In May 2021, Luis Elizondo, a former Department of Defense (DoD) intelligence officer who has claimed to be the former director of the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP) and investigated UFOs for the Pentagon, submitted a formal complaint to the DoD Inspector General (DoD IG). The complaint alleged misconduct, coordinated disinformation, and whistleblower retaliation by senior Pentagon officials, including the former Director of Defense Intelligence for Intelligence and Security (DDIIS), Garry Reid, Public Affairs Officer Susan Gough, and former Director for Defense Intelligence, Collection and Special Programs Neill Tipton.
Elizondo’s complaint sought an official DoD IG inquiry into what he described as “malicious activities, coordinated disinformation, professional misconduct, whistleblower reprisal and explicit threats”. According to his complaint, these actions not only misrepresented his work within the DoD but also sought to undermine his credibility following his departure from government service. The complaint, which has since been previously published in redacted form by the NY Post, includes a detailed chronology of Elizondo’s alleged involvement in AATIP, his interactions with senior defense officials, and what he characterizes as a broader effort to suppress information on UAP. Elizondo stated in the complaint that attempts to clear the record by some senior officials, serving as witnesses to this abuse, have been ignored by certain elements within the Office of the Secretary of Defense. He further alleged that actions taken against him directly erode the very foundation of national security ethos and the public trust instilled by the American people.
The Black Vault has pursued multiple Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to uncover records related to Elizondo’s complaint and the DoD’s handling of the allegations. These efforts have resulted in the release of various documents, including a heavily redacted transcript of an interview with Elizondo, as well as internal correspondence about the UAP investigation; emails obtained via FOIA that reference the DoD’s internal UAP evaluation efforts, including discussions about Elizondo’s claims and the Pentagon’s public messaging strategy; and two additional FOIA cases released in March 2025 that shed new light on internal deliberations regarding Elizondo’s allegations.
Among the most notable revelations from the FOIA releases are details about the DoD IG’s handling of the complaint. Internal correspondence indicates that the DoD IG assigned multiple case numbers to different aspects of Elizondo’s complaint. Some cases were forwarded to the Directorate for Investigations of Senior Officials, while others were categorized under whistleblower reprisal investigations. Emails reveal internal discussions on how the DoD should respond to media inquiries regarding Elizondo’s involvement in AATIP, with indications that officials sought to discredit his role or diminish the importance of the program.
The Black Vault continues to pursue additional FOIA requests related to Elizondo’s complaint and the broader DoD approach to UAP transparency. With each release, more details emerge about how Elizondo’s allegations were handled internally and how the Pentagon sought to manage both internal and external narratives surrounding UAP research. This archive serves as a central repository for all released documents and ongoing developments related to Elizondo’s DoD IG complaint.
Document Archive
DoD’s Inspector General Office Releases Additional Records Pertaining to Luis Elizondo’s OIG Complaint [40 Pages, 4.0MB] (Released: March 17, 2025)
DoD’s Inspector General Office Releases Emails About UAP, Their UAP Evaluation Effort, Luis Elizondo, and More [126 Pages, 6.5MB] (Released: February 8, 2024)
DoD Inspector General Releases Transcript of Luis Elizondo Interview & Much More [103 Pages, 4.1MB] (Released: February 9, 2023)
DoD Inspector General Releases Emails in Different FOIA Case. Repeats from above. Archived for reference. [10 Pages, 2MB]
FOIA Case Files for above FOIA Requests [64 Pages, 17.9MB]
