Where is Shelly?
That’s one of the most frequent questions we get about the Church of Scientology, referring to Michele “Shelly” Miscavige, the wife of church leader David Miscavige, who has not been seen at a Scientology function in a little more than 15 years.
We’ve written extensively about her disappearance since 2012, and through multiple lines of evidence we have come to believe that during that entire time, since the late summer 2005, she’s been held at a secretive small compound owned by a Scientology subsidiary known as the Church of Spiritual Technology which is in the mountains northeast of Los Angeles.
The CST compound is in a lovely spot, not far from Lake Arrowhead and a mile or so from the small mountain town of Crestline. A tiny hamlet nearby is known as Twin Peaks, and that’s how people usually refer to the compound itself.
Last year we went with an Australian news team to Twin Peaks, walked around the compound, and even rang the bell on the gate. We got no answer. Mike Rinder also went up there for the Aftermath series to show how private investigators are stationed across the street. He also spoke with a private investigator who claimed to have been stationed there, and said that Shelly is watched by armed guards to make sure she doesn’t escape.
So if Mike Rinder and your proprietor know where Shelly is, and we’ve both been up to the outside gate, why can’t law enforcement go in there and check on her?
Leah Remini attempted to do something about that when she filed a missing person report on Shelly with the Los Angeles Police Department in August 2013. A few days later the LAPD told reporters (after we had broken news of Leah’s move) that her report was “unfounded.” LAPD Lieutenant Andre Dawson told us that two of his detectives had visited Shelly and that she declined to make a statement. He didn’t confirm where the meeting took place, and when we asked him if the meeting had taken place in the presence of other church officials, he quickly responded “that’s classified” and wouldn’t say anything more.
Leah went to the LAPD because the address she had for the Miscaviges, the place where she was told to send cards and letters as a church member, was in Hollywood. But the CST compound in Twin Peaks is not in LAPD territory. It’s actually in nearby San Bernardino County.
In 2016, we heard from a branch of Shelly’s family that is not involved in Scientology. They asked us for some advice about what to do, saying that they at least wanted to make sure that Shelly was all right. We pointed out to them that the CST compound is not in Los Angeles, and so they approached the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, asking that a welfare check be done on her.
They were told that the Sheriff’s Department would require evidence that Shelly was at that location, and the department did nothing.
Surprised by that response, we sent our own letter to the Sheriff’s Department, explaining the evidence that Shelly was located at the compound, as well as a recent possible sighting of her in the town of Crestline itself. We received this response…
Hello Tony,
Concerning the welfare of someone within the jurisdiction of the Sheriff’s department, any call for service we receive will be appropriately addressed and handled accordingly.
We encourage anyone with information regarding a crime, or potential crime, to contact Sheriff’s Dispatch or their local Sheriffs station to report it so the matter can be investigated and resolved.
Thank you,
Adam Cervantes, Deputy Sheriff
San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Dept.
Public Affairs Division
So, the LAPD claims it checked on Shelly in 2013 but won’t provide any details about it, and the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department says it doesn’t have enough evidence that she’s at the CST compound to go check on her.
Is Shelly even alive? We see this suggestion a lot on social media, that Shelly is already dead or has been killed, and there’s a good reason why we tell people it’s probably not true.
Scientology may be very effective at keeping Shelly out of sight, but covering up a death is another matter entirely. Consider the case of Anne Tidman, for example. Also known as Annie Broeker, Tidman was one of the last people to see L. Ron Hubbard alive, and she was also kept out of sight at a Scientology compound for years. When she developed cancer and then became very ill, she was moved to an apartment in Hollywood, where she died in 2011. Scientology was able to keep news of her death quiet for several months, but eventually her family was told about it, and that’s how we became aware of it. If Shelly died, we think the news would get out even more quickly.
Also, Scientology’s attorneys, in reaction to Leah Remini’s episode, made claims to the media that they had either personally seen Shelly or communicated with her. Scientology attorneys may be unpleasant human beings, but they aren’t going to risk their law licenses and claim that a dead woman is alive and well.
Shelly is alive.
She is at the CST compound near Crestline, California, the same place she’s been for 15 years. (We have amazing drone footage of the place, and a former employee there even pinpointed where he thinks Shelly is living and working there.)
She is now 59 years old, and if claims of a recent sighting in the town of Crestline is correct, she may be in ill health.
And yes, she may be resigned to her fate.
But why can’t her family spend time with Shelly Miscavige? Why can’t she speak for herself? Why can’t we ask her to explain, in her own words, why she can never leave?
One major reason is that the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Office refuses to do anything about David Miscavige banishing his wife to a tiny mountain compound for the last 15 years. And for that alone, the law enforcement agency finds itself on this list.
The Top 25 People Enabling Scientology
6: The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department
7: The litigators
8: The ghost private eyes
9: The San Bernardino Sheriff’s Office
10: Political shills
11: Gary Soter
12: The city of Clearwater, Florida
13: Google and other tech titans
14: The Los Angeles Times
15: Jeffrey Riffer
16: James Packer
17: Louis Farrakhan
18: Mark “Marty” Rathbun
20: Gensler
21: Parents who subscribe to ABCMouse
22: Graham Norton and other celebrity strokers
23: The apologist academics
24: Rebecca Dobkin and other low-level PI grunts
25: DirecTV and filmmakers buffing Dave’s channel
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“Just this morning I am in correspondence with the Atomic Energy Commission on some material and have been for the last year and a half. We have some answers in mathematics in which they’re very interested, and so forth…If a man is burned today, he’s going to suffer because of it. There isn’t much going to interrupt the course of that fission burn except Scientology…Atomic radiation isn’t actually too hard to handle on an alleviation basis — on an assist basis — if your boy is not in too bad condition, if preclear is not too bad condition.” — L. Ron Hubbard, November 5, 1956
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“What is so remarkable about Ron is he treated us as ‘adults,’ as the thetans we really are. He didn’t treat us as victims. He gave us the straight poop. It was like ‘hey, here is some incredible stuff and if you want to really go free this is how you do it.’ And one big way is to take responsibility for your own actions. Then you have some who started on that path, but because they didn’t step up to higher responsibility levels, or more accurately didn’t use tech to really come clean, are like little kids blaming Ron. And then you dig further and find out they have major crimes! Real criminals. And boy, these guys are the biggest ‘victims’ on the planet!”
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2003: The New York Daily News reported that comedian Denis Leary raised money recently to allow New York firefighters to undergo Scientology’s purification rundown. “Denis Leary is denying allegations that he’s being used by Tom Cruise to spread the word of the controversial Church of Scientology. Leary raised $720,000 for firefighters this past week at his third annual Bash for New York’s Bravest, attended by Robin Williams, Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and John McEnroe, among others. Leary said recently that Cruise wants to build the smoke-eaters ‘a steam and sauna place on Long Island [to help] their condition’ – which, he said, Cruise is funding privately.”
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“Goodnight everyone and get your rest because tomorrow we travel further up the McSavage River into the Heart Of Darkness.”
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Full Court Press: What we’re watching at the Underground Bunker
Criminal prosecutions:
— Danny Masterson charged for raping three women: Masterson’s demurrer denied Oct 19, arraignment delayed to January 6.
— Jay and Jeff Spina, Medicare fraud: Jay’s sentencing set for October 29 in White Plains, NY delayed to January.
— Hanan and Rizza Islam and other family members, Medi-Cal fraud: Next pretrial conference set for Jan 12 in Los Angeles
Civil litigation:
— Luis and Rocio Garcia v. Scientology: Oral arguments were heard on July 30 at the Eleventh Circuit
— Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’ Petition for a writ of mandate denied Oct 22 by Cal 2nd Appellate District.
— Chrissie Bixler et al. v. Scientology and Danny Masterson: Nov 6 (motions to compel arbitration)
— Matt and Kathy Feschbach tax debt: Eleventh Circuit ruled on Sept 9 that Feshbachs can’t discharge IRS debt in bankruptcy. Oct 19: Feshbachs still considering further appellate relief.
— Brian Statler Sr v. City of Inglewood: Second amended complaint filed, trial set for Nov 9, 2021.
— Author Steve Cannane defamation trial: Trial concluded, awaiting verdict.
Concluded litigation:
— Dennis Nobbe, Medicare fraud, PPP loan fraud: Charged July 29. Bond revoked Sep 14. Nobbe dead, Sep 14.
— Jane Doe v. Scientology (in Miami): Jane Doe dismissed the lawsuit on May 15 after the Clearwater Police dropped their criminal investigation of her allegations.
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SCIENTOLOGY BLACK OPS: Tom Cruise and dirty tricks
The Australian Seven News network cancelled a 10-part investigation of Scientology and its history of dirty tricks. Read the transcripts of the episodes and judge for yourself why Tom Cruise and Tommy Davis might not have wanted viewers to see this hard-hitting series by journalist Bryan Seymour.
After the success of their double-Emmy-winning, three-season A&E series ‘Scientology and the Aftermath,’ Leah Remini and Mike Rinder continue the conversation on their podcast, ‘Scientology: Fair Game.’ We’ve created a landing page where you can hear all of the episodes so far.
LEAH REMINI: SCIENTOLOGY AND THE AFTERMATH
An episode-by-episode guide to Leah Remini’s three-season, double-Emmy winning series that changed everything for Scientology watching. Originally aired from 2016 to 2019 on the A&E network, and coming November 1 to Netflix.
SCIENTOLOGY’S CELEBRITIES, from A to Z
Find your favorite Hubbardite celeb at this index page — or suggest someone to add to the list!
Other links: Scientology’s Ideal Orgs, from one end of the planet to the other. Scientology’s sneaky front groups, spreading the good news about L. Ron Hubbard while pretending to benefit society. Scientology Lit: Books reviewed or excerpted in a weekly series. How many have you read?
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THE WHOLE TRACK
[ONE year ago] AUDIO LEAK: You’re invited to a Scientology TV watch party at the Portland org!
[TWO years ago] Jada Pinkett Smith reconciles with Leah Remini and puts herself in Scientology’s crosshairs
[THREE years ago] Shakeup at Narconon Arrowhead: Former worker dishes fresh intel on Scientology’s rehab flagship
[FOUR years ago] An enduring myth in Scientology — that L. Ron Hubbard actually read your letters
[FIVE years ago] Can the tabloids ignore this photo of Tom Cruise getting his Scientology on?
[SIX years ago] Ken Dandar files another court appeal to get out of Scientology’s million-dollar noose
[SEVEN years ago] Luis Garcia Responds: We Don’t Trust Scientology’s Trustee Ploy
[EIGHT years ago] Dianetics Read Aloud: Let Ron’s Wisdom Wash Over You
[NINE years ago] Scientology Dyspepsia: Commenters of the Week!
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Bernie Headley (1952-2019) did not see his daughter Stephanie in his final 5,667 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 2,111 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 2,615 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 2,135 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 1,155 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 1,046 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 4,353 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 2,221 days.
Carol Nyburg has not seen her daughter Nancy in 2,995 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 3,799 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 3,115 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 11,681 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 7,600 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 3,768 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 3,349 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 3,610 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 2,648 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 2,361 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 1,886 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 1,416 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 5,967 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 3,116 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 3,436 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 8,291 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 3,410 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 1,766 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 6,069 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 2,175 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 2,577 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 2,449 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 2,032 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 2,527 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 2,781 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 13,890 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on November 5, 2020 at 07:00
E-mail tips to tonyo94 AT gmail DOT com or follow us on Twitter. We also post updates at our Facebook author page. After every new story we send out an alert to our e-mail list and our FB page.
Our new book with Paulette Cooper, Battlefield Scientology: Exposing L. Ron Hubbard’s dangerous ‘religion’ is now on sale at Amazon in paperback and Kindle formats. Our book about Paulette, The Unbreakable Miss Lovely: How the Church of Scientology tried to destroy Paulette Cooper, is on sale at Amazon in paperback, Kindle, and audiobook versions. We’ve posted photographs of Paulette and scenes from her life at a separate location. Reader Sookie put together a complete index. More information can also be found at the book’s dedicated page.
The Best of the Underground Bunker, 1995-2019 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2019), The Village Voice (2008-2012), New Times Los Angeles (1999-2002) and the Phoenix New Times (1995-1999)
Other links: BLOGGING DIANETICS: Reading Scientology’s founding text cover to cover | UP THE BRIDGE: Claire Headley and Bruce Hines train us as Scientologists | GETTING OUR ETHICS IN: Jefferson Hawkins explains Scientology’s system of justice | SCIENTOLOGY MYTHBUSTING: Historian Jon Atack discusses key Scientology concepts | Shelly Miscavige, 14 years gone | The Lisa McPherson story told in real time | The Cathriona White stories | The Leah Remini ‘Knowledge Reports’ | Hear audio of a Scientology excommunication | Scientology’s little day care of horrors | Whatever happened to Steve Fishman? | Felony charges for Scientology’s drug rehab scam | Why Scientology digs bomb-proof vaults in the desert | PZ Myers reads L. Ron Hubbard’s “A History of Man” | Scientology’s Master Spies | The mystery of the richest Scientologist and his wayward sons | Scientology’s shocking mistreatment of the mentally ill | The Underground Bunker’s Official Theme Song | The Underground Bunker FAQ
Watch our short videos that explain Scientology’s controversies in three minutes or less…
Check your whale level at our dedicated page for status updates, or join us at the Underground Bunker’s Facebook discussion group for more frivolity.
Our non-Scientology stories: Robert Burnham Jr., the man who inscribed the universe | Notorious alt-right inspiration Kevin MacDonald and his theories about Jewish DNA | The selling of the “Phoenix Lights” | Astronomer Harlow Shapley‘s FBI file | Sex, spies, and local TV news | Battling Babe-Hounds: Ross Jeffries v. R. Don Steele
