Posted on 12/13/2004 7:37:47 AM PST by B4Ranch
American Free Press/Greg Szymanski | December 13 2004
A 9-11 rescue worker recently came forward to say he was told by FBI agents to “keep my mouth shut” about one of the “black boxes” a fellow firefighter helped locate at ground zero, contradicting the official story that none of the flight and cockpit data recorders were ever recovered in the wreckage of the World Trade Center (WTC) towers.
Honorary firefighter Mike Bellone claims he was approached by unknown bureau agents a short time after he and his partner, Nicholas DeMasi, a retired New York firefighter, found three of the four “black boxes” among the WTC rubble before January 2002.
The pair first claimed in an August 2003 book entitled Behind the Scene: Ground Zero to have found the data recorders.
DeMasi said the “black boxes” were found while he traversed “ground zero” in his all-terrain vehicle (ATV) with three federal agents.
FBI and New York fire officials have denied ever finding the voice and data recorders.
Now Bellone claims agents were adamant about keeping the discovery a secret.
“They confronted me and told me to not to say anything,” recalled Bellone, referring to one of three reddish-orange boxes with two white stripes he saw in the back of DeMasi’s ATV. “I said, ‘Give me a good reason.’ When they couldn’t, I told them I wouldn’t shut up about it.
“Why should I? I have nothing to hide and nothing to gain. It’s the truth, and Nick and I are sticking to our story as we always have.”
Bellone said he and DeMasi were not the only 9-11 rescue workers to see the “black boxes.” He said there were several other witnesses and said he knows they have been silenced by federal agents.
“I know two or three others saw what went down, but they are not talking,” said Bellone. “They got to those guys after they talked to me. The only reason I can figure they are trying to hide the truth is that the government knows it screwed up, and the recorders would prove it.”
Asked to give names of the other witnesses, he said he wouldn’t break a fellow worker’s confidence by revealing his identity.
“I can tell you this, though, it was all very strange. I worked on the spaceship Columbia cleanup, and you know when something important is found and when something is not,” he said.
The day the “black boxes” were secretly carted away, agents acted like “something big was going down,” he added.
Bellone said he never learned the FBI agents’ names as this type of personal contact and information wasn’t exchanged between the civilian workers and government officials working side-by-side at ground zero.
“They had on their FBI jackets, but I’m sure I could pick them out of a lineup or recognize their pictures,” said Bellone.
The pair’s bombshell accusations blow a big hole in the official story as well as the findings in the recent 9-11 commission report.”
In Chapter 1, footnote 76, there is the sole but definitive reference to the airline “black boxes”: “The CVR’s and the FDR’s [voice and flight data recorders] from American 11 and United 175 were not found.”
Asked if DeMasi and Bellone were questioned or subpoenaed, commission spokesman Al Felzenberg said: “I can’t tell you now if he was one of the 1,200 people we interviewed or if the book was one of the countless ones we researched. We explored every lead, but I will try to find out if we talked with him and get back to you.”
Bellone said commission members never contacted him or DeMasi and never asked the two to appear before the group even though the book was published well before the hearings commenced.
“I have been contacted by only one newspaper reporter, from The Philadelphia Daily News,” said Bellone, referring to an October 2004 story by reporter William Bunch, who recapped DeMasi’s statements as well as the usual official denials.
Those close to the 9-11 investigation said the recovery of the “black boxes” is important because they may hold vital clues about what really happened on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001.
The cockpit voice recorder uses a pair of microphones to capture all cockpit sounds for the last 30 minutes of a doomed flight. The flight data recorder is also significant since it records altitude, heading and airspeed.
Both recorders are designed to withstand enormous impact and heat. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) officials said they should have withstood the conditions at the WTC.
And finding the boxes after a crash seems to be standard procedure, according to the NTSB.
“It’s extremely rare that we don’t get the recorders back,’ said NTSB spokesman Ted Lopatkiewicz. “I can’t remember another case which we did not recover the recorders.”
Bellone is retired and was made an honorary New York fireman for his efforts after 9-11. DeMasi has recently retired from Engine Co. 261, nicknamed the “Flaming Skulls.”
Ping to another puzzle
I'm very skeptical about this story. Since it comes from a tinfoil hat site, I suspect it's simply not true. Always consider the source.
Sounds like tinfoil hat time to me.
See! PROOF that 9/11 is a cover up and W planned it all! I am so smart!
Honorary firefighter Mike Bellone claims he was approached by unknown bureau agents a short time after he and his partner, Nicholas DeMasi, a retired New York firefighter, found three of the four “black boxes” among the WTC rubble before January 2002.
Finding three of the black boxes in all that chaos, doesn't sound right. First paragraph said he was to keep quiet about "one" of the black boxes.
Something doesn't sound right here.
Huh?
An FBI spokesman in New York, Jim Margolin, said after checking with the leader of the Ground Zero investigation that none of the boxes were recovered.-------------------------------------
Frank Gribbon, the FDNY spokesman, also said “no one in the Department is aware of the recovery of any of the airline "black boxes" at the WTC site.”
Bellone has encounted some unrelated problems in connection with the TRAC group, however. In April, the New York Post reported (story not available online) that TRAC owned money to a number of creditors, including the company that published the book. Fire officials also told Bellone, who was made an honorary firefighter by a New York engine company, that he couldn’t wear an official uniform on school visits.
Well, someone's lying.
Could it be these two guys, or
everybody else?
A FF should not be talking if a Federal Official investigating an international war crime told him to STFU.... since he is talking I am skeptical, b/c that would make him a punk---- and I don't like to think of FF that way.
look for some story in the next few days by some " un-named source" digging up some dirt on this guys personal life. Always happens.
Exactly. Three out of four black boxes found by two people, from two separate planes that hit separate buildings - and one collapsed before the other. I think the odds of winning the Powerball lottery is better than this happening.
This isn't even quality creative writing.
What really happened? That question reveals the bias.
These conspiracy theorists need to take a breath, sit back and think for a bit. If the Government was behind 9/11, don't you think they would have dealt with the black boxes before the crashes. There is no way they could have known where the boxes would end up. If they are powerful and skillful enough to pull off 9/11 and blame it on terrorists, I sincerely doubt they would have allowed the black boxes to contain any evidence when they could not be sure of custody after the crash.
It is amazing how consistently conspiracy theorists turn off their critical thinking in order to maintain their position. It borders on psychosis.
Interesting things about this story.
Who, outside of a specially trained person, would be able to idetify a "black box" in all that rubble? I wouldn't recognize one if it was sitting on my desk. I mean, was it labeled "Black Box"?
So, an FBI agent takes something from you that you believe is VERY important and you don't even bother to get his name?
Other than that, this is a hugh, series story.
The WTC, the shuttle Columbia - I understand this fellow also helped with the cleanup after the crash of the Hindenburg.
I believe the reason is, the hijackers gave big anti-American martyrdom type speeches before hitting, and we dont want to give them the air time or recognition as heros to their psycho followers.
The article says "honorary" firefighter. If he was a distinguished FF, wouldn't it be "honored" FF. Is an "honorary" FF like an "honorary" PHD.
The article states at the beginning he was a rescue worker.
Why would someone fabricate such a story?
Gee. This couldn't me a transparent plug for buying the book, could it?
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