Serum of truth from the KGB to the CIA

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

The mention of the "serum of truth", with the help of which it is possible, against his will, to extract any information he knows, is found in films and conspiracy materials. Does it exist in reality and is it really used by the special services in their work?

What is called "truth serum"

In fact, "truth serum" is a conditional concept. Strictly speaking, whey is a product that remains after curdling and straining milk. And by "truth serum" is meant a number of substances that can unleash the tongue of the person from whom you need to receive data. The scientific name of the method is drug analysis. Previously, torture was used, but with the discovery of such psychoactive drugs, the methods of inquiry have become more humane.

The very appearance of the term "truth serum" refers to the beginning of the 20s of the last century. In 1922, the American physician Robert Ernest House published an article in the Texas medical journal "The use of scopolamine in criminology", in which he described how, against the desire of a person, to extract information hidden at the subconscious level from his memory. For this, the object is brought into an unconscious state, in which he honestly and directly answers any questions asked to him, without trying to hide anything.

How does the "truth serum" work?

Later, the technique was adopted by the police and special services. There is only scattered information about its application. So, A. I. Kolpakidi and D. P. Prokhorov in the book “KGB. Special Operations of Soviet Intelligence report that in the Stalin era, under the Soviet State Security Committee, there was a secret laboratory to study the effects of toxic and psychotropic substances on the human brain and body. Including there were developed and drugs intended for special operations.

Mikhail Lyubimov, a former resident of Soviet foreign intelligence in Copenhagen, recounted in his memoirs how in the early 1960s, at his request, a "chatterbox" was delivered to Great Britain, where he was then on a business trip: in all likelihood, this was the unofficial name of a certain substance used during interrogations.

The archival materials of the KGB indicate that in 1983, during the investigation of sabotage at the Vilnius machine-tool plant "Zalgiris", special drugs SP-26 [6], SP-36 and SP-108 were used. Moreover, the certificate indicated that the drugs were mixed into drinks that were offered to people during conversations with KGB officers (later they forgot the content of these conversations).

In 2004, former KGB Major General Oleg Kalugin told how the KGB before interrogation was given the drug SP-117, which has no taste, color or smell. In turn, the former officer of the KGB PGU, Alexander Kuzminov, wrote in his book "Biological Espionage" that the SP-117 was effectively used by checking agents for loyalty.

What special drugs do the special services prefer?

Mescaline

This is a narcotic substance obtained from the Mexican peyote cactus, which the Indians used in penance rituals. The famous Carlos Castaneda wrote about him in his writings, as well as the ethnographer Weston la Barre in the monograph "The Cult of Peyote" (1938). The latter gives such a description: "At the call of the leader, the members of the tribe stood up and publicly confessed their misdeeds and offenses inflicted on others."

In the 1940s, this effect attracted the interest of the SS and the OSS (the US Bureau of Strategic Services, which was later reborn as the CIA). The drug was injected into prisoners and concentration camp prisoners, and they really blurted out intimate secrets. But the effect of the substance did not last long.

Marijuana

The CIA tried with her help to interrogate suspected sympathizers for the Communists. It turns out, however, that weed only makes those who are naturally talkative talk. Intoxicated people did not become more talkative when high.

LSD

Experiments on the use of this drug as a "truth serum" were carried out by the American physician Harris Isabell. He tried the drug on volunteers, but was not convinced of its effectiveness.

Amital sodium (amobarbital)

It is a substance that disinhibits the nerve centers. At first, psychiatrists resorted to it in order to increase the contact of patients. Amital was also used in combination with caffeine, and in England and the USA - with pentothal and other derivatives of barbituric acid. Communication under the influence of such means is called "amytal interview" or "pentothalic conversation". The substance weakened the "resistance" of the brain and acted for a short time, causing a state similar to alcohol intoxication.

There is information that in the USSR such a "serum" was given to dissidents who were in psychiatric hospitals. This is mentioned, in particular, by S. Gluzman and V. Bukovsky in "A manual on psychiatry for dissidents" (1973). True, they believe that this method of disinhibition was ineffective.

A. Podrabinek in his book "Punitive Medicine" (1979) writes the following: "Amital sodium (etaminal, barbamil) is considered the most powerful drug in modern psychopharmacology. After intravenous administration of amytal-sodium solution, the maximum effect occurs in 2-5 minutes. The patient falls into a state of euphoria, increased speech and motor activity … Patients … willingly talk about themselves, their thoughts, intentions."

Nevertheless, experts say that such special drugs are used infrequently, as they are very expensive. And their application requires a special permission "at the highest level". In addition, testimony given under the influence of "chemistry" without the consent of the "object" is not legally accepted by the court as official evidence of guilt.

Irina Shlionskaya