The Finders (1987) — the Customs Report, and the FBI's Own Redaction of It

[Report #193] On 4 February 1987 two adults were arrested with six children at 600 Myers Park Drive, Tallahassee. The Tallahassee Police offence report, case 87-3990, records: 'the children, (4 W/M's and 2 W/F's) were very dirty and unkept. The children had bug bites on their entire bodies and scratches on their legs'; 'They were extremely hungry when they got to the police dept... most of them didn't have on any underwear.' Premises at 3918/3920 W Street NW and a warehouse at 1307 4th Street NE, Washington DC, were searched 5-6 February on warrants prepared by the US Attorney's Office. THE CONTESTED PASSAGE, and its exact wording. It is a US CUSTOMS SERVICE Report of Investigation dated 13 April 1987, signed Special Agent Ramon J. Martinez — not an FBI document: 'The individual further advised me of circumstances which indicated that the investigation into the activity of the FINDERS had become a CIA internal matter. The MPD report has been classified secret and was not available for review. I was advised that the FBI had withdrawn from the investigation several weeks prior and that the FBI Foreign Counter Intelligence Division had directed MPD not to advise the FBI Washington Field Office of anything that had transpired.' CORRECTION TO THE CIRCULATING VERSION: the text reads 'has been classified secret and was not available for review' — past tense, describing an existing report — not 'would be classified'. On the document's own face this is hearsay from an unnamed MPD officer speaking 'strictly off the record'. THE FBI'S OWN RELEASE AUTHENTICATES IT WHILE WITHHOLDING IT. The identical Customs report appears inside the FBI's Vault release at Part 02, pp. 73-74 — same form, same dates, same particulars — with the words 'had become a CIA internal matter' withheld under exemption b7E, and 'Foreign Counter Intelligence Division' likewise withheld. DOCUMENTS POINTING THE OTHER WAY, also in the release. FBI internal memo, 7 January 1994: 'A review of these materials and discussion with [redacted] to date found no documentation indicating that any agency interfered with or covered up the FINDERS investigation.' FBI teletype: WMFO 'HAS BEEN UNABLE TO LOCATE ANYONE WITH KNOWLEDGE OF THE DOCUMENTS [redacted] CLAIMS TO HAVE SEEN OR, EVIDENCE OF ANY OUTSIDE INQUIRIES/INTERFERENCE.' Tallahassee Police Chief Mel Tucker, 16 November 1993: 'there was never any outside agency either in or outside the United States intelligence community who contacted anyone in his department with an attempt to influence in any way their investigation.' A CIA records check states the organisation 'was [n]ever associated with the Agency'. Against these, a DOJ teletype of May 1994 presses the CIA: 'IF THERE IS NO INFORMATION IN THIS FILE, DID THE CIA PURGE THE FILE OF INFORMATION CONCERNING [redacted]? IF SO, WHY WAS THAT FILE PURGED?' OUTCOME. Federal prosecution declined 18 February 1987 — 'there is no evidence of a Federal violation'. State child-abuse charges dismissed 17 March 1987 by agreement of prosecution and defence. No charge ever arose from the DC or Virginia searches. The 1993-94 DOJ-requested FBI inquiry, file 31C-WF-189911, opened 6 November 1993 and closed 10 June 1994; no document in the release states a final DOJ conclusion. THE RELEASE ITSELF: four parts, 870 pages, posted between October 2019 and May 2022, under two different FOIA numbers; Part 01 as posted today is a 2022 reprocessing. 176, 174, 101 and 2 pages were withheld across the four parts.