How to get your money back on chain letter Savings Bonds

In 1976, a friend told me about a chain letter savings bond pyramid scheme. Suppposedly, if I purchased a $25 Series E savings bond for the next person on the list (which I did…) and mailed it to that person, I would receive X number of bonds from others. I got sucked in just enough to buy the bond. The bond lists the person, their address at the time, and MY social security number. I thought twice about getting involved and never mailed it. I have kept it all this time. Is this a lost cause, or will I be able to redeem it?

Tom's response

The good news is that the Treasury has a form you can use to get your money back, but the bad news is they won't give you the $117 in interest the bond has earned.

Here's a link to the form you need to get your money back on a Savings Bond purchased for chain mail.

The form includes complete instructions.