5 Essential Facts About UFO Enthusiast John J. Ford

The primary objective of John J. Ford, the founder of the Long Island UFO Network, was to demonstrate the existence of aliens to the world. However, his aspirations to connect with extraterrestrial life led him to plot the murder of three individuals when his dreams went unfulfilled.

In 1996, he was apprehended on multiple charges, but a judge declared him mentally unfit for trial in 1997. Consequently, he was relocated to the Mid-Hudson Psychiatric Center.

Episode 2 of Out There: Crimes of the Paranormal on HULU will delve into the story of John J. Ford. This episode, titled “Lights Over Long Island,”includes the synopsis:

“A UFO enthusiast in Long Island is arrested for allegedly attempting to poison elected officials. However, he maintains his innocence and claims that the true culprits are the officials covering up the existence of aliens.”

Five Key Facts about John J. Ford, His Murder Plots, and His Trial

1) John J. Ford attempted to set fire to the Suffolk Republican Headquarters

Ford attempted to burn down the Suffolk Republican Headquarters (Image by Ricardo Gomez Angel/Unsplash)

Ford was unable to establish contact with extraterrestrials, despite his conviction that a UFO had crashed near the Brookhaven National Laboratory in November 1992. He believed that governmental authorities were concealing aliens within the Brookhaven facilities, preventing the public from learning about the reality of extraterrestrial life.

His obsession with making contact with aliens escalated to the point where he considered igniting a fire at the Suffolk Republican Headquarters, hoping that the Conservative Party would gain power and assist him in his quest to locate extraterrestrial beings.

2) John J. Ford planned to murder three individuals

Ford planned and plotted several murders, which were unsuccessful (Image by Sahand Babali/Unsplash)

A report by The New York Times indicated that Ford plotted to kill three prominent individuals after his attempts to communicate with aliens failed following the purported Long Island UFO incident. These targets included former Suffolk County Republican Committee chairman John Powell, former Conservative Party leader Anthony Gazzola, and former Suffolk legislator Fred Towle. Unfortunately for Ford, he was arrested before he could execute his plans.

3) Ford devised a plan to assassinate his targets using radiation

According to The New York Times, Ford contemplated poisoning the victims by contaminating their toothpaste with radioactive materials. He also intended to place radium in the vehicles and homes of Gazzola, Towle, and Powell, aiming to cause a slow and agonizing death due to radiation exposure—a plan that ultimately did not come to fruition.

4) Law enforcement discovered substantial evidence at Ford’s home

Two of Ford’s accomplices, Joseph Mazzuchelli and Edward Zabo, pleaded guilty to charges related to the murder conspiracy and agreed to testify against him after incriminating evidence was discovered. Reports suggest that Zabo confessed to supplying Ford with radioactive materials and that Mazzuchelli admitted to agreeing to help Ford plant these dangerous substances.

5) John J. Ford was deemed unfit for trial

Following his arrest in 1996, Ford faced charges of three counts of second-degree criminal solicitation, three counts of second-degree conspiracy to commit murder, and one count of illegal possession of radioactive materials.

However, in 1997, the judge determined he was unfit for trial after evaluating reports from various psychiatrists, leading to his commitment to a psychiatric facility for further evaluation. In 1999, after two years of observation, he refused to plead guilty, citing insanity as the basis for his criminal actions. Ford was released in 2019 from the Mid-Hudson Forensic Psychiatric Center and transferred to a less restrictive facility.

To learn more about this intriguing UFO and alien enthusiast, be sure to watch episode 2 of Out There: Crimes of the Paranormal on HULU.

Source