Theodore L. Gunderson (November 7, 1928 – July 31, 2011) was a

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

Special Agent In Charge and head of the Los Angeles FBI, an American author, and a

conspiracy theorist A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * ...

. Some of his FBI case work included the

Death of Marilyn Monroe On the evening of August 4, 1962, American actress Marilyn Monroe died at age 36 of a barbiturate overdose inside her home at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive in Brentwood, Los Angeles, California. Her body was discovered before dawn the following morn ...

and the

Assassination of John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, was assassinated while riding in a presidential motorcade through Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963. Kennedy was in the vehicle with his wife Jacqueline Kennedy Onas ...

. He was the author of the best-selling book ''How to Locate Anyone Anywhere Without Leaving Home''. In later life, he researched a number of topics, notably including

satanic ritual abuse The Satanic panic is a moral panic consisting of over 12,000 unsubstantiated cases of Satanic ritual abuse (SRA, sometimes known as ritual abuse, ritualistic abuse, organized abuse, or sadistic ritual abuse) starting in North America in the 19 ...

Early life and FBI

Ted Gunderson was born in

Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is the most populous city in El Paso County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. The city had a population of 478,961 at the 2020 census, a 15.02% increase since 2010. Colorado Springs is the second-most populous c ...

. He graduated from the

University of Nebraska–Lincoln The University of Nebraska–Lincoln (Nebraska, NU, or UNL) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States. Chartered in 1869 by the Nebraska Legislature as part of the M ...

in 1950. In December 1951, Gunderson joined the

under

J. Edgar Hoover John Edgar Hoover (January 1, 1895 – May 2, 1972) was an American attorney and law enforcement administrator who served as the fifth and final director of the Bureau of Investigation (BOI) and the first director of the Federal Bureau o ...

. He served in the Mobile,

Knoxville Knoxville is a city in Knox County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the Tennessee River and had a population of 190,740 at the 2020 United States census. It is the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, and

Albuquerque Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...

offices. He held posts as an Assistant Special Agent in Charge in

New Haven New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is the third largest city in Co ...

and

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. In 1973, he became the head of the

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Mem ...

FBI office, and in 1975 became head of the

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

FBI office. In 1977, Gunderson was appointed head of the Los Angeles FBI. In 1979, he was one of a handful interviewed for the job of FBI director, which ultimately went to William H. Webster.January 2, 1983, The Dallas Morning News

Post-FBI

After retiring from the FBI, Gunderson set up a private investigation firm, Ted L. Gunderson and Associates, in

Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

. In 1980, he became a defense investigator for

Green Beret The green beret was the official headdress of the British Commandos, a special-forces unit active during World War II. It is still worn by members of the Royal Marines after passing the Commando Course, and personnel from other units of the Roy ...

doctor Jeffrey R. MacDonald, who had been convicted of the 1970 murders of his pregnant wife and two daughters. Gunderson obtained affidavits from Helena Stoeckley confessing to her involvement in the murders which she claimed had in actuality been perpetrated by a Satanic cult of which she was a member. Stoeckley later took and passed a

polygraph A polygraph, often incorrectly referred to as a lie detector test, is a pseudoscientific device or procedure that measures and records several physiological indicators such as blood pressure, pulse, respiration, and skin conductivity while a ...

, with the military examiner concluding that Stoeckley truthfully believed that she was present at MacDonald's home during the murders. But because of her drug use during and after the murders, the examiner could not conclude if she was actually present at the scene of the murders. Some time afterwards, Stoeckley changed her story and denied ever having seen MacDonald, and was adamant she was not involved.''The Murder Almanac'', p. 112. . Under oath, Stoeckley denied any culpability in murders, and any knowledge of who may have committed the acts. On her deathbed at the age of 31, Stoeckley changed her story one final time and reiterated and reaffirmed that she was present during the murder of MacDonald's family and that MacDonald himself is innocent. Gunderson became a leading figure on the far-right and a leading anti-government conspiracy theorist. Gunderson was involved in the McMartin preschool case, at the heart of the 1980s "

satanic panic The Satanic panic is a moral panic consisting of over 12,000 unsubstantiated cases of Satanic ritual abuse (SRA, sometimes known as ritual abuse, ritualistic abuse, organized abuse, or sadistic ritual abuse) starting in North America in the 19 ...

". He made numerous confident statements supporting the truth of the supposed abuse ring and became a "recognized spokesman on the dangers of satanic ritual cults". In a 1995 conference in

, Gunderson warned about the proliferation of purported secret occultist groups, and the danger posed by the New World Order, a conspiracy theory about an alleged shadow government that would be controlling the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

government. He also claimed that a "slave auction" in which children were sold by

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

n agents to men had been held in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, that four thousand ritual human sacrifices are performed in

every year, and that the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...

was carried out by the U.S. government. Gunderson also claimed that in the United States, there is a secret widespread network of groups who kidnap children and infants and subject them to ritual abuse and subsequent human sacrifice. The

Southern Poverty Law Center The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal advocacy organization specializing in civil rights and public interest litigation. Based in Montgomery, Alabama, it is known for its legal cases against white ...

believed Gunderson "played a pivotal role in the anti-government 'patriot' movement". Gunderson alleged the U.S. government was preparing for mass executions by setting up a thousand internment camps and purchasing 30,000 guillotines. He was also an architect of conspiracy theories around the

Oklahoma City bombing The Oklahoma City bombing was a domestic terrorist truck bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, United States, on April 19, 1995. The bombing remains the deadliest act of domestic terrorism in U.S. history. Perpetr ...

, promoting a narrative of an FBI coverup, and the idea that if McVeigh was one of the bombers then it was due to secret government mind control. Gunderson had an association with former music producer and conspiracy film maker Anthony J. Hilder. Hilder had interviewed him regarding the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. He also appeared in Hilder's ''Reichstag '95'' and ''Illuminazi 911'' documentaries. Gunderson did not believe that

Sonny Bono Salvatore Phillip "Sonny" Bono ( ; February 16, 1935 – January 5, 1998) was an American singer, songwriter, actor, and politician. In partnership with his second wife, Cher, he formed the singing duo Sonny & Cher. A member of the Republican Pa ...

died in a skiing accident. Instead, Gunderson alleged that top officials linked to an international drug and weapons ring feared the singer-turned-politician was about to expose their crimes, so they had Bono murdered on the ski slopes and staged the accident.

Death

On July 31, 2011 Gunderson's son reported that his father had died from bladder cancer.Former Memphis FBI Chief Dies

Publications

Foreword
t
''The Mystery of the Carefully Crafted Hoax''.
Lincoln, Neb.: Nebraska Leadership Conference (1991). pp. iv-vii. .
''How to Locate Anyone Anywhere Without Leaving Home''
with Roger McGovern. New York:

Penguin Books Penguin Books Limited is a Germany, German-owned English publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers the Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the ...

(Jun. 1991). . **New York: E.P. Dutton (1996).
''The Gunderson Report on the Bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. April 19, 1995''.
Las Vegas: Ted L. Gunderson and Associates (Jan. 11, 1996).

References

External links