah's cultists were now ready to do anything their master ordered. Sometimes, this involved assassination (the term "assassin" is a derivative of the word "Hashishin").

     Further mind-control attempts have been made since then, and some even believe that assassins such as Sirhan, Chapman, and Oswald may have undergone intense forms of hypnotism. And now it seems that we here in Iowa may be threatened by these ancient, evil techniques.

     Hopkins Grove council member John T. Bachman suffered a nearly fatal gunshot wound to the chest on April 21, 1998. He was working late in his office in city hall when, at approximately 10:40, a man burst into his office wielding a pistol, carefully took aim, and fired. Fortunately for Bachman, Sheriff Andrew Marduke and one of his deputies were in a nearby lounge, and were able to come to his aid immediately. They restrained the assailant easily, disarming him without a struggle. Marduke has gone on record stating that the gunman had "a glazed look in his eyes, and had almost no expression at all. He gave in surprisingly easily."

     The would-be assassin identified himself as Timothy Waite, Special Agent with the FBI. Thirty-three year old Waite told investigators that night that he had no idea how he had gotten to city offices, and only remembered events after he pulled the trigger on his .45. Further questioning revealed that Agent Waite had no recollection of his whereabouts over the past two weeks, after he had arrived in Nanson to investigate claims of fraud against Dr. Danforth Haversham. His partner, Special Agent Peter Sagan, had gone to get lodging in one of the motels nearby, while Waite proceeded on foot to go investigate evidence held by coroner Bert Williams. He stopped for a cup of coffee at Henry's Diner on the way , and that was the last he remembers. A call placed to FBI offices in Johnson County corroborate that part of Waite's story, and polygraph tests showed nothing out of the ordinary. When Waite disappeared, the FBI conducted an extensive search for him, but was unable to discover any leads. Why he had come to Hopkins Grove to assassinate Bachman still remained a mystery.

     The list of enigmas didn't end there. While still in police custody, Agent Waite discovered a large tattoo of a black hawk on his chest. He did not have the tattoo before his disappearance, and couldn't remember how he had gotten it. Nanson and Hopkins Grove police assembled a team for an in-depth investigation in conjunction with nearby FBI offices and, at the request of Special Agent Waite, the Alternate Reality Project.

     The ARP and FBI conducted tests to detect the presence of drugs in Waite's system. The results were staggering. Recently, Waite had ingested hashish, cannabis, phenobarbitol, mescaline, and a trace amount of rophynol, also known as the "date-rape drug" for its sedative qualities. Agent Waite, of course, denies any recollection of having taken these substances. Tests on the scarring of the tattoo indicate that the ink had indeed been freshly applied, most likely over the previous week. Finally, a hypnotist was brought in to try to recover the agent's missing memories.

     Agent Waite remembered much under hypnosis. It seems that while he was in the coffee shop, a young fair-skinned woman approached the counter and sat next to him, also ordering a coffee. Waite had gotten up to go to the restroom, and when he returned the woman was gone. He finished his coffee and exited the diner. A few minutes after leaving, he felt groggy, and sat down on a nearby bench. He saw the woman from the diner approaching him, and then his recollections end.

     His memories pick up again some indeterminate time later, and now he was in a white room, bare except for the cot on which he lay. Alarmed, he ran for the only available exit but the door was locked. He waited for some time, and finally the door opened, and the woman appeared again. She seemed serene, and told him to stay calm. She told him that everything was going to be all right, and that all would eventually make sense. Indicating that Waite had been chosen for a highly secret and incredibly important task, she assured him that he would suffer no harm.

     Waite's memories become clouded again after this point and the rest of the hypnotism attempts became more obscure. But Agent Waite did hint that while he was away, he saw many people, all very happy and calm, and that he ate and drank well. He remembers hearing strange music from time to time, sometimes coming from the walls or from the air itself. He claims that he flew through space for a time, and that his body lost cohesion and blanketed the world in a lover's embrace. He remembers nothing else until the assassination attempt.

     All authorities working on Waite's case believe that he was drugged and hypnotized, possibly though subliminal messages, in order to get him to kill Bachman. But who did this and why still remains a mystery. Council person Bachman has been a respectable member of Hopkins Grove's government for fifteen years, supporting recycling programs and tough juvenile offender laws. Some speculate that the assassination attempt was a diversion intended to take attention away from the FBI's investigation of the Nanson deaths and their possible connection to Dr. Haversham. Agent Waite has said that he is fairly sure that the latter hypothesis is false, although he does not know why. At any rate, local FBI officials have weakened their investigation of events in Nanson, and are now firmly embroiled in the Hopkins Grove incident.

     The woman that appears to be responsible for Special Agent Waite's abduction has been described as five feet, six inches tall, with very pale skin and straight blonde hair. Her build is medium, and she was wearing a light grey suit at the time of the incident. Anyone with information should contact Sheriff Andrew Marduke care of the Hopkins Grove Police Department.