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Within Police Chase

What the Police Radio Traffic Really Proves

The surviving radio traffic confirms a real-time multi-jurisdiction pursuit, but it does not provide an independent track of the object.

30 sources 3 graphics

On this page

  • How the pursuit unfolded over police radio
  • What the calls independently confirm
  • Why the recordings cannot establish the object's path
Preview for What the Police Radio Traffic Really Proves

Introduction

The surviving police radio record from the Portage County chase is one of the most important pieces of evidence in the 17 April 1966 incident. It matters because it confirms that a real-time, multi-agency police pursuit actually occurred. Officers were not reconstructing events hours later from memory alone; they were reporting what they believed they were seeing as the situation unfolded across north-eastern Ohio and into Pennsylvania. At the same time, the radio traffic has important limits. It documents the reactions, movements and communications of police officers, but it does not provide an independent instrument-based track of the object itself. As evidence, the recordings are strongest as proof of the pursuit and weakest as proof of the object’s exact location, speed or nature.[theblackvault.com]theblackvault.comThe Black Vaultp,, .-v-c Ff ,, 7-r'>'· –/f·l·f'Portage County Ohio sheriff's. \.hen the picture . was de- deputies W. L. … "Project BThe Black Vaultp,, .-v-cFf ,, 7-r'>'· –/f·l·f'Portage County Ohio sheriff's. \.hen the picture . was de- deputies W. L. … "Project Bl…

Radio Record illustration 2

Radio Record illustration 1

How the pursuit unfolded over police radio

Shortly before dawn, Portage County deputies Dale Spaur and Wilbur “Barney” Neff reported an unusual bright object while investigating an abandoned vehicle. According to surviving case files and later investigations, Spaur contacted dispatch and was instructed to continue observing the object. What followed was not a brief exchange but an extended series of radio updates as the deputies drove eastward.[The Black Vault]theblackvault.comThe Black Vaultp,, .-v-c Ff ,, 7-r'>'· –/f·l·f'Portage County Ohio sheriff's. \.hen the picture . was de- deputies W. L. … "Project BThe Black Vaultp,, .-v-cFf ,, 7-r'>'· –/f·l·f'Portage County Ohio sheriff's. \.hen the picture . was de- deputies W. L. … "Project Bl…

As the pursuit continued, the reports spread beyond a single sheriff’s office. Police agencies in neighbouring counties became aware of the situation through routine law-enforcement radio channels. Officers elsewhere heard the descriptions being transmitted and began looking for the reported light. Wayne Huston of East Palestine, Ohio, is generally cited as one of the most significant additional witnesses because he learned of the incident over police radio before making his own observation.[nicap.org]nicap.orgThe Portage County Ohio UFO ChaseOne of the most dramatic encounters by police officers with an apparently structured, low-level UFO…

The radio traffic therefore created a documented chain of communication:

He Never Changed His Story | The Chase EP10 | It Happened In Ohio

Channel: It Happened In Ohio

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Radio Record illustration 3

5:48

UFO Case Review - Portage County UFO Chase, 1966

Channel: UFOCaseReview · Views: 23.4K · Uploaded: August 2013 · Length: 5 minutes

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21:11

Ohio Mysteries: Backroads Episode 4. The Portage County, Ohio UFO Chase

Channel: North Coast History and Haunts · Views: 864 · Uploaded: October 2023 · Length: 21 minutes

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  1. Portage County deputies reported an object.[ufohistoryfiles.com]ufohistoryfiles.comPortage County materialPortage County, Chio, into Conway:Eennsylvania w.tlliam B. 'Weitzel, Il't'lestigator. J\Jlle 23, 1966.Read more…
  2. Dispatch relayed information and maintained contact.
  3. Other officers monitoring police frequencies became aware of the pursuit.
  4. Additional officers reported seeing a bright object from their own locations.
  5. The pursuit expanded across jurisdictional boundaries into Pennsylvania. The Black Vault+2NICAP

This sequence is important because it occurred while the event was in progress rather than after media coverage or public discussion could influence recollections.

What the calls independently confirm

The strongest value of the radio record lies in what it confirms regardless of what the object was.

A genuine, time-stamped police operation

The recordings and associated dispatch documentation show that officers were actively communicating about an unusual aerial observation during the early morning hours of 17 April 1

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Endnotes

1. Source: medium.com
Link:https://medium.com/the-portager/seeing-a-ufo-ruined-dale-spaurs-life-f86bab152368

Source snippet

Seeing a UFO ruined Dale Spaur's life | by Ben WolfordHe thought the “UFO buffs” were manipulating politicians and the press to sto...

2. Source: nicap.org
Link:https://www.nicap.org/reports2/660417portage.htm

Source snippet

The Portage County Ohio UFO ChaseOne of the most dramatic encounters by police officers with an apparently structured, low-level UFO...

3. Source: Wikipedia
Title: Avvistamento della contea di Portage
Link:https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avvistamento_della_contea_di_Portage

4. Source: ufohistoryfiles.com
Title: Portage County material
Link:https://ufohistoryfiles.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/145C.pdf

Source snippet

Portage County, Chio, into Conway:Eennsylvania w.tlliam B. 'Weitzel, Il't'lestigator. J\Jlle 23, 1966.Read more...

5. Source: Wikipedia
Title: Project Blue Book
Link:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Blue_Book

6. Source: medium.com
Title: ‘Something Happened to Dale’ | Point of Contact JUST BEFORE DAWN on Sunday,
Link:https://medium.com/on-the-trail-of-the-saucers/something-happened-to-dale-68c2ac39d5a8

7. Source: medium.com
Title: the ufo chase you saw in close encounters 649637923267
Link:https://medium.com/on-the-trail-of-the-saucers/the-ufo-chase-you-saw-in-close-encounters-649637923267

9. Source: cufos.org
Title: Center for UFO Studies Preliminary NICAP investigation by William B
Link:https://cufos.org/PDFs/Portage-County/1966_04_17_US_OH_Portage-County_NICAP_Weitzel_P-13_UFO_Reportr.pdf

Source snippet

Weitzel (1966)17 UFO sighting in Portage. County, the Air Force blamed a lack of manpower in Project lllue Book and promised it will send...

Additional References

10. Source: spreaker.com
Title: audioblog a 1966 ufo [police chase]({{ ‘police-chase-ff4388/’ | relative_url }}) 67320789
Link:https://www.spreaker.com/episode/audioblog-a-1966-ufo-police-chase–67320789

Source snippet

AudioBlog- A 1966 UFO Police Chase11 Aug 2025 — On the morning of April 17, 1966, two sheriff deputies, Dale Spaur and Wilbur “Barney” Ne...

Published: April 17, 1966

11. Source: facebook.com
Link:https://www.facebook.com/groups/12117541695/posts/10162198540191696/

Source snippet

What happened to the policeman in the UFO chase scene?As originally filmed, there's a scene where Roy is waiting in a police station to f...

12. Source: youtube.com
Title: UFO Case Review
Link:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJP8OxZr2kE

Source snippet

He Never Changed His Story | The Chase EP10 | It Happened In Ohio...

13. Source: thislocallife.com
Link:https://www.thislocallife.com/5-ufo-cases-in-ohio

14. Source: facebook.com
Link:https://www.facebook.com/groups/12117541695/posts/10159512831086696/

15. Source: facebook.com
Link:https://www.facebook.com/PortageCountySheriff.OH/videos/updatewe-have-updated-the-body-camera-footage-to-now-include-audiowhen-this-inci/2770600533301035/

16. Source: facebook.com
Link:https://www.facebook.com/WKBN27/posts/watch-first-news-has-acquired-dashcam-video-from-the-portage-county-sheriffs-off/1328731679292033/

17. Source: facebook.com
Link:https://www.facebook.com/100081654447029/posts/wild-police-chases-caught-on-camera-are-renewing-concerns-about-the-dangers-of-p/976918138373325/

18. Source: youtube.com
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XeI5XKkFNtc

19. Source: youtube.com
Title: He Never Changed His Story | The Chase EP10 | It Happened In Ohio
Link:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUbMwESLFJ8

Source snippet

5 UFO Cases in Ohio | This Local Life...