18 Famous ‘Alien Abductions’ Cases
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9
MAR
1. Betty and Barney Hill abduction
Betty and Barney Hill were an American couple who claimed to have been abducted by extraterrestrials in a rural portion of New Hampshire on September 19–20, 1961.The couple’s story, called the Hill Abduction, and occasionally the Zeta Reticuli Incident, was that they had been kidnapped for a short time by a UFO. Theirs was the first widely-publicized claim of alien abduction, adapted into the best-selling 1966 book The Interrupted Journey and the 1975 television movie The UFO Incident.
Its importance is such that many of Betty Hill’s notes, tapes, and other items have been placed in a permanent collection at the University of New Hampshire, her alma mater. As of July 2011, the site of the alleged craft’s first close approach is marked by a state historical marker.
The Hills lived in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Barney (1922–1969) was employed by the U.S. Postal Service, while Betty (1919–2004) was a social worker. Active in a Unitarian congregation, the Hills were also members of the NAACP and community leaders, and Barney sat on a local board of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission.
They were an interracial couple at a time when it was particularly unusual in the United States; Barney was black and Betty was white.
According to a variety of reports given by the Hills, the alleged UFO sighting happened on September 19, 1961, at around 10:30 p.m. The Hills were driving back to Portsmouth from a vacation in Niagara Falls and Montreal, Quebec, Canada. There were only a few other cars on the road as they made their way home to New Hampshire’s seacoast. Just south of Lancaster, New Hampshire, Betty claimed to have observed a bright point of light in the sky that moved from below the moon and the planet Jupiter, upward to the west of the moon. While Barney navigated U.S. Route 3, Betty reasoned that she was observing a falling star, only it moved upward, like a plane or a satellite. Since it moved erratically and grew bigger and brighter, Betty urged Barney to stop the car for a closer look, as well as to walk their dog, Delsey. Barney stopped at a scenic picnic area just south of Twin Mountain. Worried about the presence of bears, Barney retrieved a pistol that he had concealed in the trunk of the car.
Betty, through binoculars, observed an “odd shaped” craft flashing multicolored lights travel across the face of the moon. Because her sister had confided to her about having a flying saucer sighting several years earlier, Betty thought it might be what she was observing. Through binoculars Barney observed what he reasoned was a commercial airliner traveling toward Vermont on its way to Montreal. However, he soon changed his mind, because without looking as if it had turned, the craft rapidly descended in his direction. This observation caused Barney to realize, “this object that was a plane was not a plane.” He quickly returned to the car and drove toward Franconia Notch, a narrow, mountainous stretch of the road.
The Hills claimed that they continued driving on the isolated road, moving very slowly through Franconia Notch in order to observe the object as it came even closer. At one point, the object passed above a restaurant and signal tower on top of Cannon Mountain. It passed over the mountain and came out near the 48′ profile of the Old Man of the Mountain. Betty testified that it was at least one and a half times the length of the granite profile and seemed to be rotating. The couple watched as the silent, illuminated craft moved erratically and bounced back and forth in the night sky. As they drove along Route 3 through Franconia Notch, they stated that it seemed to be playing a game of cat and mouse with the couple.
Betty, through binoculars, observed an “odd shaped” craft flashing multicolored lights travel across the face of the moon. Because her sister had confided to her about having a flying saucer sighting several years earlier, Betty thought it might be what she was observing. Through binoculars Barney observed what he reasoned was a commercial airliner traveling toward Vermont on its way to Montreal. However, he soon changed his mind, because without looking as if it had turned, the craft rapidly descended in his direction. This observation caused Barney to realize, “this object that was a plane was not a plane.” He quickly returned to the car and drove toward Franconia Notch, a narrow, mountainous stretch of the road.
The Hills claimed that they continued driving on the isolated road, moving very slowly through Franconia Notch in order to observe the object as it came even closer. At one point, the object passed above a restaurant and signal tower on top of Cannon Mountain. It passed over the mountain and came out near the 48′ profile of the Old Man of the Mountain. Betty testified that it was at least one and a half times the length of the granite profile and seemed to be rotating. The couple watched as the silent, illuminated craft moved erratically and bounced back and forth in the night sky. As they drove along Route 3 through Franconia Notch, they stated that it seemed to be playing a game of cat and mouse with the couple.
Approximately one mile south of Indian Head, they said, the object rapidly descended toward their vehicle causing Barney to stop directly in the middle of the highway. The huge, silent craft hovered approximately 80–100 feet above the Hills’ 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air and filled the entire field of the windshield. It reminded Barney of a huge pancake. Carrying his pistol in his pocket, he stepped away from the vehicle and moved closer to the object. Using the binoculars, Barney claimed to have seen about 8 to 11 humanoid figures who were peering out of the craft’s windows, seeming to look at him. In unison, all but one figure moved to what appeared to be a panel on the rear wall of the hallway that encircled the front portion of the craft. The one remaining figure continued to look at Barney and communicated a message telling him to “stay where you are and keep looking.” Barney had a conscious, continuous recollection of observing the humanoid forms wearing glossy black uniforms and black caps. Red lights on what appeared to be bat-wing fins began to telescope out of the sides of the craft and a long structure descended from the bottom of the craft. The silent craft approached to what Barney estimated was within 50–80 feet overhead and 300 feet away from him. On October 21, 1961, Barney reported to NICAP Investigator Walter Webb, that the “beings were somehow not human”.
Barney tore the binoculars away from his eyes and ran back to his car. In a near hysterical state, he told Betty, “They’re going to capture us!” He saw the object again shift its location to directly above the vehicle. He drove away at high speed, telling Betty to look for the object. She rolled down the window and looked up, but saw only darkness above them, even though it was a bright, starry night.
Almost immediately, the Hills heard a rhythmic series of beeping or buzzing sounds which they said seemed to bounce off the trunk of their vehicle. The car vibrated and a tingling sensation passed through the Hills’ bodies. Betty touched the metal on the passenger door expecting to feel an electric shock, but felt only the vibration. The Hills said that at this point in time they experienced the onset of an altered state of consciousness that left their minds dulled. A second series of codelike beeping or buzzing sounds returned the couple to full consciousness. They found that they had traveled nearly 35 miles south but had only vague, spotty memories of this section of road. They recalled making a sudden unplanned turn, encountering a roadblock, and observing a fiery orb in the road.
Barney tore the binoculars away from his eyes and ran back to his car. In a near hysterical state, he told Betty, “They’re going to capture us!” He saw the object again shift its location to directly above the vehicle. He drove away at high speed, telling Betty to look for the object. She rolled down the window and looked up, but saw only darkness above them, even though it was a bright, starry night.
Almost immediately, the Hills heard a rhythmic series of beeping or buzzing sounds which they said seemed to bounce off the trunk of their vehicle. The car vibrated and a tingling sensation passed through the Hills’ bodies. Betty touched the metal on the passenger door expecting to feel an electric shock, but felt only the vibration. The Hills said that at this point in time they experienced the onset of an altered state of consciousness that left their minds dulled. A second series of codelike beeping or buzzing sounds returned the couple to full consciousness. They found that they had traveled nearly 35 miles south but had only vague, spotty memories of this section of road. They recalled making a sudden unplanned turn, encountering a roadblock, and observing a fiery orb in the road.
Arriving home at about dawn, the Hills assert that they had some odd sensations and impulses they could not readily explain: Betty insisted that their luggage be kept near the back door rather than in the main part of the house. Their watches would never run again. Barney noted that the leather strap for the binoculars was torn, though he could not recall it tearing. The toes of his best dress shoes were inexplicably scraped. Barney says he was compelled to examine his genitals in the bathroom, though he found nothing unusual. They took long showers to remove possible contamination and each drew a picture of what they had observed. Their drawings were strikingly similar.
Perplexed, the Hills say they tried to reconstruct the chronology of events as they witnessed the UFO and drove home. But immediately after they heard the buzzing sounds, their memories became incomplete and fragmented. They vaguely recalled a luminous moon shape sitting on the road. Barney recalled saying “Oh no, not again”. Betty thought Barney had taken a sharp left turn off Route 3.
Perplexed, the Hills say they tried to reconstruct the chronology of events as they witnessed the UFO and drove home. But immediately after they heard the buzzing sounds, their memories became incomplete and fragmented. They vaguely recalled a luminous moon shape sitting on the road. Barney recalled saying “Oh no, not again”. Betty thought Barney had taken a sharp left turn off Route 3.
After sleeping for a few hours, Betty awoke and placed the shoes and clothing she had worn during the drive into her closet, observing that the dress was torn at the hem, zipper and lining. Later, when she retrieved the items from her closet, she noted a pinkish powder on her dress. She hung the dress on her clothesline and the pink powder blew away. But the dress was irreparably damaged. She threw it away, but then changed her mind, retrieving the dress and hanging it in her closet. Over the years, five laboratories have conducted chemical and forensic analyses on the dress.
There were shiny, concentric circles on their car’s trunk that had not been there the previous day. Betty and Barney experimented with a compass, noting that when they moved it close to the spots, the needle would whirl rapidly. But when they moved it a few inches away from the shiny spots, it would drop down.
There were shiny, concentric circles on their car’s trunk that had not been there the previous day. Betty and Barney experimented with a compass, noting that when they moved it close to the spots, the needle would whirl rapidly. But when they moved it a few inches away from the shiny spots, it would drop down.
On September 21, Betty telephoned Pease Air Force Base to report their UFO encounter, though for fear of being labeled eccentric, she withheld some of the details. On September 22, Major Paul W. Henderson telephoned the Hills for a more detailed interview. Henderson’s report, dated September 26, determined that the Hills had probably misidentified the planet Jupiter. (This was later changed to “optical condition”, “inversion” and “insufficient data.”) (Report 100-1-61, Air Intelligence Information Record) His report was forwarded to Project Blue Book, the U.S. Air Force’s UFO research project.
Within days of the encounter, Betty borrowed a UFO book from a local library. It had been written by retired Marine Corps Major Donald E. Keyhoe, who was also the head of NICAP, a civilian UFO research group. On September 26, Betty wrote to Keyhoe. She related the full story, including the details about the humanoid figures that Barney had observed through binoculars. Betty wrote that she and Barney were considering hypnosis to help recall what had happened. Her letter was eventually passed on to Walter N. Webb, a Boston astronomer and NICAP member.
Webb met with the Hills on October 21, 1961. In a six-hour interview, the Hills related all they could remember of the UFO encounter. Barney asserted that he had developed a sort of “mental block” and that he suspected there were some portions of the event that he did not wish to remember. He described in detail all that he could remember about the craft and the appearance of the “somehow not human” figures aboard the craft. Webb stated that “they were telling the truth and the incident probably occurred exactly as reported except for some minor uncertainties and technicalities that must be tolerated in any such observations where human judgment is involved (e.g., exact time and length of visibility, apparent sizes of object and occupants, distance and height of object, etc.).”
Within days of the encounter, Betty borrowed a UFO book from a local library. It had been written by retired Marine Corps Major Donald E. Keyhoe, who was also the head of NICAP, a civilian UFO research group. On September 26, Betty wrote to Keyhoe. She related the full story, including the details about the humanoid figures that Barney had observed through binoculars. Betty wrote that she and Barney were considering hypnosis to help recall what had happened. Her letter was eventually passed on to Walter N. Webb, a Boston astronomer and NICAP member.
Webb met with the Hills on October 21, 1961. In a six-hour interview, the Hills related all they could remember of the UFO encounter. Barney asserted that he had developed a sort of “mental block” and that he suspected there were some portions of the event that he did not wish to remember. He described in detail all that he could remember about the craft and the appearance of the “somehow not human” figures aboard the craft. Webb stated that “they were telling the truth and the incident probably occurred exactly as reported except for some minor uncertainties and technicalities that must be tolerated in any such observations where human judgment is involved (e.g., exact time and length of visibility, apparent sizes of object and occupants, distance and height of object, etc.).”
Ten days after the UFO encounter, Betty began having a series of vivid dreams. They continued for five successive nights. Never in her memory had she recalled dreams in such detail and intensity. But they stopped abruptly after five nights and never returned again. They occupied her thoughts during the day. When she finally did mention them to Barney, he was sympathetic, but not too concerned, and the matter was dropped. Betty did not mention them to Barney again.
In November 1961, Betty began writing down the details of her nightmarish dreams. In one dream, she and Barney encountered a roadblock and men who surrounded their car. She lost consciousness but struggled to regain it. She then realized that she was being forced by two small men to walk in a forest in the nighttime, and of seeing Barney walking behind her, though when she called to him, he seemed to be in a trance or sleepwalking. The men stood about five feet to five feet four inches tall, and wore matching uniforms, with caps similar to those worn by military cadets. They appeared nearly human, but with bald heads, large wraparound eyes, small ears and almost absent noses. Their skin was a greyish colour.
In the dreams, Betty, Barney, and the men walked up a ramp into a disc-shaped craft of metallic appearance. Once inside, Barney and Betty were separated. She protested, and was told by a man she called “the leader” that if she and Barney were examined together, it would take much longer to conduct the exams. She and Barney were then taken to separate rooms.
In November 1961, Betty began writing down the details of her nightmarish dreams. In one dream, she and Barney encountered a roadblock and men who surrounded their car. She lost consciousness but struggled to regain it. She then realized that she was being forced by two small men to walk in a forest in the nighttime, and of seeing Barney walking behind her, though when she called to him, he seemed to be in a trance or sleepwalking. The men stood about five feet to five feet four inches tall, and wore matching uniforms, with caps similar to those worn by military cadets. They appeared nearly human, but with bald heads, large wraparound eyes, small ears and almost absent noses. Their skin was a greyish colour.
In the dreams, Betty, Barney, and the men walked up a ramp into a disc-shaped craft of metallic appearance. Once inside, Barney and Betty were separated. She protested, and was told by a man she called “the leader” that if she and Barney were examined together, it would take much longer to conduct the exams. She and Barney were then taken to separate rooms.
Betty then dreamt that a new man, similar to the others, entered to conduct her exam with the leader. Betty called this new man “the examiner” and said he had a pleasant, calm manner. Though the leader and the examiner spoke to her in English, the examiner’s command of the language seemed imperfect and she had difficulty understanding him.
The examiner told Betty that he would conduct a few tests to note the differences between humans and the craft’s occupants. He seated her on a chair, and a bright light was shone on her. The man cut off a lock of Betty’s hair. He examined her eyes, ears, mouth, teeth, throat and hands. He saved trimmings from her fingernails. After examining her legs and feet, the man then used a dull knife, similar to a letter opener to scrape some of her skin onto what resembled cellophane. He then tested her nervous system and he thrust the needle into her navel, which caused Betty agonizing pain. But the leader waved his hand in front of her eyes and the pain vanished.
The examiner left the room and Betty engaged in conversation with the “leader”. She picked up a book with rows of strange symbols that the “leader” said she could take home with her. She also asked where he was from, and he pulled down an instructional map dotted with stars.
In Betty’s dream account, the men began escorting the Hills from the ship when a disagreement broke out. The leader then informed Betty that she couldn’t keep the book, stating that they had decided that the other men did not want her to even remember the encounter. Betty insisted that no matter what they did to her memory, she would one day recall the events.
She and Barney were taken to their car, where the leader suggested that they wait to watch the craft’s departure. They did so, then resumed their drive.
The examiner told Betty that he would conduct a few tests to note the differences between humans and the craft’s occupants. He seated her on a chair, and a bright light was shone on her. The man cut off a lock of Betty’s hair. He examined her eyes, ears, mouth, teeth, throat and hands. He saved trimmings from her fingernails. After examining her legs and feet, the man then used a dull knife, similar to a letter opener to scrape some of her skin onto what resembled cellophane. He then tested her nervous system and he thrust the needle into her navel, which caused Betty agonizing pain. But the leader waved his hand in front of her eyes and the pain vanished.
The examiner left the room and Betty engaged in conversation with the “leader”. She picked up a book with rows of strange symbols that the “leader” said she could take home with her. She also asked where he was from, and he pulled down an instructional map dotted with stars.
In Betty’s dream account, the men began escorting the Hills from the ship when a disagreement broke out. The leader then informed Betty that she couldn’t keep the book, stating that they had decided that the other men did not want her to even remember the encounter. Betty insisted that no matter what they did to her memory, she would one day recall the events.
She and Barney were taken to their car, where the leader suggested that they wait to watch the craft’s departure. They did so, then resumed their drive.
* On November 25, 1961, the Hills were again interviewed at length by NICAP members, this time C.D. Jackson and Robert E. Hohman.
Having read Webb’s initial report, Jackson and Hohman had many questions for the Hills. One of their main questions was about the length of the trip. Neither Webb nor the Hills had noted that, though the drive should have taken about four hours, they did not arrive at home until seven hours after their departure. When Hohman and Jackson noted this discrepancy to the Hills, the couple had no explanation (a frequently reported circumstance in alleged alien abduction cases that some have called “missing time”). As Clark writes, despite “all their efforts the Hills could recall almost nothing of the 35 miles between Indian Head and Ashland. Although Betty’s recall was somewhat fuller than Barney’s, both were able to recall an image of a fiery orb sitting on the ground. Betty and Barney reasoned that it must have been the moon, but Hohman and Jackson informed them that the moon had set earlier in the evening.
The subject of hypnosis came up. Perhaps hypnosis could unlock the missing memories. Barney was apprehensive about hypnosis, but thought it might help Betty put to rest what Barney described as the ‘nonsense’ about her dreams.”
By February 1962, the Hills were making frequent weekend drives to the White Mountains, hoping that revisiting the site might spark more memories. They were unsuccessful in trying to locate the site where they observed a fiery orb sitting in the road. However, they were able to eliminate several possible routes. (They found the “capture” site on Labor Day weekend in 1965.)
Having read Webb’s initial report, Jackson and Hohman had many questions for the Hills. One of their main questions was about the length of the trip. Neither Webb nor the Hills had noted that, though the drive should have taken about four hours, they did not arrive at home until seven hours after their departure. When Hohman and Jackson noted this discrepancy to the Hills, the couple had no explanation (a frequently reported circumstance in alleged alien abduction cases that some have called “missing time”). As Clark writes, despite “all their efforts the Hills could recall almost nothing of the 35 miles between Indian Head and Ashland. Although Betty’s recall was somewhat fuller than Barney’s, both were able to recall an image of a fiery orb sitting on the ground. Betty and Barney reasoned that it must have been the moon, but Hohman and Jackson informed them that the moon had set earlier in the evening.
The subject of hypnosis came up. Perhaps hypnosis could unlock the missing memories. Barney was apprehensive about hypnosis, but thought it might help Betty put to rest what Barney described as the ‘nonsense’ about her dreams.”
By February 1962, the Hills were making frequent weekend drives to the White Mountains, hoping that revisiting the site might spark more memories. They were unsuccessful in trying to locate the site where they observed a fiery orb sitting in the road. However, they were able to eliminate several possible routes. (They found the “capture” site on Labor Day weekend in 1965.)
* On November 23, 1962, the Hills attended a meeting at the parsonage of their church where the invited guest speaker was Captain Ben H. Swett of the U.S. Air Force, who had recently published a book of his poetry. After he read selections of his poetry, the pastor asked him to discuss his personal interest in hypnosis. After the meeting broke up, the Hills approached Captain Swett privately and told him what they could remember of their strange encounter. He was particularly interested in the “missing time” of the Hills’ account. The Hills asked Swett if he would hypnotize them to recover their memories, but Swett said he was not qualified to do that and cautioned them against going to an amateur hypnotist, such as himself.
* On March 3, 1963, the Hills first publicly discussed the UFO encounter with a group at their church.
On September 7, 1963, Captain Swett gave a formal lecture on hypnosis to a meeting at the Unitarian Church. After the lecture, the Hills told him that Barney was going to a psychiatrist, Dr. Stephens, whom he liked and trusted. Captain Swett suggested that Barney ask Dr. Stephens about the use of hypnosis in his case.
When Barney next met with Dr. Stephens, he asked about hypnosis. Stephens referred the Hills to Dr. Benjamin Simon of Boston.
On November 3, 1963, the Hills spoke before an amateur UFO study group, the Two State UFO Study Group, in Quincy Center, Massachusetts.
The Hills first met Dr. Simon on December 14, 1963. Early in their discussions, Simon determined that the UFO encounter was causing Barney far more worry and anxiety than he was willing to admit. Though Simon dismissed the popular extraterrestrial hypothesis as impossible, it seemed obvious to him that the Hills genuinely thought they had witnessed a UFO with human-like occupants. Simon hoped to uncover more about the experience through hypnosis.
When Barney next met with Dr. Stephens, he asked about hypnosis. Stephens referred the Hills to Dr. Benjamin Simon of Boston.
On November 3, 1963, the Hills spoke before an amateur UFO study group, the Two State UFO Study Group, in Quincy Center, Massachusetts.
The Hills first met Dr. Simon on December 14, 1963. Early in their discussions, Simon determined that the UFO encounter was causing Barney far more worry and anxiety than he was willing to admit. Though Simon dismissed the popular extraterrestrial hypothesis as impossible, it seemed obvious to him that the Hills genuinely thought they had witnessed a UFO with human-like occupants. Simon hoped to uncover more about the experience through hypnosis.
– Simon began hypnotizing the Hills on January 4, 1964. He hypnotized Betty and Barney several times each, and the sessions lasted until June 6, 1964. Simon conducted the sessions on Barney and Betty separately, so they could not overhear one another’s recollections. At the end of each session he reinstated amnesia.
Simon hypnotized Barney first. His recall of witnessing non-human figures was quite emotional, punctuated with expressions of fear, emotional outbursts and incredulity. Barney said that, due to his fear, he kept his eyes closed for much of the abduction and physical examination. Based on these early responses, Simon told Barney that he would not remember the hypnosis sessions until he was certain he could remember them without being further traumatized.
Under hypnosis (as was consistent with his conscious recall), Barney reported that the binocular strap had broken when he ran from the UFO back to his car. He recalled driving the car away from the UFO, but that afterwards he felt irresistibly compelled to pull off the road, and drive into the woods. He eventually sighted six men standing in the dirt road. The car stalled and three of the men approached the car. They told Barney to not fear them. He was still anxious, however, and he reported that the leader told Barney to close his eyes. While hypnotized, Barney said, “I felt like the eyes had pushed into my eyes.”
Barney described the beings as generally similar to Betty’s hypnotic, not dream recollection. The beings often stared into his eyes, said Barney, with a terrifying, mesmerizing effect. Under hypnosis, Barney said things like, “Oh, those eyes. They’re there in my brain” (from his first hypnosis session) and “I was told to close my eyes because I saw two eyes coming close to mine, and I felt like the eyes had pushed into my eyes” (from his second hypnosis session) and “All I see are these eyes… I’m not even afraid that they’re not connected to a body. They’re just there. They’re just up close to me, pressing against my eyes.”
Under hypnosis (as was consistent with his conscious recall), Barney reported that the binocular strap had broken when he ran from the UFO back to his car. He recalled driving the car away from the UFO, but that afterwards he felt irresistibly compelled to pull off the road, and drive into the woods. He eventually sighted six men standing in the dirt road. The car stalled and three of the men approached the car. They told Barney to not fear them. He was still anxious, however, and he reported that the leader told Barney to close his eyes. While hypnotized, Barney said, “I felt like the eyes had pushed into my eyes.”
Barney described the beings as generally similar to Betty’s hypnotic, not dream recollection. The beings often stared into his eyes, said Barney, with a terrifying, mesmerizing effect. Under hypnosis, Barney said things like, “Oh, those eyes. They’re there in my brain” (from his first hypnosis session) and “I was told to close my eyes because I saw two eyes coming close to mine, and I felt like the eyes had pushed into my eyes” (from his second hypnosis session) and “All I see are these eyes… I’m not even afraid that they’re not connected to a body. They’re just there. They’re just up close to me, pressing against my eyes.”
Barney related that he and Betty were taken onto the disc-shaped craft, where they were separated. He was escorted to a room by three of the men and told to lie on a small rectangular exam table. Unlike Betty, Barney’s narrative of the exam was fragmented, and he continued to keep his eyes closed for most of the exam. A cup-like device was placed over his genitals. He did not experience an orgasm though Barney thought that a sperm sample had been taken. The men scraped his skin, and peered in his ears and mouth. A tube or cylinder was inserted in his anus. Someone felt his spine, and seemed to be counting his vertebrae.
While Betty reported extended conversations with the beings in English, Barney said that he heard them speaking in a mumbling language he did not understand. Betty also mentioned this detail. The few times they communicated with him, Barney said it seemed to be “thought transference”; at that time, he was unfamiliar with the word “telepathy”. Both Betty and Barney stated that they hadn’t observed the beings’ mouths moving when they communicated in English with them.
He recalled being escorted from the ship, and taken to his car, which was now near the road rather than in the woods. In a daze, he watched the ship leave. Barney remembered a light appearing on the road, and he said, “Oh no, not again.” He recalled Betty’s speculation that the light might have been the moon, though the moon had in fact set several hours earlier. He also stated that he attempted to produce the code-like buzzing sounds which seemed to strike the car’s trunk a second time by driving from side to side and stopping and starting the vehicle. His attempt was unsuccessful.
While Betty reported extended conversations with the beings in English, Barney said that he heard them speaking in a mumbling language he did not understand. Betty also mentioned this detail. The few times they communicated with him, Barney said it seemed to be “thought transference”; at that time, he was unfamiliar with the word “telepathy”. Both Betty and Barney stated that they hadn’t observed the beings’ mouths moving when they communicated in English with them.
He recalled being escorted from the ship, and taken to his car, which was now near the road rather than in the woods. In a daze, he watched the ship leave. Barney remembered a light appearing on the road, and he said, “Oh no, not again.” He recalled Betty’s speculation that the light might have been the moon, though the moon had in fact set several hours earlier. He also stated that he attempted to produce the code-like buzzing sounds which seemed to strike the car’s trunk a second time by driving from side to side and stopping and starting the vehicle. His attempt was unsuccessful.
Under hypnosis, Betty’s account was very similar to the events of her five dreams about the UFO abduction, but there were also notable differences. Under hypnosis, her capture and release were different. The technology on the craft was different. The short men had a significantly different physical appearance than the ones in her dreams. The sequential order of the abduction event was also different than in Betty’s dream account. She filled in many details that were not in her dreams and contradicted some of her dream content. It is interesting that Barney’s and Betty’s memories in hypnotic regression were consistent but contradicted some of the information in Betty’s dreams.
Betty exhibited considerable emotional distress during her capture and examination. Dr. Simon ended one session early because tears were flowing down her cheeks and she was in considerable agony.
Dr. Simon gave Betty the post hypnotic suggestion that she could sketch a copy of the “star map” that she later described as a three dimensional projection similar to a hologram. She hesitated, thinking she would be unable to accurately depict the three-dimensional quality of the map she says she saw on the ship. Eventually, however, she did what Simon suggested. Although she said the map had many stars, she drew only those that stood out in her memory. Her map consisted of twelve prominent stars connected by lines and three lesser ones that formed a distinctive triangle. She said she was told the stars connected by solid lines formed “trade routes”, whereas dashed lines were to less-traveled stars.
Betty exhibited considerable emotional distress during her capture and examination. Dr. Simon ended one session early because tears were flowing down her cheeks and she was in considerable agony.
Dr. Simon gave Betty the post hypnotic suggestion that she could sketch a copy of the “star map” that she later described as a three dimensional projection similar to a hologram. She hesitated, thinking she would be unable to accurately depict the three-dimensional quality of the map she says she saw on the ship. Eventually, however, she did what Simon suggested. Although she said the map had many stars, she drew only those that stood out in her memory. Her map consisted of twelve prominent stars connected by lines and three lesser ones that formed a distinctive triangle. She said she was told the stars connected by solid lines formed “trade routes”, whereas dashed lines were to less-traveled stars.
After extensive hypnosis sessions, Dr. Simon concluded that Barney’s recall of the UFO encounter was a fantasy inspired by Betty’s dreams. Though Simon admitted this hypothesis did not explain every aspect of the experience, he thought it was the most plausible and consistent explanation. Barney rejected this idea, noting that while their memories were in some regards interlocking, there were also portions of both their narratives that were unique to each. Barney was now ready to accept that they had been abducted by the occupants of a UFO, though he never embraced it as fully as Betty did.
Though the Hills and Simon disagreed about the nature of the case, they all concurred that the hypnosis sessions were effective: the Hills were no longer tormented by anxiety about the UFO encounter.
Afterwards, Simon wrote an article about the Hills for the journal Psychiatric Opinion, explaining his conclusions that the case was a singular psychological aberration.
Though the Hills and Simon disagreed about the nature of the case, they all concurred that the hypnosis sessions were effective: the Hills were no longer tormented by anxiety about the UFO encounter.
Afterwards, Simon wrote an article about the Hills for the journal Psychiatric Opinion, explaining his conclusions that the case was a singular psychological aberration.
The Hills went back to their regular lives. They were willing to discuss the UFO encounter with friends, family and the occasional UFO researcher, but the Hills apparently made no effort to seek publicity.
But on October 25, 1965, a newspaper story changed everything: A front page story on the Boston Traveler asked “UFO Chiller: Did THEY Seize Couple?” Reporter John H. Lutrell of the Traveler had allegedly been given an audio tape recording of the lecture the Hills had made in Quincy Center in late 1963. Lutrell learned that the Hills had undergone hypnosis with Dr. Simon; he also obtained notes from confidential interviews the Hills had given to UFO investigators. On October 26, the UPI picked up Lutrell’s story, and the Hills earned international attention.
In 1966, writer John G. Fuller secured the cooperation of the Hills and Dr. Simon, and wrote the book The Interrupted Journey about the case. The book included a copy of Betty’s sketch of the “star map”. The book was a quick success, and went through several printings.
Barney died of a cerebral hemorrhage on February 25, 1969, at age 46; Betty Hill died of cancer on October 17, 2004, at age 85.
But on October 25, 1965, a newspaper story changed everything: A front page story on the Boston Traveler asked “UFO Chiller: Did THEY Seize Couple?” Reporter John H. Lutrell of the Traveler had allegedly been given an audio tape recording of the lecture the Hills had made in Quincy Center in late 1963. Lutrell learned that the Hills had undergone hypnosis with Dr. Simon; he also obtained notes from confidential interviews the Hills had given to UFO investigators. On October 26, the UPI picked up Lutrell’s story, and the Hills earned international attention.
In 1966, writer John G. Fuller secured the cooperation of the Hills and Dr. Simon, and wrote the book The Interrupted Journey about the case. The book included a copy of Betty’s sketch of the “star map”. The book was a quick success, and went through several printings.
Barney died of a cerebral hemorrhage on February 25, 1969, at age 46; Betty Hill died of cancer on October 17, 2004, at age 85.
In 1968, Marjorie Fish of Oak Harbor, Ohio read Fuller’s Interrupted Journey. She was an elementary school teacher and amateur astronomer. Intrigued by the “star map”, Fish wondered if it might be “deciphered” to determine which star system the UFO came from. Assuming that one of the fifteen stars on the map must represent the Earth’s Sun, Fish constructed a three-dimensional model of nearby Sun-like stars using thread and beads, basing stellar distances on those published in the 1969 Gliese Star Catalogue. Studying thousands of vantage points over several years, the only one that seemed to match the Hill map was from the viewpoint of the double star system of Zeta Reticuli.
Distance information needed to match three stars, forming the distinctive triangle Hill said she remembered, was not generally available until the 1969 Gliese Catalogue came out.Fish sent her analysis to Webb. Agreeing with her conclusions, Webb sent the map to Terence Dickinson, editor of the popular magazine Astronomy. Dickinson did not endorse Fish and Webb’s conclusions, but for the first time in the journal’s history, Astronomy invited comments and debate on a UFO report, starting with an opening article in the December 1974 issue. For about a year afterward, the opinions page of Astronomy carried arguments for and against Fish’s star map. Notable was an argument made by Carl Sagan and Steven Soter, arguing that the seeming “star map” was little more than a random alignment of chance points. In contrast, those more favorable to the map, such as Dr. David Saunders, a statistician who had been on the Condon UFO study, argued that unusual alignment of key Sun-like stars in a plane centered around Zeta Reticuli (first described by Fish) was statistically improbable to have happened by chance from a random group of stars in our immediate neighborhood.
Skeptic Robert Sheaffer, in an accompanying article said that a map devised by Charles W. Atterberg, about the same time as Fish, was an even better match to Hill’s map and made more sense. The base stars, Epsilon Indi and Epsilon Eridani, plus the others were also closer to the Sun than the Hill map. Fish counterargued that the base stars in the Atterberg map were considered much less likely to harbor life than Zeta Reticuli and the map lacked a consistent grouping of Sun-like stars along the lined routes.
In 1993, two German crop circle enthusiasts, Joachim Koch and Hans-Jürgen Kyborg, suggested that the map depicted planets in the solar system, not nearby stars. The objects in the map, they said, closely match the positions of the Sun, the six inner planets and several asteroids around the time of the incident. This would parallel other abduction accounts where witnesses claim to be shown such depictions, though admittedly often elaborate and unmistakably our own solar system.
In 1993, two German crop circle enthusiasts, Joachim Koch and Hans-Jürgen Kyborg, suggested that the map depicted planets in the solar system, not nearby stars. The objects in the map, they said, closely match the positions of the Sun, the six inner planets and several asteroids around the time of the incident. This would parallel other abduction accounts where witnesses claim to be shown such depictions, though admittedly often elaborate and unmistakably our own solar system.
The 1966 publication of Interrupted Journey, by John G. Fuller, details much of the Hills’ claims. Excerpts of the book were published in Look magazine, and Interrupted Journey went on to sell many copies and greatly publicize the Hills’ account. Betty’s niece Kathleen Marden explored Fuller’s themes along with scientist Stanton T. Friedman in her book Captured! The Betty and Barney Hill UFO Experience. Marden knew Betty well and had spoken with her at great length about the encounter.
Later, Betty claimed to have seen UFOs a number of times after the initial abduction, and she “became a celebrity in the UFO community.”
Later, Betty claimed to have seen UFOs a number of times after the initial abduction, and she “became a celebrity in the UFO community.”
Skeptical arguments :
1. Psychiatrists reportedly later suggested that the supposed abduction was a hallucination brought on by the stress of being an interracial couple in early 1960s United States. Betty discounted this suggestion, noting her relationship with Barney was happy, and their interracial marriage caused no notable problems with their friends or family. As noted in The Interrupted Journey, Dr. Simon thought that the Hills’ marital status had nothing to do with the UFO encounter.
2. Paranormal investigator Brian Dunning reports that the hypnosis sessions occurred over two years after the reported abductions, plenty of time for the couple to discuss their encounter. In a 2008 article, Dunning calls their story “merely an inventive tale from the mind of a lifelong UFO fanatic.. [and] is unsupported by any useful evidence, and is perfectly consistent with the purely natural explanation.” Dunning’s statements, however, are not supported by factual information. Betty was not a lifelong UFO enthusiast. According to Barney’s 1961 letter to Major Donald Keyhoe and early investigative reports, she had not read even one book about UFOs before her close encounter on September 19, 1961, nor had he.
In his 1990 article “Entirely Unpredisposed”, Martin Kottmeyer suggested that Barney’s memories revealed under hypnosis might have been influenced by an episode of the science fiction television show The Outer Limits titled “The Bellero Shield”, which was broadcast about two weeks before Barney’s first hypnotic session. The episode featured an extraterrestrial with large eyes who says, “In all the universes, in all the unities beyond the universes, all who have eyes have eyes that speak.” The report from the regression featured a scenario that was in some respects similar to the television show. In part, Kottmeyer wrote:
In his 1990 article “Entirely Unpredisposed”, Martin Kottmeyer suggested that Barney’s memories revealed under hypnosis might have been influenced by an episode of the science fiction television show The Outer Limits titled “The Bellero Shield”, which was broadcast about two weeks before Barney’s first hypnotic session. The episode featured an extraterrestrial with large eyes who says, “In all the universes, in all the unities beyond the universes, all who have eyes have eyes that speak.” The report from the regression featured a scenario that was in some respects similar to the television show. In part, Kottmeyer wrote:
” Wraparound eyes are an extreme rarity in science fiction films. I know of only one instance. They appeared on the alien of an episode of an old TV series The Outer Limits entitled “The Bellero Shield”. A person familiar with Barney’s sketch in “The Interrupted Journey” and the sketch done in collaboration with the artist David Baker will find a “frisson” of “déjà vu” creeping up his spine when seeing this episode. The resemblance is much abetted by an absence of ears, hair, and nose on both aliens. Could it be by chance? Consider this: Barney first described and drew the wraparound eyes during the hypnosis session dated 22 February 1964. “The Bellero Shield” was first broadcast on “10 February 1964. Only twelve days separate the two instances. If the identification is admitted, the commonness of wraparound eyes in the abduction literature falls to cultural forces. “
When a different researcher asked Betty about The Outer Limits, she insisted she had “never heard of it”. Kottmeyer also pointed out that some motifs in the Hills’ account were present in the 1953 film, Invaders from Mars. A careful analysis of Barney’s description of the non-human entities that he observed reveals significant differences between the “Bifrost Man” and Barney’s descriptive details. One must also take into account Barney’s conscious recall of the entities he observed on the hovering craft. They were dressed in black, shiny uniforms and were “somehow not human”.
3. Jim Macdonald, a resident of the area in which the Hills claimed to have been abducted, has produced a detailed analysis of their journey which concludes that the episode was in fact provoked by their misperceiving an aircraft warning beacon on Cannon Mountain as a UFO. Macdonald notes that from the road the Hills took the beacon appears and disappears at exactly the same time the Hills describe the UFO as appearing and disappearing. The remainder of the experience is ascribed to stress, sleep deprivation, and false memories ‘recovered’ under hypnosis. UFO expert Robert Sheaffer writes after reading Macdonald’s recreation that the Hills are the “poster children” for not driving when sleep deprived. Macdonald’s article focuses primarily on the Hill’s observations of the light in the sky and the timing of the journey, discounting the Hill’s accounts of close encounters south of Cannon Mountain as recovered memories.
4. Sheaffer reports that Betty Hill as late as 1977 would still go on UFO vigils three times a week. During one evening she was joined by UFO enthusiast, John Oswald. When asked about Betty’s continuing UFO observations, Oswald stated, she is not really seeing UFO’s but she is calling them that. On the night they went out together “Mrs. Hill was unable to ‘distinguish between a landed UFO and a streetlight'”. In a later interview, Sheaffer recounts that Betty Hill writes “‘UFO’s are a new science… and our science cannot explain them'”.
2. Allagash Abductions
The Allagash Abduction is a purported UFO sighting and alien abduction that is alleged to have occurred in 1976.
The witnesses said the incident started on August 20, 1976, when four men, all in their early-twenties, ventured on a camping trip into the wilderness near Allagash, Maine. The group consisted of twin brothers Jack and Jim Weiner, their friend Charlie Foltz, and their guide, Chuck Rak.
They say their first day went by without incident. However, on their second night, they noticed a bright light not far from their campsite which they first passed off as being a helicopter or weather balloon, but later noticed it displayed a strange quality of light. Suddenly, the object imploded and disappeared. The following day went by without incident, as the first. The men were unlucky in their fishing so they decided to try it at night. They set camp on the shore of Eagle Lake on August 20. As darkness settled, the men built a blazing campfire which they expected to burn for several hours to be used as a beacon for their campsite while out on the lake. They then headed out in a canoe.
After a short time, Rak noticed the bright light they had seen two nights before in the distance above the tree line. He called the others’ attention to it. They watched the object intently and noticed it appeared to be much larger this time and made no sound. Foltz grabbed a flashlight and began flashing an SOS.
Suddenly, a bright beam of light shot out from the bottom of the craft and it quickly made its way towards the men. All men, minus Rak, began to paddle furiously back towards shore. Rak seemed entranced by the object as it closed in on them. Suddenly, the light enveloped the canoe and the four men.
The next thing the men knew, they were back on shore at their campsite. They stood at the edge of the water and stared blankly at the craft, which was hovering no more than a few dozen feet from them. After watching for several minutes, the craft suddenly imploded, as it had done two nights previous, and reappeared over the treetops on the other side of the lake. It then shot upwards into the sky.
They say their first day went by without incident. However, on their second night, they noticed a bright light not far from their campsite which they first passed off as being a helicopter or weather balloon, but later noticed it displayed a strange quality of light. Suddenly, the object imploded and disappeared. The following day went by without incident, as the first. The men were unlucky in their fishing so they decided to try it at night. They set camp on the shore of Eagle Lake on August 20. As darkness settled, the men built a blazing campfire which they expected to burn for several hours to be used as a beacon for their campsite while out on the lake. They then headed out in a canoe.
After a short time, Rak noticed the bright light they had seen two nights before in the distance above the tree line. He called the others’ attention to it. They watched the object intently and noticed it appeared to be much larger this time and made no sound. Foltz grabbed a flashlight and began flashing an SOS.
Suddenly, a bright beam of light shot out from the bottom of the craft and it quickly made its way towards the men. All men, minus Rak, began to paddle furiously back towards shore. Rak seemed entranced by the object as it closed in on them. Suddenly, the light enveloped the canoe and the four men.
The next thing the men knew, they were back on shore at their campsite. They stood at the edge of the water and stared blankly at the craft, which was hovering no more than a few dozen feet from them. After watching for several minutes, the craft suddenly imploded, as it had done two nights previous, and reappeared over the treetops on the other side of the lake. It then shot upwards into the sky.
The men suddenly all felt exhausted and decided to sleep for the night. The large fire they had made only minutes previous was now a pile of burnt embers. Without much conversation following the unusual incident which just took place, the men went to sleep. The next morning, the men spoke little of the incident and packed their belongings to move to a new campsite.
Jack Weiner was the first to start having nightmares. In these dreams, he saw beings with long necks and large heads. He saw the beings examining his arm while Jim, Chuck, and Charlie sat on a nearby bench, not able to intervene.
The beings had large metallic glowing eyes with no lids, and their hands were insect-like, with four fingers. The other three men were experiencing very similar dreams, with short, mental clips of that night on the lake. In 1988, out of curiosity, Jim Weiner attended a UFO conference hosted by Raymond Fowler.
Weiner met Fowler afterwards and related his strange encounter. The investigator was excited about Jim’s story, especially the fact that it was a multiple witness occurrence. Fowler suggested to Jim that he and the others undergo regressive hypnosis. After the sessions it was revealed that all four of the men had memories of being abducted and subjected to humiliating physical examinations, including the taking of skin and fluid samples.
The description of the aliens was consistent. The four men – being artists – were able to make detailed sketches of the entities, the craft, and the examining instruments. Chuck Rak added that the aliens’ test area was similar to a vet’s office, with a silvery table. He also related a strange fact: he had much difficulty in focusing on the aliens. When he tried, he could not put an exact image to them. He compared it to trying to tune in a fuzzy radio station.
After the psychiatric examinations, all four of the men were deemed to be mentally stable, and they all passed lie-detector tests.
Jack Weiner was the first to start having nightmares. In these dreams, he saw beings with long necks and large heads. He saw the beings examining his arm while Jim, Chuck, and Charlie sat on a nearby bench, not able to intervene.
The beings had large metallic glowing eyes with no lids, and their hands were insect-like, with four fingers. The other three men were experiencing very similar dreams, with short, mental clips of that night on the lake. In 1988, out of curiosity, Jim Weiner attended a UFO conference hosted by Raymond Fowler.
Weiner met Fowler afterwards and related his strange encounter. The investigator was excited about Jim’s story, especially the fact that it was a multiple witness occurrence. Fowler suggested to Jim that he and the others undergo regressive hypnosis. After the sessions it was revealed that all four of the men had memories of being abducted and subjected to humiliating physical examinations, including the taking of skin and fluid samples.
The description of the aliens was consistent. The four men – being artists – were able to make detailed sketches of the entities, the craft, and the examining instruments. Chuck Rak added that the aliens’ test area was similar to a vet’s office, with a silvery table. He also related a strange fact: he had much difficulty in focusing on the aliens. When he tried, he could not put an exact image to them. He compared it to trying to tune in a fuzzy radio station.
After the psychiatric examinations, all four of the men were deemed to be mentally stable, and they all passed lie-detector tests.
A book, The Allagash Abductions by Raymond E. Fowler, documents the incident. The incident was also dramatized in an episode of Unsolved Mysteries and investigated in the documentary Abducted by UFOs. There was a short interview with some of the alleged abductees on a Snap Judgment episode on August 21, 2011, titled ‘Spaceman’.
3. The Antonio Villas Boas Abduction
Antônio Vilas-Boas (in many English sources misspelled “Villas-Boas”) (1934–1992) was a Brazilian farmer who claimed to have been abducted by extraterrestrials in 1957. Though similar stories had circulated for years beforehand, Vilas Boas’ claims were among the first alien abduction stories to receive wide attention.
At the time of his alleged abduction, Antônio Vilas-Boas was a 23-year-old Brazilian farmer who was working at night to avoid the hot temperatures of the day. On October 16, 1957, he was ploughing fields near São Francisco de Sales when he saw what he described as a “red star” in the night sky. According to his story, this “star” approached his position, growing in size until it became recognizable as a roughly circular or egg-shaped aerial craft, with a red light at its front and a rotating cupola on top. The craft began descending to land in the field, extending three “legs” as it did so. At that point, Boas decided to run from the scene.
According to Boas, he first attempted to leave the scene on his tractor, but when its lights and engine died after traveling only a short distance, he decided to continue on foot. However, he was seized by a 1.5 m (five-foot) tall humanoid, who was wearing grey coveralls and a helmet. Its eyes were small and blue, and instead of speech it made noises like barks or yelps. Three similar beings then joined the first in subduing Boas, and they dragged him inside their craft.
Once inside the craft, Boas said that he was stripped of his clothes and covered from head-to-toe with a strange gel. He was then led into a large semicircular room, through a doorway that had strange red symbols written over it. (Boas claimed that he was able to memorize these symbols and later reproduced them for investigators.) In this room the beings took samples of Boas’ blood from his chin. After this he was then taken to a third room and left alone for around half an hour. During this time, some kind of gas was pumped into the room, which made Boas become violently ill.
According to Boas, he first attempted to leave the scene on his tractor, but when its lights and engine died after traveling only a short distance, he decided to continue on foot. However, he was seized by a 1.5 m (five-foot) tall humanoid, who was wearing grey coveralls and a helmet. Its eyes were small and blue, and instead of speech it made noises like barks or yelps. Three similar beings then joined the first in subduing Boas, and they dragged him inside their craft.
Once inside the craft, Boas said that he was stripped of his clothes and covered from head-to-toe with a strange gel. He was then led into a large semicircular room, through a doorway that had strange red symbols written over it. (Boas claimed that he was able to memorize these symbols and later reproduced them for investigators.) In this room the beings took samples of Boas’ blood from his chin. After this he was then taken to a third room and left alone for around half an hour. During this time, some kind of gas was pumped into the room, which made Boas become violently ill.
Shortly after this, Boas claimed that he was joined in the room by another humanoid. This one, however, was female, very attractive, and naked. She was the same height as the other beings he had encountered, with a small, pointed chin and large, blue catlike eyes. The hair on her head was long and white (somewhat like platinum blonde) but her underarm and pubic hair were bright red. Boas said he was strongly attracted to the woman, and the two had sexual intercourse. During this act, Boas noted that the female did not kiss him but instead nipped him on the chin. When it was all over, the female smiled at Boas, rubbing her belly and gestured upwards. Boas took this to mean that she was going to raise their child in space. The female seemed relieved that their “task” was over, and Boas himself said that he felt angered by the situation, because he felt as though he had been little more than “a good stallion” for the humanoids.
Boas said that he was then given back his clothing and taken on a tour of the ship by the humanoids. During this tour he said that he attempted to take a clock-like device as proof of his encounter, but was caught by the humanoids and prevented from doing so. He was then escorted off the ship and watched as it took off, glowing brightly. When Boas returned home, he discovered that four hours had passed.
Antonio Vilas Boas later became a lawyer, married and had four children. He died in 1992, and stuck to the story of his alleged abduction for his entire life.
Boas said that he was then given back his clothing and taken on a tour of the ship by the humanoids. During this tour he said that he attempted to take a clock-like device as proof of his encounter, but was caught by the humanoids and prevented from doing so. He was then escorted off the ship and watched as it took off, glowing brightly. When Boas returned home, he discovered that four hours had passed.
Antonio Vilas Boas later became a lawyer, married and had four children. He died in 1992, and stuck to the story of his alleged abduction for his entire life.
Following this alleged event, Boas claimed to have suffered from nausea and weakness, as well as headaches and lesions on the skin which appeared with any kind of light bruising. Eventually, he contacted journalist Jose Martins, who had placed an ad in a newspaper looking for people who had had experiences with UFOs. Upon hearing Boas’ story, Martins contacted Dr. Olavo Fontes of National School of Medicine of Brazil; Fontes was also in contact with the American UFO research group APRO. Fontes examined the farmer and concluded that he had been exposed to a large dose of radiation from some source and was now suffering from mild radiation sickness. Writer Terry Melanson states:
” Among [Boas’s] symptoms were ‘pains throughout the body, nausea, headaches, loss of appetite, ceaselessly burning sensations in the eyes, cutaneous lesions at the slightest of light bruising…which went on appearing for months, looking like small reddish nodules, harder than the skin around them and protuberant, painful when touched, each with a small central orifice yielding a yellowish thin waterish discharge.’ The skin surrounding the wounds presented ‘a hyperchromatic violet-tinged area.’ “
According to Researcher Peter Rogerson, the story first came to light in February, 1958, and the earliest definite print reference to Boas’s story was from the April–June 1962 issue of the Brazilian UFO periodical SBESDV Bulletin. Rogerson notes that the story had definitely circulated between 1958 and 1962, and was probably recorded in print, but that details are uncertain.
Boas was able to recall every detail of his purported experience without the need for hypnotic regression. Further, Boas’ experience occurred in 1957, which was still several years before the famous Hill abduction which made the concept of alien abduction famous and opened the door to many other reports of similar experiences.
Researcher Peter Rogerson, however, doubts the veracity of Boas’s story. He notes that several months before Boas first related his claims, a similar story was printed in the November 1957 issue of the periodical O Cruzeiro, and suggests that Boas borrowed details of this earlier account, along with elements of the contactee stories of George Adamski. Rogerson also argues:
Boas was able to recall every detail of his purported experience without the need for hypnotic regression. Further, Boas’ experience occurred in 1957, which was still several years before the famous Hill abduction which made the concept of alien abduction famous and opened the door to many other reports of similar experiences.
Researcher Peter Rogerson, however, doubts the veracity of Boas’s story. He notes that several months before Boas first related his claims, a similar story was printed in the November 1957 issue of the periodical O Cruzeiro, and suggests that Boas borrowed details of this earlier account, along with elements of the contactee stories of George Adamski. Rogerson also argues:
” One reason why the [Boas] story gained credibility was the prejudiced assumption that any farmer in the Brazilian interior had to be an illiterate peasant who ‘couldn’t make this up’. As Eddie Bullard pointed out to me, the fact that the Villas Boas family possessed a tractor put them well above the peasant class … We now know that AVB was a determinedly upwardly mobile young man, studying a correspondence course and eventually becoming a lawyer (at which news the ufologists who had considered him too much the rural simpleton to have made the story up, now argued that he was too respectable and bourgeois to have done so). “
4. The Betty Andreasson Luca Abduction
Alien abduction claims exploded after the Hills’ experience, but the vast majority were easily explained away. However, just a few years later, a woman in Ashburnham, MA, stepped forward to claim she had been taken up by interstellar beings as well. Her case was closely examined by Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) founder and investigator Ray Fowler who had Andreasson undergo hypnosis to verify her claims. She gave chilling details about how the beings were able to immobilize her entire family in order to take her and implant a foreign object in her skull. She said they could talk to her “but not with their mouths.”
The woman even described moments of serene peacefulness, and said the aliens told her the experiments they were conducting were to “prepare for some kind of planetary revelation.” Fowler spent almost a decade examining the case and concluded she was “either the most accomplished liar and actress the world had ever seen, or else she had really gone through this ordeal.”
5. The Travis Walton Abduction
Travis Walton (born February 10, 1953) is an American logger who claims to have been abducted by a UFO on November 5, 1975, while working with a logging crew in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest in Arizona. Walton could not be found, but reappeared after a five-day search.The Walton case received mainstream publicity and remains one of the best-known instances of alleged alien abduction. UFO historian Jerome Clark writes that “Few abduction reports have generated as much controversy” as the Walton case. It is furthermore one of the very few alien abduction cases with corroborative eyewitnesses, and one of few abduction cases where the time allegedly spent in the custody of aliens plays a rather minor role in the overall account.
UFO researchers Jenny Randles and Peter Houghe write that:
” Neither before or since has an abduction story begun in the manner related by Walton and his coworkers. Furthermore, the Walton case is singular in that the victim vanished for days on end with police squads out searching … it is an atypical ‘Close Encounter: Fourth Kind’ (CE4) … which bucks the trend so much that it worried some investigators; others defend it staunchly.”
(Randles and Hough, 186)
The case began on Wednesday, November 5, 1975. Then 22 years old, Walton was employed by Mike Rogers, who had for nine years contracted with the United States Forest Service for various duties. Rogers and Walton were best friends; Walton dated Rogers’ sister Dana, whom he later married. Others on the crew were Ken Peterson, John Goulette, Steve Pierce, Allen Dallis and Dwayne Smith. They all lived in the town of Snowflake, Arizona.
Rogers was hired to thin out scrub brush and undergrowth from a large area (more than 1,200 acres) near Turkey Springs, Arizona. The job was the most lucrative contract Rogers had received from the Forest Service, but the job was behind schedule. As a result, they worked overtime to fulfill the contract, typically from 6 a.m. until sunset.
Rogers was hired to thin out scrub brush and undergrowth from a large area (more than 1,200 acres) near Turkey Springs, Arizona. The job was the most lucrative contract Rogers had received from the Forest Service, but the job was behind schedule. As a result, they worked overtime to fulfill the contract, typically from 6 a.m. until sunset.
Just after 6 p.m. on November 5, Rogers and his crew finished their work for the day and piled into Rogers’ truck for the drive back to Snowflake. The crew reported that shortly after beginning the drive home, they saw a bright light from behind a hill. They drove closer and said they saw a large silvery disc hovering above a clearing and shining brightly. It was around 8 feet (2.4 m) high and 20 feet (6.1 m) in diameter.
Rogers stopped the truck and Walton leaped out and ran toward the disc. The others said they shouted at Walton to come back but he continued toward the disc. The men in the truck reported that Walton was nearly below the object when the disc began making noises similar to a loud turbine. The disc then began to wobble from side to side, and Walton began to cautiously walk away from the object.
Jerome Clark wrote that just after Walton moved away from the disc, the others insisted they saw a beam of blue-green light coming from the disc and “strike” Walton. Clark went on to write that Walton “rose a foot into the air, his arms and legs outstretched, and shot back stiffly some 10 feet (3.0 m), all the while caught in the glow of the light. His right shoulder hit the earth, and his body sprawled limply over the ground.” (Clark, 628-629)
Rogers later said he was convinced Walton was dead, so he drove away very quickly over the rough road, afraid that the disc was chasing the truck. After about a quarter of a mile, the truck skidded off the road and Rogers stopped. After some discussion, the crew went back back to the site to find Walton. The disc was gone, and his co-workers said they searched for Walton for a half hour but found no sign of him.
Rogers stopped the truck and Walton leaped out and ran toward the disc. The others said they shouted at Walton to come back but he continued toward the disc. The men in the truck reported that Walton was nearly below the object when the disc began making noises similar to a loud turbine. The disc then began to wobble from side to side, and Walton began to cautiously walk away from the object.
Jerome Clark wrote that just after Walton moved away from the disc, the others insisted they saw a beam of blue-green light coming from the disc and “strike” Walton. Clark went on to write that Walton “rose a foot into the air, his arms and legs outstretched, and shot back stiffly some 10 feet (3.0 m), all the while caught in the glow of the light. His right shoulder hit the earth, and his body sprawled limply over the ground.” (Clark, 628-629)
Rogers later said he was convinced Walton was dead, so he drove away very quickly over the rough road, afraid that the disc was chasing the truck. After about a quarter of a mile, the truck skidded off the road and Rogers stopped. After some discussion, the crew went back back to the site to find Walton. The disc was gone, and his co-workers said they searched for Walton for a half hour but found no sign of him.
About 7:30 p.m., Peterson called police from Heber, Arizona, near Snowflake. Deputy Sheriff Chuck Ellison answered the telephone; Peterson initially reported only that one of a logging crew was missing. Ellison then met the crew at a shopping center. They related the tale to him — all the men distraught, two of them in tears — and though he was somewhat skeptical of the fantastic account, Ellison would later reflect “that if they were acting, they were awfully good at it.” (Clark, 629)
Ellison notified his superior — Sheriff Marlin Gillespie — who told Ellison to keep the crew in Heber until he could arrive with Officer Ken Coplan to interview the men. In less than an hour, Gillespie and Coplan arrived, and they heard the tale from the crew. Rogers insisted on returning to the scene immediately to search for Walton, with tracking dogs, if possible. No dogs were available, but the police and some of the crew returned to the scene. Crew members Smith, Pierce and Goulette were too upset to be of much help in a search, so they elected to return to Snowflake and relate the bad news to friends and family.
Ellison notified his superior — Sheriff Marlin Gillespie — who told Ellison to keep the crew in Heber until he could arrive with Officer Ken Coplan to interview the men. In less than an hour, Gillespie and Coplan arrived, and they heard the tale from the crew. Rogers insisted on returning to the scene immediately to search for Walton, with tracking dogs, if possible. No dogs were available, but the police and some of the crew returned to the scene. Crew members Smith, Pierce and Goulette were too upset to be of much help in a search, so they elected to return to Snowflake and relate the bad news to friends and family.
At the scene, the law enforcement officers became suspicious of the story related by the crew, mainly because there was nothing in the way of physical evidence to back up the account. Though more police and volunteers arrived to search the area, they found not a trace of Walton. Winter nights could be bitterly cold in the mountains, and Walton had worn only jeans, a denim jacket and a shirt; police were worried that Walton could fall victim to hypothermia if he were lost.
Rogers and Sheriff Coplan went to tell the news to Walton’s mother, Mary Walton Kellett, who lived on a small ranch at Bear Creek, some 10 miles (16 km) from Snowflake. Rogers told her what had happened, and she asked him to repeat the account. She then asked calmly if anyone other than the police and the eyewitnesses had heard the story. Coplan thought her reserved response was odd; this factor contributed to the growing suspicion among police that something other than a UFO was responsible for Walton’s absence. On the other hand, Clark noted that Kellett was known as being generally guarded, and had furthermore raised six children largely by herself under often trying circumstances, which “had long since taught her to not to fly to pieces in the face of crises and tragedies. Yet in the days ahead, as events overwhelmed her, she would show emotion before friends, acquaintances and strangers alike — a fact that would go unmentioned in debunking treatments of the Walton episode.” (Clark, 631)
Rogers and Sheriff Coplan went to tell the news to Walton’s mother, Mary Walton Kellett, who lived on a small ranch at Bear Creek, some 10 miles (16 km) from Snowflake. Rogers told her what had happened, and she asked him to repeat the account. She then asked calmly if anyone other than the police and the eyewitnesses had heard the story. Coplan thought her reserved response was odd; this factor contributed to the growing suspicion among police that something other than a UFO was responsible for Walton’s absence. On the other hand, Clark noted that Kellett was known as being generally guarded, and had furthermore raised six children largely by herself under often trying circumstances, which “had long since taught her to not to fly to pieces in the face of crises and tragedies. Yet in the days ahead, as events overwhelmed her, she would show emotion before friends, acquaintances and strangers alike — a fact that would go unmentioned in debunking treatments of the Walton episode.” (Clark, 631)
About 3 a.m., Kellett telephoned Duane Walton, her second-oldest child. He left his home in Glendale, Arizona, and drove to Snowflake.
By morning on November 6, officials and volunteers had scoured the area around the scene where Walton went missing. No trace of him was discovered, and police suspicions were growing that the UFO tale was concocted to cover up an accident or homicide. Saturday morning, Rogers and Duane Walton arrived at Sheriff Gillespie’s office “explosively angry” because they had returned to the scene and found no police there. By that afternoon, police were searching for Walton with helicopters, horse-mounted officers, and jeeps. (Clark, 361).
By morning on November 6, officials and volunteers had scoured the area around the scene where Walton went missing. No trace of him was discovered, and police suspicions were growing that the UFO tale was concocted to cover up an accident or homicide. Saturday morning, Rogers and Duane Walton arrived at Sheriff Gillespie’s office “explosively angry” because they had returned to the scene and found no police there. By that afternoon, police were searching for Walton with helicopters, horse-mounted officers, and jeeps. (Clark, 361).
Additionally by Saturday, word of Walton’s disappearance had spread internationally. News reporters, ufologists and the curious began travelling to Snowflake.
Among the visitors was Fred Sylvanus, a Phoenix UFO investigator, who interviewed Rogers and Duane Walton on Saturday, November 8. While repeatedly expressing worry for Walton’s well-being (and criticizing what they saw as a halfhearted search effort by police), both men would make statements that would return to haunt them, when seized upon by critics.
On the recordings made by Sylvanus, Rogers noted that because of Walton’s disappearance and the subsequent search, he would be unable to complete his contract with the Forest Service, and he hoped the search for his missing friend would mitigate the situation. Duane Walton reported he and Walton were quite interested in UFOs, and that some twelve years earlier, Duane had witnessed a UFO similar to the one witnessed by the logging crew. Duane reported that he and Walton had both decided that if they had a chance, they would get as close as possible to any UFO they might see. Duane also suggested that Walton would not be injured by the aliens, because “they don’t harm people”. (Clark, 631) Without intending to do so, Rogers and Duane Walton had laid “the foundations for an alternative interpretation of the case” with their statements. (Clark, 632) Walton would later report that he never had a “keen” interest in UFOs, even after his supposed abduction, but the tape recorded statement of his brother Duane, while Walton was still missing, runs contrary to Walton’s statements.
Shortly after the Sylvanus interview, Snowflake town marshal Sanford Flake announced that the entire affair was a prank engineered by Duane and Walton. They had fooled the logging crew by lighting a balloon and “releasing it at the appropriate time”. Flake’s wife disagreed, suggesting that her husband’s story was “just as farfetched as Duane Walton’s”. (Clark, 632)
In the meantime, Police officers were making repeated visits to Kellett’s home; Duane once returned there to find her in tears as she was being questioned in her living room. Duane told the police to leave unless they had something new to relate, or to ask. Duane suggested that she speak with police only on the front porch, which would allow her to end the interview anytime she chose by simply going inside. She did exactly that after Marshal Flake arrived to relate a message, which Clark notes, contributed to the feeling among skeptics that Kellett was “hiding something. Or someone”. (Clark, 632)
Duane also spoke with William H. Spaulding of Ground Saucer Watch. Spaulding suggested that if Walton ever returned, GSW could provide a doctor to examine him in confidence. Spaulding also suggested that if Walton returned, he should save his first urination after returning so it could be tested.
In the meantime, Police officers were making repeated visits to Kellett’s home; Duane once returned there to find her in tears as she was being questioned in her living room. Duane told the police to leave unless they had something new to relate, or to ask. Duane suggested that she speak with police only on the front porch, which would allow her to end the interview anytime she chose by simply going inside. She did exactly that after Marshal Flake arrived to relate a message, which Clark notes, contributed to the feeling among skeptics that Kellett was “hiding something. Or someone”. (Clark, 632)
Duane also spoke with William H. Spaulding of Ground Saucer Watch. Spaulding suggested that if Walton ever returned, GSW could provide a doctor to examine him in confidence. Spaulding also suggested that if Walton returned, he should save his first urination after returning so it could be tested.
On Monday, November 10, all of Rogers’ remaining crew took polygraph examinations administered by Cy Gilson, an Arizona Department of Public Safety employee. His questions asked if any of the men caused harm to Walton (or knew who had caused Walton harm), if they knew where Walton’s body was buried, and if they told the truth about seeing a UFO. The men all denied harming Walton (or knowing who had harmed him), denied knowing where his body was, and insisted they had indeed seen a UFO.
Excepting Dallis (who had not completed his exam, thus rendering it invalid), Gilson concluded that all the men were truthful, and the exam results were conclusive. Clark quotes from Gilson’s official report: “These polygraph examinations prove that these five men did see some object they believed to be a UFO, and that Travis Walton was not injured or murdered by any of these men on that Wednesday”. If the UFO was fake, Gilson thought, “five of these men had no prior knowledge of it”.(Clark, 633)
Following the polygraph tests, Sheriff Gillespie announced that he accepted the UFO story, saying “There’s no doubt they’re telling the truth.” (Clark, 633)
In 2009, Walton was a participant on game show The Moment of Truth. When asked if he was abducted by a UFO in 1975, he responded, “Yes”, an answer which the polygraph examiner determined to be deceptive prior to taping. Walton, in response to this outcome, said that polygraphs are 97% accurate, even in the best of cases.
Excepting Dallis (who had not completed his exam, thus rendering it invalid), Gilson concluded that all the men were truthful, and the exam results were conclusive. Clark quotes from Gilson’s official report: “These polygraph examinations prove that these five men did see some object they believed to be a UFO, and that Travis Walton was not injured or murdered by any of these men on that Wednesday”. If the UFO was fake, Gilson thought, “five of these men had no prior knowledge of it”.(Clark, 633)
Following the polygraph tests, Sheriff Gillespie announced that he accepted the UFO story, saying “There’s no doubt they’re telling the truth.” (Clark, 633)
In 2009, Walton was a participant on game show The Moment of Truth. When asked if he was abducted by a UFO in 1975, he responded, “Yes”, an answer which the polygraph examiner determined to be deceptive prior to taping. Walton, in response to this outcome, said that polygraphs are 97% accurate, even in the best of cases.
Just before midnight on Monday, November 10, Grant Neff, who was married to Walton’s sister Alison, reportedly answered his home telephone in Taylor, Arizona, a few miles from Snowflake. The caller spoke in a weak voice, “This is Travis. I’m at a phone booth at the Heber gas station, and I need help. Come and get me.” Initially, Neff says he thought the caller was another prankster. However, before Neff could hang up the telephone, the caller spoke again, nearly hysterical and screaming, “It’s me, Grant … I’m hurt, and I need help badly. You come and get me.” Neff reconsidered the caller’s identity: his panic seemed genuine to Neff, so Neff and Duane Walton drove to the gas station.
They reported that they found Walton there, collapsed in the second of three telephone booths. He wore the same clothing as when he had disappeared — still inadequate, the temperature was about 20 °F (-7 °C) — and he seemed thinner and to have not shaved in the time he was absent. On the drive back to Snowflake, Walton seemed afraid, shaken, anxious and repeatedly mumbled on about beings with terrifying eyes. He thought he had been gone only a few hours; when he learned he had been absent nearly a week, he seemed stunned and stopped speaking at all. Duane Walton said he decided not to reveal Walton’s return immediately, out of concern for his brother’s apparently fragile condition. However, by not notifying authorities, Duane would face charges that he was complicit in a cover-up of evidence he or Walton might not want police to see.
At his mother’s house, Walton said he bathed and tried to eat, but was unable to keep from vomiting even after eating mild foods. As Spaulding had suggested, Duane told Walton to keep a sample of his first urination following his return.
Following a tip from a telephone company employee about 2:30 a.m., police learned that someone had called the Neff family from a pay phone at the Heber gas station. Gillespie sent two Deputies to dust the booths for fingerprints, but as near as the deputies could tell in the dark, none of the prints were Walton’s. This fact would be noted by critics who thought the entire affair was a prank, while supporters argued that a fingerprint examination carried out in the dark, early morning hours by two sheriffs wielding flashlights was hardly ideal and by no means exhaustive.
They reported that they found Walton there, collapsed in the second of three telephone booths. He wore the same clothing as when he had disappeared — still inadequate, the temperature was about 20 °F (-7 °C) — and he seemed thinner and to have not shaved in the time he was absent. On the drive back to Snowflake, Walton seemed afraid, shaken, anxious and repeatedly mumbled on about beings with terrifying eyes. He thought he had been gone only a few hours; when he learned he had been absent nearly a week, he seemed stunned and stopped speaking at all. Duane Walton said he decided not to reveal Walton’s return immediately, out of concern for his brother’s apparently fragile condition. However, by not notifying authorities, Duane would face charges that he was complicit in a cover-up of evidence he or Walton might not want police to see.
At his mother’s house, Walton said he bathed and tried to eat, but was unable to keep from vomiting even after eating mild foods. As Spaulding had suggested, Duane told Walton to keep a sample of his first urination following his return.
Following a tip from a telephone company employee about 2:30 a.m., police learned that someone had called the Neff family from a pay phone at the Heber gas station. Gillespie sent two Deputies to dust the booths for fingerprints, but as near as the deputies could tell in the dark, none of the prints were Walton’s. This fact would be noted by critics who thought the entire affair was a prank, while supporters argued that a fingerprint examination carried out in the dark, early morning hours by two sheriffs wielding flashlights was hardly ideal and by no means exhaustive.
Duane remembered Spaulding’s promise of a confidential medical examination. Without having notified authorities of Walton’s return, Duane drove him to Phoenix, Arizona, late Tuesday morning, where they were to meet with Dr. Lester Steward.
The Waltons reported that they were disappointed to learn that Steward was not a medical doctor as Spaulding had promised, but a hypnotherapist. Spaulding and Steward would later report that the Waltons had stayed with them for over two hours, while the Waltons insist they were at Steward’s office for, at most, 45 minutes, most of which was occupied with trying to determine the nature of Steward’s qualifications. The precise time spent with Steward would later become an issue in the case.
The Waltons reported that they were disappointed to learn that Steward was not a medical doctor as Spaulding had promised, but a hypnotherapist. Spaulding and Steward would later report that the Waltons had stayed with them for over two hours, while the Waltons insist they were at Steward’s office for, at most, 45 minutes, most of which was occupied with trying to determine the nature of Steward’s qualifications. The precise time spent with Steward would later become an issue in the case.
By Tuesday afternoon, word of Walton’s return had leaked out to the public. Duane took a telephone call from Spaulding, and told Spaulding not to bother the family again. Clark writes that after this telephone call, “Spaulding became a sworn enemy in the case.” (Clark 363)
Among the other telephone calls after news of Walton’s return was one from Coral Lorenzen of APRO, a civilian UFO research group. She promised Duane that she could arrange an examination for Walton by two medical doctors — general practitioner Joseph Saults and pediatrician Howard Kandell — at Duane’s home. Duane agreed, and the exam began at about 3:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Clark writes that “between Lorenzen’s call and the physicians’ examination, another party would enter, and hugely complicate, the story”. (Clark, 636) Lorenzen was telephoned by an employee of the National Enquirer, an American tabloid newspaper known for its sensationalistic tone. The Enquirer employee promised to finance APRO’s investigation, in exchange for APRO’s “cooperation and access to the Waltons”. Since the Enquirer’s financial resources were far greater than APRO’s, Lorenzen agreed to the arrangement. (Clark, 363)
The medical examination revealed that Walton was essentially in good health, but they did note two unusual features:
Among the other telephone calls after news of Walton’s return was one from Coral Lorenzen of APRO, a civilian UFO research group. She promised Duane that she could arrange an examination for Walton by two medical doctors — general practitioner Joseph Saults and pediatrician Howard Kandell — at Duane’s home. Duane agreed, and the exam began at about 3:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Clark writes that “between Lorenzen’s call and the physicians’ examination, another party would enter, and hugely complicate, the story”. (Clark, 636) Lorenzen was telephoned by an employee of the National Enquirer, an American tabloid newspaper known for its sensationalistic tone. The Enquirer employee promised to finance APRO’s investigation, in exchange for APRO’s “cooperation and access to the Waltons”. Since the Enquirer’s financial resources were far greater than APRO’s, Lorenzen agreed to the arrangement. (Clark, 363)
The medical examination revealed that Walton was essentially in good health, but they did note two unusual features:
” A small red spot at the crease of Walton’s right elbow that was consistent with a hypodermic injection, but the doctors also noted that the spot was not near a vein.
Analysis of Walton’s urine revealed a lack of ketones. This was unusual, given that if Walton had indeed been gone for five days with little or no food as he insisted (and as his weight loss suggested), his body should have begun breaking down fats in order to survive, and this should have led to very high levels of ketone in his urine. Critics would argue this inconsistency is evidence against Walton’s story. “
Analysis of Walton’s urine revealed a lack of ketones. This was unusual, given that if Walton had indeed been gone for five days with little or no food as he insisted (and as his weight loss suggested), his body should have begun breaking down fats in order to survive, and this should have led to very high levels of ketone in his urine. Critics would argue this inconsistency is evidence against Walton’s story. “
Walton would later speculate that he had gotten the mark on his elbow in the course of his logging work; critics would speculate that the mark showed where Walton (or someone else) had injected drugs into his system. Clark dismisses this possibility of drugging as most unlikely, given that the medical doctors found no sign of it, but he also notes that perhaps “more difficult to explain is the absence of bruises, which one might expect in the wake of Walton’s alleged beam-driven collision with the ground”. (Clark 637) Walton later noted that he had been an amateur boxer and had rarely bruised even after rough matches; he also noted that in his logging duties, he and others had taken some painful bumps and falls which had not left significant marks.
When Sheriff Gillespie learned of Walton’s return through the mass media, he was angered. Gillespie thought that he had demonstrated his belief in the UFO story with his announcement following the polygraph exams. However, Duane was still bitter over what he saw as the lackadaisical search effort during Walton’s absence. Walton then told Gillespie what had happened during the five days he had been gone. It was the first time he had told anyone the tale, other than his family or close friends.
When Sheriff Gillespie learned of Walton’s return through the mass media, he was angered. Gillespie thought that he had demonstrated his belief in the UFO story with his announcement following the polygraph exams. However, Duane was still bitter over what he saw as the lackadaisical search effort during Walton’s absence. Walton then told Gillespie what had happened during the five days he had been gone. It was the first time he had told anyone the tale, other than his family or close friends.
In his survey of UFO abduction literature, Terry Matheson writes that “Walton’s experience stands out by virtue of its not being particularly bizarre as far as abduction accounts go.” (Matheson, 111-112)
Walton reported that after approaching the UFO near the work site, the last thing he remembered was being struck by the beam of light. When he woke, Walton said he was on a reclined bed. A bright light shone above him, and the air was heavy and wet. He was in pain, and had some trouble breathing, but his first thought was that he was in a normal hospital.
As his faculties returned, Walton says he realized he was surrounded by three figures, each wearing a sort of orange jumpsuit. The figures were not human. Walton described the beings as typical of the so-called Greys which feature in some abduction accounts: “shorter than five feet, and they had bald heads, no hair. Their heads were domed, very large. They looked like fetuses […] They had large eyes — enormous eyes — almost all brown, without much white in them. The creepiest thing about them were those eyes … they just stared through me.” Their ears, noses and mouths “seemed real small, maybe just because their eyes were so huge.” (Clark, 646)
Walton related that he feared for his safety and got to his feet, and shouted at the creatures to stay away. He grabbed a glasslike cylinder from a nearby shelf and tried to break its tip to create a makeshift knife, but found the object unbreakable, so instead waved it at the creatures as a weapon. The trio of creatures left him in the room.
Walton reported that after approaching the UFO near the work site, the last thing he remembered was being struck by the beam of light. When he woke, Walton said he was on a reclined bed. A bright light shone above him, and the air was heavy and wet. He was in pain, and had some trouble breathing, but his first thought was that he was in a normal hospital.
As his faculties returned, Walton says he realized he was surrounded by three figures, each wearing a sort of orange jumpsuit. The figures were not human. Walton described the beings as typical of the so-called Greys which feature in some abduction accounts: “shorter than five feet, and they had bald heads, no hair. Their heads were domed, very large. They looked like fetuses […] They had large eyes — enormous eyes — almost all brown, without much white in them. The creepiest thing about them were those eyes … they just stared through me.” Their ears, noses and mouths “seemed real small, maybe just because their eyes were so huge.” (Clark, 646)
Walton related that he feared for his safety and got to his feet, and shouted at the creatures to stay away. He grabbed a glasslike cylinder from a nearby shelf and tried to break its tip to create a makeshift knife, but found the object unbreakable, so instead waved it at the creatures as a weapon. The trio of creatures left him in the room.
Matheson finds this portion of the narrative troublingly inconsistent, noting that “despite his ‘weakened’ condition, ‘aching body’ and ‘splitting pain in his skull’, maladies for which no cause is suggested, he has no trouble jumping up from his operating table, seizing a conveniently placed glasslike rod, and, assuming a karate ‘fighting stance’, frightened them with this display of macho aggression, enough at least to cause them to run away.” (Matheson, 110)
Walton then left the “exam room” via a hallway, which led to a spherical room with only a high-backed chair placed in the center of the room. Though he was afraid there might be someone seated in the chair, Walton says he walked towards it. As he did, lights began to appear in the room. The chair was empty, so Walton says he sat in it. When he did, the room was filled with lights, similar to stars projected on a round planetarium ceiling.
The chair was equipped on the left arm with a single short thick lever with an oddly shaped molded handle atop some dark brown material. On the right arm, there was an illuminated, lime-green screen about five inches square with black lines intersected at all angles.
When Walton pushed the lever, he reported that the stars rotated around him slowly. When he released the lever, the stars remained at their new position. He decided to stop manipulating the lever, since he had no idea what it might do.
He left the chair, and the stars disappeared. Walton thought he had seen a rectangular outline on the rounded wall — perhaps a door — and went to look for it.
Just then, Walton heard a sound behind him. He turned, expecting more of the short, large eyed creatures, but was pleasantly surprised to see a tall human figure wearing blue coveralls with a glassy helmet. At the time, Walton said, he did not realize how odd the man’s eyes were: larger than normal, and a bright gold color.
Walton says he then asked the man a number of questions, but the man only grinned and motioned for Walton to follow him. Walton also said that because of the man’s helmet he might have been unable to hear him, so he followed the man down a hallway which led to a door and a steep ramp down to a large room Walton described as similar to an aircraft hangar. Walton says he realized he had just left a disc-shaped craft similar to the one he had seen in the forest just before he had been struck by the bluish light, but the craft was perhaps twice as large.
Walton then left the “exam room” via a hallway, which led to a spherical room with only a high-backed chair placed in the center of the room. Though he was afraid there might be someone seated in the chair, Walton says he walked towards it. As he did, lights began to appear in the room. The chair was empty, so Walton says he sat in it. When he did, the room was filled with lights, similar to stars projected on a round planetarium ceiling.
The chair was equipped on the left arm with a single short thick lever with an oddly shaped molded handle atop some dark brown material. On the right arm, there was an illuminated, lime-green screen about five inches square with black lines intersected at all angles.
When Walton pushed the lever, he reported that the stars rotated around him slowly. When he released the lever, the stars remained at their new position. He decided to stop manipulating the lever, since he had no idea what it might do.
He left the chair, and the stars disappeared. Walton thought he had seen a rectangular outline on the rounded wall — perhaps a door — and went to look for it.
Just then, Walton heard a sound behind him. He turned, expecting more of the short, large eyed creatures, but was pleasantly surprised to see a tall human figure wearing blue coveralls with a glassy helmet. At the time, Walton said, he did not realize how odd the man’s eyes were: larger than normal, and a bright gold color.
Walton says he then asked the man a number of questions, but the man only grinned and motioned for Walton to follow him. Walton also said that because of the man’s helmet he might have been unable to hear him, so he followed the man down a hallway which led to a door and a steep ramp down to a large room Walton described as similar to an aircraft hangar. Walton says he realized he had just left a disc-shaped craft similar to the one he had seen in the forest just before he had been struck by the bluish light, but the craft was perhaps twice as large.
In the hangar-like room, Walton reported seeing other disc-shaped craft. The man led him to another room, containing three more humans — a woman and two men — resembling the helmeted man. These people did not wear helmets, so Walton says he began asking questions of them. They responded with the same dull grin, and led him by his arm to a small table.
Once he was seated on the table, Walton says he realized the woman held a device like an oxygen mask, which she placed on his face. Before he could fight back, Walton says he passed out.
When he woke again, Walton says he was outside the gas station in Heber, Arizona. One of the disc-shaped craft was hovering just above the highway. After a moment, the craft shot away, and Walton stumbled to the telephones and called his brother-in-law, Grant Neff. He thought that only a few hours had passed.
After hearing Walton’s story, Gillespie speculated that Walton may have been hit on the head and drugged, then taken to a normal hospital where he had confused the details of a routine exam with something more spectacular. Walton dismissed this, noting that the medical examination had found no trace of head trauma or drugs in his system. Walton told Sheriff Gillespie that he was willing to take a polygraph, a truth serum, or undergo hypnosis to support his account. Gillespie said that a polygraph would suffice, and he promised to arrange one in secret to avoid the growing media circus.
Duane and Walton then drove to Scottsdale, Arizona, where a meeting with APRO consultant James A. Harder had been arranged. Harder hypnotized Walton, hoping to uncover more details of the missing five days. Clark writes that “Unlike many other abductees, however, Walton’s conscious recall and unconscious ‘memory’ were the same, and he could account for only a maximum of two hours, and perhaps less, of his missing five days. Curiously … Walton encountered an impenetrable mental block and expressed the view that he would ‘die’ if the regression continued.” (Clark, 637)
Once he was seated on the table, Walton says he realized the woman held a device like an oxygen mask, which she placed on his face. Before he could fight back, Walton says he passed out.
When he woke again, Walton says he was outside the gas station in Heber, Arizona. One of the disc-shaped craft was hovering just above the highway. After a moment, the craft shot away, and Walton stumbled to the telephones and called his brother-in-law, Grant Neff. He thought that only a few hours had passed.
After hearing Walton’s story, Gillespie speculated that Walton may have been hit on the head and drugged, then taken to a normal hospital where he had confused the details of a routine exam with something more spectacular. Walton dismissed this, noting that the medical examination had found no trace of head trauma or drugs in his system. Walton told Sheriff Gillespie that he was willing to take a polygraph, a truth serum, or undergo hypnosis to support his account. Gillespie said that a polygraph would suffice, and he promised to arrange one in secret to avoid the growing media circus.
Duane and Walton then drove to Scottsdale, Arizona, where a meeting with APRO consultant James A. Harder had been arranged. Harder hypnotized Walton, hoping to uncover more details of the missing five days. Clark writes that “Unlike many other abductees, however, Walton’s conscious recall and unconscious ‘memory’ were the same, and he could account for only a maximum of two hours, and perhaps less, of his missing five days. Curiously … Walton encountered an impenetrable mental block and expressed the view that he would ‘die’ if the regression continued.” (Clark, 637)
In the meantime, Spaulding had announced to the press that he and “Dr.” Steward had questioned Walton for two hours, and had uncovered inconsistencies in Walton’s account that would “Blow this story out”. (Clark, 637) The Phoenix Gazette ran a story about Steward, who related his claims that the “Waltons fear exposure” of a carefully crafted lie. (Clark, 638)
Sheriff Gillespie arranged for a polygraph, but when word of the exam was leaked to the press, Duane canceled it, thinking that Gillespie had broken his promise to keep the test a secret. Gillespie would later insist he had not leaked word of the polygraph, and that the case had become too sensationalistic to keep anything secret for long.
The National Enquirer wanted Walton to take a polygraph as soon as possible, and arranged for one, after Duane insisted that he and Walton have the power to veto any public disclosure of the test results. Harder thought that Walton was too distraught to take a polygraph, but the examiner — John J McCarthy, of the Arizona Polygraph Laboratory — said he could take Walton’s nervous state into consideration.
In interviewing Walton before the exam began, McCarthy extracted two admissions from him: First, that he had smoked marijuana a few times, but had never used the drug regularly, and secondly, that he and Mike Rogers’ younger brother had committed check fraud a few years earlier by altering payroll checks. It was his only serious brush with the law – Walton completed two years probation without further incident – but Walton remained deeply embarrassed about the check fraud episode. (Incidentally, Philip J. Klass notes that Walton once claimed to have been jailed for this crime, though he actually received two years’ probation as a first-time offender.)
Sheriff Gillespie arranged for a polygraph, but when word of the exam was leaked to the press, Duane canceled it, thinking that Gillespie had broken his promise to keep the test a secret. Gillespie would later insist he had not leaked word of the polygraph, and that the case had become too sensationalistic to keep anything secret for long.
The National Enquirer wanted Walton to take a polygraph as soon as possible, and arranged for one, after Duane insisted that he and Walton have the power to veto any public disclosure of the test results. Harder thought that Walton was too distraught to take a polygraph, but the examiner — John J McCarthy, of the Arizona Polygraph Laboratory — said he could take Walton’s nervous state into consideration.
In interviewing Walton before the exam began, McCarthy extracted two admissions from him: First, that he had smoked marijuana a few times, but had never used the drug regularly, and secondly, that he and Mike Rogers’ younger brother had committed check fraud a few years earlier by altering payroll checks. It was his only serious brush with the law – Walton completed two years probation without further incident – but Walton remained deeply embarrassed about the check fraud episode. (Incidentally, Philip J. Klass notes that Walton once claimed to have been jailed for this crime, though he actually received two years’ probation as a first-time offender.)
McCarthy then administered the polygraph, which remains mired in controversy. Walton asserts McCarthy behaved unprofessionally, while McCarthy insists Walton both failed the polygraph and tried to cheat. At one point, says Walton, McCarthy asked if Walton had “colluded” with anyone to perpetrate a hoax. Walton said he was unfamiliar with the word, and Walton reported that McCarthy replied, in a confrontational and aggressive manner, that collusion was planning or conspiring with another, just as Walton had colluded to steal and forge payroll checks.After completing the exam, McCarthy determined that Walton was lying. Clark quotes from McCarthy’s official report: “Based on his reaction on all charts, it is the opinion of this examiner that Walton, in concert with others, is attempting to perpetrate a UFO hoax, and that he has not been on any spacecraft”. (Clark, 640) Later, McCarthy would assert that “sometimes Travis would hold his breath, in an effort to ‘beat the machine.”
The Waltons, APRO and the National Enquirer then agreed to keep the results of this polygraph a secret, due in large part, they insisted, to doubts about McCarthy’s methods and objectivity. Eight months later, when word of this decision was made public, there would be more charges of deception and cover-up. Walton would later take and pass two additional polygraph exams, though the suppressed results of the first exam would shadow him and earn mention in nearly every discussion of the case to the present.
Once word of the suppressed polygraph was made public by Klass, many who had thought Walton had related a true account (or at least what he thought was a true account) reconsidered the case with a more skeptical eye. Walton, Duane and APRO members argued that McCarthy was biased, and had asked Walton embarrassing, irrelevant questions in an effort to create turbulent conditions more likely to produce a negative result. According to Clark, the opinions of recognized polygraph experts were divided about the propriety of McCarthy’s exam: Harry Reed supported the validity of McCarthy’s exam, while psychologist David Raskin of the University of Utah asserted that McCarthy’s method was “more than 30 years out of date.”
Philip J. Klass — an aviation journalist by profession, but also a well-known UFO debunker — launched a concerted, sustained critique against Walton’s claims, arguing especially that there was a strong financial motive to the entire affair. Rogers knew he would be unable to complete his contract with the Forest Service, argued Klass, and concocted a scheme to invoke the contract’s act of God clause, thus dissolving the contract without fault. Others argued against this idea,noting that defaulting on a Forest Service contract was not necessarily the catastrophe Klass implied: Rogers had failed to complete two of his many earlier Forest Service contracts, yet had been rehired without apparent prejudice. Furthermore, despite his anxiety over the contract, Rogers never invoked or tried to invoke the “act of God” clause in the aftermath of Walton’s disappearance.
Klass and others also noted that The UFO Incident was broadcast on NBC just a few weeks before Walton’s disappearance. This made-for-television film was a fictionalized account of the Hill Abduction, the first widely publicized case of alien abduction. Klass and others speculated that Walton had been inspired by the program. Walton denied that he had watched the program, but Klass notes that Mike Rogers watched at least a portion of the program. Clark argues that Walton’s account of his time on the UFO is quite different from the Hill account, and that furthermore, “there is not a great deal of similarity between Walton’s and any other abduction narrative” publicly discussed as of November, 1975. (Clark, 649).
Klass and others also noted that The UFO Incident was broadcast on NBC just a few weeks before Walton’s disappearance. This made-for-television film was a fictionalized account of the Hill Abduction, the first widely publicized case of alien abduction. Klass and others speculated that Walton had been inspired by the program. Walton denied that he had watched the program, but Klass notes that Mike Rogers watched at least a portion of the program. Clark argues that Walton’s account of his time on the UFO is quite different from the Hill account, and that furthermore, “there is not a great deal of similarity between Walton’s and any other abduction narrative” publicly discussed as of November, 1975. (Clark, 649).
In 1978, Walton published The Walton Experience, in which he outlined his own narrative of the event and its aftermath. The same year, Bill Barry published The Ultimate Encounter, in which he argues that the various debunkers, especially Klass, did not make persuasive cases and that Walton and others alleging similar experiences related events more or less as they believed they had happened.
Matheson argues that Walton’s book makes a few fundamental errors that severely harm his case. While Walton “proclaims self-righteously” that he intends only to relate events and not “interpret” them, Matheson writes, “the reader will see almost immediately that large sections of the book are nothing more than highly speculative, purely imaginative recreations on his part”. (Matheson, 109) For example, after he is knocked unconscious by the blue beam, Walton offers precise, novelistic dialogue describing the conversations of his fellow crew workers after they drove away in a panic. Yet Walton never mentions whether he is paraphrasing their words based on what they related to him, if he interviewed the others to determine who said what, or if he simply assumed what they said. Matheson argues that this represents a “lack of concern for literal accuracy that the reader cannot help but suspect is characteristic of the entire work”. (Matheson, 110)
After the initial furor subsided, Walton remained in Snowflake and eventually became the foreman at a lumber mill; he married Dana Rogers and they had several children. Beyond the film based on his encounter, Walton has occasionally appeared at UFO conventions or on television specials.
Matheson argues that Walton’s book makes a few fundamental errors that severely harm his case. While Walton “proclaims self-righteously” that he intends only to relate events and not “interpret” them, Matheson writes, “the reader will see almost immediately that large sections of the book are nothing more than highly speculative, purely imaginative recreations on his part”. (Matheson, 109) For example, after he is knocked unconscious by the blue beam, Walton offers precise, novelistic dialogue describing the conversations of his fellow crew workers after they drove away in a panic. Yet Walton never mentions whether he is paraphrasing their words based on what they related to him, if he interviewed the others to determine who said what, or if he simply assumed what they said. Matheson argues that this represents a “lack of concern for literal accuracy that the reader cannot help but suspect is characteristic of the entire work”. (Matheson, 110)
After the initial furor subsided, Walton remained in Snowflake and eventually became the foreman at a lumber mill; he married Dana Rogers and they had several children. Beyond the film based on his encounter, Walton has occasionally appeared at UFO conventions or on television specials.
In 1993, Walton’s book was adapted into a film, Fire in the Sky, directed by Robert Lieberman and starring D. B. Sweeney as Travis Walton, Robert Patrick as Mike Rogers and Scott MacDonald as Walton’s brother Dan Walton. Clark writes that the film found “Moderate success, mixed reviews, and ufologists’ complaints about its inaccuracies and exaggerations.” (Clark, 650) Especially inaccurate was the portion of the film detailing his time on the UFO; it bears almost no resemblance to the original narrative. Screenwriter Tracy Tormé even sent letters to many ufologists, claiming that the changes were requested by studio officials, and apologizing for making such substantial alterations to Walton’s narrative. (Randles and Hough, 188)
Walton and Mike Rogers made a few promotional appearances to support the film; they debated Klass on Larry King Live. At one point, Klass lost his temper and called Rogers a “goddamned liar.” (Clark, 650) In his book, Clark does not offer any background context to explain Klass’s remark on Larry King Live.
In the renewed publicity generated by the motion picture, Walton, Mike Rogers and Allen Dallis agreed to take polygraph examinations at the behest of “a skeptical ufologist, Jerry Black”. (Clark, 650) Again, the tests were conducted by Cy Gilson, and the men all asserted that the events as they related them were true. Gilson concluded that all three men were truthful in regard to their responses about the events of November 5, 1975.
At the time of the film’s release, Walton re-issued The Walton Experience under the same title as the film; expanding it to include text rebutting Klass’s commentary.
Walton and Mike Rogers made a few promotional appearances to support the film; they debated Klass on Larry King Live. At one point, Klass lost his temper and called Rogers a “goddamned liar.” (Clark, 650) In his book, Clark does not offer any background context to explain Klass’s remark on Larry King Live.
In the renewed publicity generated by the motion picture, Walton, Mike Rogers and Allen Dallis agreed to take polygraph examinations at the behest of “a skeptical ufologist, Jerry Black”. (Clark, 650) Again, the tests were conducted by Cy Gilson, and the men all asserted that the events as they related them were true. Gilson concluded that all three men were truthful in regard to their responses about the events of November 5, 1975.
At the time of the film’s release, Walton re-issued The Walton Experience under the same title as the film; expanding it to include text rebutting Klass’s commentary.
During the early stages of publicity for the film, Walton was contacted by a man who claimed to have been hunting with his wife in the same area where Walton saw the UFO. The man reported that they had seen a disc that shot a beam of blue light, then flew off into the sky. As an active military intelligence officer, the man said he had reported the sighting to his superiors, who told him to keep quiet unless Walton’s coworkers were actually charged with a crime related to the disappearance.
Walton judged the man’s story plausible, and notified Tracy Tormé, who had written the screenplay for Fire in the Sky. Tormé arranged for the man to undergo a polygraph administered by Cy Gilson, who had conducted the polygraphs on the logging crew nearly 20 years before.
Gilson asked the man two sets of questions: The first regarding the UFO sighting and the man’s claims to being a military intelligence officer; the second concerning whether the man was colluding with anyone (specifically Klass and/or the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal) in order to discredit Walton, and whether a military superior had indeed ordered the man to keep quiet about the UFO report. The man insisted his account was truthful.
Walton judged the man’s story plausible, and notified Tracy Tormé, who had written the screenplay for Fire in the Sky. Tormé arranged for the man to undergo a polygraph administered by Cy Gilson, who had conducted the polygraphs on the logging crew nearly 20 years before.
Gilson asked the man two sets of questions: The first regarding the UFO sighting and the man’s claims to being a military intelligence officer; the second concerning whether the man was colluding with anyone (specifically Klass and/or the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal) in order to discredit Walton, and whether a military superior had indeed ordered the man to keep quiet about the UFO report. The man insisted his account was truthful.
Gilson decided that the man was lying about all his claims and, furthermore, that he deliberately tried to mislead Gilson and fool the polygraph. Walton speculated that if the man had passed Gilson’s exam, his presumed associates would have stepped to the fore with evidence to discredit Gilson’s polygraph methods and thus discredit the loggers who had early been deemed truthful following Gilson’s exams. There was some precedent for suspicion due to Project Alpha, a 1979 effort by James Randi to use stage magicians to demonstrate that parapsychologists could be fooled by sleight of hand. However, in Project Alpha, the undercover magicians were instructed to admit their plan if asked directly if they were faking. This contrasts with the Walton case “eyewitness” who stuck to his story even when directly asked if he was lying.
Walton named Klass as a suspect in arranging the seemingly phony eyewitness, but Klass denied the charge:
“I WOULD NEVER ENGAGE IN SUCH TRICKERY, KNOWING THAT IF IT WERE EXPOSED THIS WOULD RUIN MY REPUTATION AS A TECHNICAL JOURNALIST AND AS A UFO RESEARCHER. Nor would CSICOP.”
Walton named Klass as a suspect in arranging the seemingly phony eyewitness, but Klass denied the charge:
“I WOULD NEVER ENGAGE IN SUCH TRICKERY, KNOWING THAT IF IT WERE EXPOSED THIS WOULD RUIN MY REPUTATION AS A TECHNICAL JOURNALIST AND AS A UFO RESEARCHER. Nor would CSICOP.”
6. The Kirsan Ilyumzhinov Abduction
One of the stranger alien abduction cases came to light fairly recent and became famous because the person making the claim was a very high ranking official. This former longtime head of the Region of Kalmykia in Russia, noted for his love of chess and efforts to make his region a prime locale for championship tournaments, claimed on a talk show in 2010 that 13 years earlier, he had been abducted by space beings. He described the craft as a “semi-transparent half tube” occupied by “human-like creatures in yellow spacesuits.” Even stranger, he claims his meetings with the beings weren’t for scientific experiments, but more for a meeting of interstellar minds. To boot, he revealed that aliens are responsible for bring chess to Earth.The official’s words and claims prompted an investigation into his time as the region’s president to make sure his decisions as a leader weren’t affected by his “interactions” with the aliens. Good luck calling them to testify as character witnesses. Still, we’ve always thought serious chess players seemed a bit off.
7. Schirmer Abduction
Nebraska Police Sergeant Herbert Schirmer claimed that he was abducted by extraterrestrials on December 3, 1967, while in Ashland, Nebraska. His case was one of those investigated in the Condon Report. He flew to Boulder, Colorado and was examined under hypnosis by psychologist Dr. R. Leo Sprinkle of the University of Wyoming on February 13, 1968.Under hypnosis he reported that he had seen a blurred white object that came out of what he had at first mistaken for a truck because of blinking red lights. The white object communicated mentally with him, preventing him from drawing his gun. After hypnosis he said that the beings in the vehicle were friendly, had bases on Venus, and drew energy from power lines.
The commission’s conclusion was “Evaluation of psychological assessment tests, the lack of any evidence, and interviews with the patrolman, left project staff with no confidence that the trooper’s reported UFO experience was physically real.” Sprinkle thought Schirmer believed what he was saying and was not consciously inventing the story.
It is widely believed that the events described by Schirmer were in fact the result of sleep paralysis. Schirmer described the aliens he encountered as reptilian beings or reptoids. When Sprinkle asked Schirmer if he was in fact probed by the reptoids, he confirmed that he was anally probed. Following a full colonoscopy, no probe was found. A second study also failed to show any evidence of probing.
8. 1969 The Buff Ledge Camp Abduction
Only seven and a half years after the Betty and Barney Hill story, the New England states would again host an alien abduction. Buff Ledge in Vermont would be the site of a visitation by four UFOs which would make revolutionary aerial maneuvers, Two counselors would suffer missing time, and seek professional help.A valid account of the alien abduction of two teenage counselors comes to us from the state of Vermont. Four UFOs would appear in daylight over the lake of Buff Ledge Camp, making baffling maneuvers with the lightness of a falling leaf. On August 7, 1968, the strange encounter began for sixteen-year-old Michael Lapp, maintenance man for the camp, and nineteen-year-old Janet Cornell, water ski instructor. The camp was located north of Burlington on Lake Champlain. The two were taking a break on a boat dock.
On a warm afternoon, the camp was sparsely inhabited because the swimming team had gone to Burlington for a meet. In the later part of the afternoon, Michael and Janet were simply enjoying the view of the setting sun, when suddenly a bright light appeared. Was this light an extraordinary view of Venus? Or something else? Their question would soon be answered as the source of the light began to drop down toward the two friends.
As the object drew closer, the shape became more clear-it was a saucer shape. Suddenly, Michael remarked, “Wow! Venus is falling.” But he knew better. The lone light now dropped three smaller lights from it and they immediately soared over the lake. The larger object soon disappeared from sight. It was obvious the objects were being intelligently controlled. The UFOs seemed to perform for the two mesmerized teenagers, doing zigzags, loops, and then would suddenly drop like a falling leaf.
Now, the three UFOs moved ever closer to the two friends. The UFOs formed a triangle formation, and then two of them pulled away, leaving just one out front. Later, Michael would recall hearing something that sounded like “a thousand tuning forks” as the two objects pulled back. The last UFO then passed right over them, shot upward and briefly disappeared. Soon, it would reappear, tilted to one side, then drop straight into the lake.
After a time, it would emerge from the lake, and then begin moving directly toward Michael and Janet. The UFO was so close now that two beings could be seen through the transparent cupola of the object. The beings appeared child-like. According to Michael, their necks were elongated, they had big heads for their body size. They had no hair, but large eyes which wrapped around the side of their heads. He thought that he was in mental contact with the beings.
For some odd reason, as Michael watched the aliens, he slapped his knee. One alien did likewise. The UFO was now directly over their heads, as it shot a beam at the two. Michael grabbed Janet’s shoulder and pulled back, landing both of them on the deck on their backs. He then was terrified of being taken, and screamed, “We don’t want to go!” The next thing Michael recalled was sitting on the dock and gazing at the object, which was now farther away from them. Janet seemed to just sit in a trance. It was now totally dark.
Soon, they heard members of the swim team talking as they made their way back into the camp. The UFO moved higher up into the sky. It flashed its lights a number of times, and then disappeared. Michael wondered, “How long have we been here?” Nothing would be said about what happened that late afternoon. When summer camp ended, the two went their separate ways. Michael rarely thought about his experience for the next five years, but as time went by, he began to have disturbing dreams.
Ten years after Michael’s experience, he decided to contact the Center for UFO Studies. He was referred to investigator Walter Webb. After becoming familiar with the details of the case, Webb suggested regressive hypnosis to relieve Michael’s nightmares, and hopefully regain his lost memories. The sessions brought back the events of the late afternoon experience at Buff Ledge. But now, he recalled being lifted by a beam into the waiting UFO, and going into a larger UFO. He also remembered Janet lying on an examination table.
After a time, it would emerge from the lake, and then begin moving directly toward Michael and Janet. The UFO was so close now that two beings could be seen through the transparent cupola of the object. The beings appeared child-like. According to Michael, their necks were elongated, they had big heads for their body size. They had no hair, but large eyes which wrapped around the side of their heads. He thought that he was in mental contact with the beings.
For some odd reason, as Michael watched the aliens, he slapped his knee. One alien did likewise. The UFO was now directly over their heads, as it shot a beam at the two. Michael grabbed Janet’s shoulder and pulled back, landing both of them on the deck on their backs. He then was terrified of being taken, and screamed, “We don’t want to go!” The next thing Michael recalled was sitting on the dock and gazing at the object, which was now farther away from them. Janet seemed to just sit in a trance. It was now totally dark.
Soon, they heard members of the swim team talking as they made their way back into the camp. The UFO moved higher up into the sky. It flashed its lights a number of times, and then disappeared. Michael wondered, “How long have we been here?” Nothing would be said about what happened that late afternoon. When summer camp ended, the two went their separate ways. Michael rarely thought about his experience for the next five years, but as time went by, he began to have disturbing dreams.
Ten years after Michael’s experience, he decided to contact the Center for UFO Studies. He was referred to investigator Walter Webb. After becoming familiar with the details of the case, Webb suggested regressive hypnosis to relieve Michael’s nightmares, and hopefully regain his lost memories. The sessions brought back the events of the late afternoon experience at Buff Ledge. But now, he recalled being lifted by a beam into the waiting UFO, and going into a larger UFO. He also remembered Janet lying on an examination table.
The beings shone a light into her eyes, took skin samples, and fluids from her body. “The aliens all looked alike, Michael recalled, and had those large eyes, a mouth without lips, no ears, and two small openings for a nose.” Michael also described the beings as having three pointed, web-like digits for fingers, and their bodies felt “damp and clammy.” Michael recalls the aliens wanted life on our planet to be like theirs, without violence.
Janet, now 29, would also be regressed. Her recalled memories would only strengthen the case of alien abduction. She recalled the “coldness” of the table. Something had pulled her hair, and pinched her neck. There was no disharmony in Michael and Janet’s statements.
Webb also conducted an investigation outside the boundaries of regressive hypnosis. He was able to find other members of Buff Ledge that had witnessed strange lights over Lake Champlain on the same night as Michael and Janet’s abduction. Two other members of the camp also claimed to have been abducted after seeing strange lights, but earlier in the summer. Their names were not released. The events at Buff Ledge camp are certainly proof of an alien abduction.
Janet, now 29, would also be regressed. Her recalled memories would only strengthen the case of alien abduction. She recalled the “coldness” of the table. Something had pulled her hair, and pinched her neck. There was no disharmony in Michael and Janet’s statements.
Webb also conducted an investigation outside the boundaries of regressive hypnosis. He was able to find other members of Buff Ledge that had witnessed strange lights over Lake Champlain on the same night as Michael and Janet’s abduction. Two other members of the camp also claimed to have been abducted after seeing strange lights, but earlier in the summer. Their names were not released. The events at Buff Ledge camp are certainly proof of an alien abduction.
9. 1973 Pascagoula, Mississippi Abduction (Parker, Hickson)
The Pascagoula Abduction occurred in 1973 when co-workers Charles Hickson and Calvin Parker claimed that they were abducted by aliens while fishing near Pascagoula, Mississippi. The case earned substantial mass media attention, and is, along with the earlier Hill Abduction, among the best-known claims of alien abduction.On the evening of October 11, 1973, 42-year-old Charles Hickson and 19-year-old Calvin Parker — co-workers at a shipyard — were fishing off a pier on the west bank of the Pascagoula River in Mississippi. They heard a whirring/whizzing sound, saw two flashing blue lights, and reported that an oval shaped “craft”, some 8 feet across and 8 or more feet high, suddenly appeared near them. The ship seemed to levitate about 2 feet above the ground.
A door opened on the ship, they said, and three creatures emerged and seized the men, floating or levitating them into the craft. Both men reported being paralyzed and numb. Parker claimed that he had fainted due to fright. They described the creatures as being roughly humanoid in shape, and standing about five feet tall. The creatures’ skin was pale in color and wrinkled, and they had no eyes that the men could discern, and slits for mouths. Their heads also appeared connected directly to their shoulders, with no discernible neck. There were three “carrot-like” growths instead – one where the nose would be on a human, the other two where ears would normally be. The beings had lobster-like claws at the ends of their arms, and they seemed to have only one leg (Hickson later described the creatures’ lower bodies looking as if their legs were fused together) ending in elephant-like feet. Hickson also reported that the creatures moved in mechanical, robotic ways.
On the ship, Hickson claimed that he was somehow levitated or hovered a few feet above the floor of the craft, and was examined by what looked like a large football-shaped mechanical eye, about 6 to 8 inches in diameter, that seemed to scan his body. Parker claimed that he could not recall what had happened to him inside the craft, although later, during sessions of hypnotic regression he offered some hazy details. The men were released after about 20 minutes and the creatures levitated them, with Hickson’s feet dragging along the ground, back to their original positions on the river bank.
In a later interview over 20 years after the initial incident, Parker’s story became much more elaborate. Here Parker confessed to lying about fainting in sight of the creatures. He claimed that he was in fact conscious when the creatures took him on board the craft and led him into a room at the other end of a hallway to the left of the craft’s entrance. He claims he was laid down on a sloped table and examined by a ‘petite,’ evidently female, being. Though he was paralyzed, he was able to observe the being inject a needle into the base of the underside of his penis. The being later communicated with him telepathically, suggesting that he had been taken for a reason. While he was not able to define it, Parker felt a sense of imminent harm. Nevertheless, he was led back outside the craft and deposited back into his original position unharmed. He then claimed that 19 years later, he came in contact with the same craft again. This time he voluntarily walked aboard the craft and met with the same female being that had examined his body in 1973. He claimed he had a conversation with the being, in English, in which she communicated to him a religious message. She informed him that they shared the same God, that the bible was an authentic text, and that her species wanted to live on earth but could not due to humanity’s tendency towards war and destruction.
In a later interview over 20 years after the initial incident, Parker’s story became much more elaborate. Here Parker confessed to lying about fainting in sight of the creatures. He claimed that he was in fact conscious when the creatures took him on board the craft and led him into a room at the other end of a hallway to the left of the craft’s entrance. He claims he was laid down on a sloped table and examined by a ‘petite,’ evidently female, being. Though he was paralyzed, he was able to observe the being inject a needle into the base of the underside of his penis. The being later communicated with him telepathically, suggesting that he had been taken for a reason. While he was not able to define it, Parker felt a sense of imminent harm. Nevertheless, he was led back outside the craft and deposited back into his original position unharmed. He then claimed that 19 years later, he came in contact with the same craft again. This time he voluntarily walked aboard the craft and met with the same female being that had examined his body in 1973. He claimed he had a conversation with the being, in English, in which she communicated to him a religious message. She informed him that they shared the same God, that the bible was an authentic text, and that her species wanted to live on earth but could not due to humanity’s tendency towards war and destruction.
Both men said they were terrified by what had happened. They claimed to have sat in a car for about 45 minutes, trying to calm themselves. Hickson drank some whiskey. After some discussion, they tried to report their story to officials at Keesler Air Force Base, but personnel told them the United States Air Force had nothing to do with UFO reports (Project Blue Book had been discontinued about four years before), and suggested the men notify police.
At about 10:30 p.m., Hickson and Parker arrived at the Jackson County, Mississippi Sheriff’s office. They brought the catfish they’d caught while fishing; it was the only proof they had to back up their story. Sheriff Fred Diamond thought the men seemed sincere and genuinely frightened and he thought Parker was especially disturbed. Diamond harbored some doubt about the fantastic story, however, due in part to Hickson’s admitted whiskey consumption.
At about 10:30 p.m., Hickson and Parker arrived at the Jackson County, Mississippi Sheriff’s office. They brought the catfish they’d caught while fishing; it was the only proof they had to back up their story. Sheriff Fred Diamond thought the men seemed sincere and genuinely frightened and he thought Parker was especially disturbed. Diamond harbored some doubt about the fantastic story, however, due in part to Hickson’s admitted whiskey consumption.
The ” Secret Tape “
Diamond interviewed the men, who related their story. After repeated questioning, Diamond left the two men alone in a room that was, unknown to Hickson or Parker, rigged with a hidden microphone.
As Jerome Clark, writes, “Sheriff Diamond assumed that if they were lying, that fact would become immediately apparent when the two spoke privately. Instead, they continued to talk in the voices of the terribly distressed.” (Clark, 447) This so-called “secret tape” was held on file at the Jackson County Sheriff’s department, and has since earned wider circulation amongst UFO researchers and enthusiasts. Parker, who seemed particularly shaken, spoke repeatedly of his wish to see a doctor. A partial transcript of their interrogation and of the “secret tape” is available; immediately below is part of the conversation on the “secret tape”, as transcribed by NICAP:
As Jerome Clark, writes, “Sheriff Diamond assumed that if they were lying, that fact would become immediately apparent when the two spoke privately. Instead, they continued to talk in the voices of the terribly distressed.” (Clark, 447) This so-called “secret tape” was held on file at the Jackson County Sheriff’s department, and has since earned wider circulation amongst UFO researchers and enthusiasts. Parker, who seemed particularly shaken, spoke repeatedly of his wish to see a doctor. A partial transcript of their interrogation and of the “secret tape” is available; immediately below is part of the conversation on the “secret tape”, as transcribed by NICAP:
” CALVIN: I got to get home and get to bed or get some nerve pills or see the doctor or something. I can’t stand it. I’m about to go half crazy.
CHARLIE: I tell you, when we’re through, I’ll get you something to settle you down so you can get some damn sleep.
CALVIN: I can’t sleep yet like it is. I’m just damn near crazy.
CHARLIE: Well, Calvin, when they brought you out-when they brought me out of that thing, goddamn it I like to never in hell got you straightened out.
His voice rising, Calvin said, “My damn arms, my arms, I remember they just froze up and I couldn’t move. Just like I stepped on a damn rattlesnake.”
“They didn’t do me that way”, sighed Charlie.
Now both men were talking as if to themselves.
CALVIN: I passed out. I expect I never passed out in my whole life.
CHARLIE: I’ve never seen nothin’ like that before in my life. You can’t make people believe-
CALVIN: I don’t want to keep sittin’ here. I want to see a doctor-
CHARLIE: They better wake up and start believin’… they better start believin’.
CALVIN: You see how that damn door come right up?
CHARLIE: I don’t know how it opened, son. I don’t know.
CALVIN: It just laid up and just like that those son’ bitches-just like that they come out.
CHARLIE: I know. You can’t believe it. You can’t make people believe it-
CALVIN: I paralyzed right then. I couldn’t move-
CHARLIE: They won’t believe it. They gonna believe it one of these days. Might be too late. I knew all along they was people from other worlds up there. I knew all along. I never thought it would happen to me.
CALVIN: You know yourself I don’t drink
CHARLIE: I know that, son. When I get to the house I’m gonna get me another drink, make me sleep. Look, what we sittin’ around for. I gotta go tell Blanche… what we waitin’ for?
CALVIN (panicky): I gotta go to the house. I’m gettin’ sick. I gotta get out of here.
Then Charlie got up and left the room, and Calvin was alone.
CALVIN: It’s hard to believe . . . Oh God, it’s awful… I know there’s a God up there… ”
Seeing that the police were skeptical of their story, Hickson and Parker insisted that they take lie detector tests to prove their honesty.
Hickson and Parker returned to work the day after the encounter (Friday, October 12). They did not initially discuss their purported UFO encounter, but coworkers noted that Parker seemed very anxious and preoccupied. Within hours, Sheriff Diamond telephoned the men at work, stating that news reporters were swarming in his office, seeking more information about the UFO story. An angry Hickson accused Diamond of breaking his confidentiality pledge, but Diamond insisted he had not done so, and that the case was too sensational to keep quiet.
Hickson’s foreman overheard Hickson’s side of the conversation, and asked what had occurred. Hickson related his story to the foreman and to shipyard owner Johnny Walker. After hearing the tale, Walker suggested that Hickson and Parker contact Joe Colingo, a locally prominent attorney (who was Walker’s brother-in-law and also represented the shipyard).
Colingo met the men, and, during their conversation, Hickson expressed fears about having been exposed to radiation. Colingo and detective Tom Huntley then took Parker and Hickson to a local hospital, which lacked the facilities for a radiation test. (Clark’s book does not make clear if Huntley is a police detective or a private detective.)
From the hospital, the men went to Keesler Air Force Base, where they were examined extensively by several doctors. Afterward, reported Huntley, Parker and Hickson were interviewed by the military intelligence chief of the base, with the “whole base command” observing the proceedings. (Clark, 448)
Colingo drew up a contract to represent Hickson and Parker. However, nothing came of this, and Hickson would later have nothing to do with Colingo, charging the lawyer with base financial motivations: Colingo, said Hickson, “just wanted to make a buck.” (Clark, 449)
Within days, Pascagoula was the center of an international news story, with reporters swarming the town. Professor James A. Harder (a U.C. Berkeley engineering professor and APRO member) and Dr. J. Allen Hynek (an astronomer formerly with Project Blue Book) both arrived and interviewed Parker and Hickson. Harder tried to hypnotize the men, but they were too anxious and distracted for the procedure to work—Parker especially so. Hynek withheld ultimate judgment on the case, but did announce that, in his judgment, Hickson and Parker were honest men who seemed genuinely distressed about what had occurred.
Colingo met the men, and, during their conversation, Hickson expressed fears about having been exposed to radiation. Colingo and detective Tom Huntley then took Parker and Hickson to a local hospital, which lacked the facilities for a radiation test. (Clark’s book does not make clear if Huntley is a police detective or a private detective.)
From the hospital, the men went to Keesler Air Force Base, where they were examined extensively by several doctors. Afterward, reported Huntley, Parker and Hickson were interviewed by the military intelligence chief of the base, with the “whole base command” observing the proceedings. (Clark, 448)
Colingo drew up a contract to represent Hickson and Parker. However, nothing came of this, and Hickson would later have nothing to do with Colingo, charging the lawyer with base financial motivations: Colingo, said Hickson, “just wanted to make a buck.” (Clark, 449)
Within days, Pascagoula was the center of an international news story, with reporters swarming the town. Professor James A. Harder (a U.C. Berkeley engineering professor and APRO member) and Dr. J. Allen Hynek (an astronomer formerly with Project Blue Book) both arrived and interviewed Parker and Hickson. Harder tried to hypnotize the men, but they were too anxious and distracted for the procedure to work—Parker especially so. Hynek withheld ultimate judgment on the case, but did announce that, in his judgment, Hickson and Parker were honest men who seemed genuinely distressed about what had occurred.
Tiring of the publicity, Hickson and Parker went to Jones County, Mississippi (about 150 miles north of Pascagoula), where both men hoped to find relief with family members. Parker was eventually hospitalized for what Clark describes as “an emotional breakdown.” (Clark, 449)
In an interview several years after the claimed UFO event, Hickson speculated that Parker fared worse after the encounter because he had never previously experienced a profoundly frightening ordeal. While Hickson described the UFO encounter as the most terrifying event in his life, he also noted that he had seen combat in the Korean War, and that he thus had some familiarity with a terrifying experience. The younger Parker, on the other hand, had never suffered through a terrifying encounter, let alone a bizarre confrontation with something that was not even supposed to exist.
On September 9, 2011, Charles Hickson died at age 80, but never backed off the alien abduction story despite ridicule.
In an interview several years after the claimed UFO event, Hickson speculated that Parker fared worse after the encounter because he had never previously experienced a profoundly frightening ordeal. While Hickson described the UFO encounter as the most terrifying event in his life, he also noted that he had seen combat in the Korean War, and that he thus had some familiarity with a terrifying experience. The younger Parker, on the other hand, had never suffered through a terrifying encounter, let alone a bizarre confrontation with something that was not even supposed to exist.
On September 9, 2011, Charles Hickson died at age 80, but never backed off the alien abduction story despite ridicule.
As noted above, both Parker and Hickson volunteered to take polygraph exams to prove their stories. In the end, only Hickson did so, and the examiner determined that Hickson believed the story about the UFO abduction.
Aviation journalist and UFO skeptic Philip J. Klass argued that there was reason to question the reliability of Hickson’s lie detector exam, writing :
Aviation journalist and UFO skeptic Philip J. Klass argued that there was reason to question the reliability of Hickson’s lie detector exam, writing :
” The polygraph test was given to Hickson by a young operator, just out of school, who had not completed his formal training, who had not been certified by his own school and who had not taken a state licensing examination. Furthermore, that the lawyer for Hickson and Parker – who also was acting as their “booking agent” – had turned down the chance to have his clients tested WITHOUT CHARGE by the very experienced Capt. Charles Wimberly, chief polygraph operator from the nearby Mobile Police Dept. Also, that the lawyer did not contact other experienced polygraph operators close to Pascagoula. Instead, the lawyer had imported from New Orleans – more than 100 miles away – the young, inexperienced, uncertified, unlicensed operator who, by a curious coincidence, worked for a friend of the lawyer! “
Subsequent investigation by Joe Esterhas of Rolling Stone uncovered some additional information, leading to increased skepticism about the abduction claim. The supposed UFO landing and abduction site was in full view of two 24-hour toll booths, and neither operator saw anything that night. Also, the site was in range of security cameras from nearby Ingalls Shipyard, but the cameras did not capture anything unusual that night.
Parker has avoided most public attention since the event. Hickson appeared on Dick Cavett’s talk show in January 1974, and speaks at occasional UFO conferences; he has co-written a book about the event with William Mendez titled UFO Contact at Pascagoula (1983, reprinted 1987).
In 2001, retired navy chief petty officer Mike Cataldo revealed that he observed an unusual craft at dusk on the same date. While travelling with crew mates Ted Peralta and Mack Hanna on U.S. Route 90 from Pascagoula to Ocean Springs, an object like a large tambourine with small flashing lights approached from the northwest and crossed the freeway, before hovering over the treeline and disappearing. As he approached his home in St Andrews, Ocean Springs, the craft made a second appearance at lower altitude.
In 2001, retired navy chief petty officer Mike Cataldo revealed that he observed an unusual craft at dusk on the same date. While travelling with crew mates Ted Peralta and Mack Hanna on U.S. Route 90 from Pascagoula to Ocean Springs, an object like a large tambourine with small flashing lights approached from the northwest and crossed the freeway, before hovering over the treeline and disappearing. As he approached his home in St Andrews, Ocean Springs, the craft made a second appearance at lower altitude.
10. 1975 The Abduction of Sergeant Charles L. Moody
Alamogorde, New Mexico would be the location of a UFO encounter involving Air Force Sergeant Charles L. Moody on August 13, 1975. Moody was in the desert observing a meteor shower at ab 1:15 A.M. when he saw a glowing, metallic, disk-shaped object falling toward the ground about 300 feet away.On August 13, 1975, Air Force Sergeant Charles L. Moody was in the desert of Alamogordo, New Mexico, observing a meteor shower. It was 1:15 AM when he saw a glowing, metallic, saucer-shaped object lowering to the ground approximately 300 feet away. Moody estimated the object’s length at about 50 feet, and its diameter at eighteen to twenty feet. The UFO began to wobble as it descended. Moody was extremely frightened as the object began to move towards him.
Moody tried to run from the object, but when he tried to start this car, the engine would not respond. He could now hear a high-pitched sound as the object came to a stop in mid-air about 70 feet away from him. He could make out a window in the UFO, and see shadows of a human-like form. The high-pitched sound came to a stop, and as it did, he could feel his body going numb. His last conscious memory would be of the UFO rising back up into the sky, and finally flying away. Moody’s description of the windows and humanoid forms are very similar to Barney’s description in the classic Betty and Barney Hill abduction.
As the UFO left, Moody was now able to start his car. Still trembling with fear, he sped away from the desert, finally arriving home. As he entered his house, he was shocked to see that it was now 3:00 AM. Somehow, he was missing about one and one-half hours. The next day, he began to have physical problems, starting with severe pain in his lower back. A rash would break out all over his body in the next few days. Taking his problems to a physician, he was told to try a type of self-hypnosis to recover the lost one and one-half hours.
It seems that the self-hypnosis was working. Within a couple of weeks, Moody began to recall bits and pieces of his desert encounter, and felt that he had a fairly good account of what had happened to him. He now believed that after his body became numb, he had seen two beings coming towards him. The creatures were about six feet tall, and wearing skin-tight black clothing. He had tried to fight them off, but was overcome with the numbness and went unconscious. He remembered waking inside of a craft on a table. He could not move his arms or legs. An alien creature stood by him.
This alien was much shorter than his two abductors. He also wore a silvery suit, instead of black. He had no hair on his head, like the other two creatures. His brow protruded outward, and he had round eyes, small ears and nose, and his lips were extremely thin. This “leader” as Moody saw him, began to communicate telepathically. Moody was asked if he would stop fighting his abduction, and cooperate. With Moody’s compliance, the alien used a rod-like device on his back which stopped the paralysis.
Soon, Moody was transported to a different part of the UFO, where he was shown the alien drive unit. This drive had a long rod, and three holes in it which were covered by glass. There was a crystal-like object with a rod on both ends. During his short tour of the alien ship, Moody was told that there was a larger mother-ship which was waiting above the Earth. The alien leader also told him that no future contact with earthlings would be made for twenty years. Also, Moody’s memory would be lost to him for several weeks after he was released. The alien then rendered him unconscious once again.
It is very difficult to make an assessment of the validity of Moody’s claims. Investigator Jim Lorenzen took exception to some of his claims. In two separate accounts, Moody gave the distance of the mother-ship from Earth as two different amounts, and he also claimed that the aliens were robust six-foot-tall creatures, but also called them “frail.”
On the other hand, Moody was examined by Charles McQuiston, inventor of the Psychological Stress Evaluator, which allegedly proves if a person is telling the truth. McQuiston determined that Moody was indeed being truthful about his encounter.
Soon, Moody was transported to a different part of the UFO, where he was shown the alien drive unit. This drive had a long rod, and three holes in it which were covered by glass. There was a crystal-like object with a rod on both ends. During his short tour of the alien ship, Moody was told that there was a larger mother-ship which was waiting above the Earth. The alien leader also told him that no future contact with earthlings would be made for twenty years. Also, Moody’s memory would be lost to him for several weeks after he was released. The alien then rendered him unconscious once again.
It is very difficult to make an assessment of the validity of Moody’s claims. Investigator Jim Lorenzen took exception to some of his claims. In two separate accounts, Moody gave the distance of the mother-ship from Earth as two different amounts, and he also claimed that the aliens were robust six-foot-tall creatures, but also called them “frail.”
On the other hand, Moody was examined by Charles McQuiston, inventor of the Psychological Stress Evaluator, which allegedly proves if a person is telling the truth. McQuiston determined that Moody was indeed being truthful about his encounter.
11. 1976 The Stanford, Kentucky Abductions
While America was still buzzing over the Travis Walton abduction, three women are abducted near Stanford, Kentucky. Heading for Hustonville on Highway 78, they suddenly see a “bright, red” object in the clear, night sky, turning a nice evening into a night of terror. Read about this in depth investigation here.Those who wish to study the phenomena of alien abduction, need to look no further than a three year period in the 1970’s. No fewer than four cases occurred. 1973-the Pascagoula, Mississippi abduction, 1975-the Travis Walton abduction, 1976-the Allagash Waterway abduction, and the abduction of three women from Kentucky in 1976. On January 6, three old friends-Mona Stafford, Louise Smith, and Elaine Thomas celebrated Mona’s birthday at a restaurant in Lancaster. Driving home in Louise’s Chevrolet on Highway 78, the three women see a bright, red object in the night sky.
As the women watched the object, it began to move closer to their Chevy. Smith had lost control of her car. The little Chevy was going 85 mph, much faster than she had ever driven before. Frightened, she cries out, “I can’t hold the car on the road.” Stafford, sitting in the front passenger seat, grabs the wheel to help, thinking that something is wrong with the steering wheel. She has no luck. The car continued to speed down the highway at 85 mph. The object, now more clearly seen, was a large, metallic, disc-shaped UFO with a dome atop.
A ring of red lights surrounded its midsection. All three women would later describe a yellow, blinking light on the object’s underside. The UFO paced the car, positioned over the driver’s side for a time, and then moved down the highway. As it left, a beam of blue-white light immersed the car’s interior. Suddenly, the little Chevy was being backed up into a pasture just off the highway, through an entry way with two stone walls on either side. They then were back on the road, and everything was as it was before. An hour and twenty minutes had elapsed, unbeknownst to the women at the time.
Needless to say, the three women were frightened to death. They also were suffering from burns on areas of exposed skin. As they finally arrived home, they could not decide what to do next. They called the police station, and retired for the evening. The next day, they called the Navy recruiting office. The Navy released some details of the case to the Lexington television station. After the station broadcast a synopsis of the encounter on the air, the story broke to the major new media. When word of what had occurred to the three women reached MUFON, investigator Jerry Black requested an interview with them.
The three women at first were against the interview. Gun shy because of the press releases, and television news of the event, they wanted it to just go away, not perpetuate it. But Black finally convinced them of his compassion for their recent encounter, and his experience in dealing with similar cases. He also offered the presence of a woman, Peggy Schnell to be present at the interview. Finally, the three agreed to the interview. They began with some details of the sighting of the UFO, and its appearance.
It was obvious to Black that the three women were suffering ill effects from their encounter. It was very painful for them to relive the events of that frightful night on the road. Though suffering, the women hoped that revealing their details might elevate some of their anxieties. Mrs. Thomas said, “We live in fear of what we don’t know. I’m worried about Lou and Mona. I think they’re ready for a breakdown.” Eventually, several other investigators and researchers would join the search for what really happened to the three women. Regressive hypnosis was a viable option.
The regressive hypnosis sessions revealed what the investigators feared-the three women had been abducted! They were taken aboard the unknown craft, and subjected to medical experimentation. These procedures included very personal, sometimes crude tests. The women thought they were tortuous. Though the women were not sexually violated, they were placed in embarrassing, humiliating positions.
There would also be corroborating evidence of the encounter. There were UFO sightings in Casey and Lincoln counties, and also an amazing report from a farmer who owned the property where the car was backed into. This report is a rare verified sighting of an actual abduction as it occurred. He stated that not far from his home, he saw a low-flying object shoot down a beam to the ground near an automobile. There can be no doubt that Mona Stafford, Louise Smith, and Elaine Thomas saw a UFO, and were taken aboard this craft for medical procedures against their will.
It was obvious to Black that the three women were suffering ill effects from their encounter. It was very painful for them to relive the events of that frightful night on the road. Though suffering, the women hoped that revealing their details might elevate some of their anxieties. Mrs. Thomas said, “We live in fear of what we don’t know. I’m worried about Lou and Mona. I think they’re ready for a breakdown.” Eventually, several other investigators and researchers would join the search for what really happened to the three women. Regressive hypnosis was a viable option.
The regressive hypnosis sessions revealed what the investigators feared-the three women had been abducted! They were taken aboard the unknown craft, and subjected to medical experimentation. These procedures included very personal, sometimes crude tests. The women thought they were tortuous. Though the women were not sexually violated, they were placed in embarrassing, humiliating positions.
There would also be corroborating evidence of the encounter. There were UFO sightings in Casey and Lincoln counties, and also an amazing report from a farmer who owned the property where the car was backed into. This report is a rare verified sighting of an actual abduction as it occurred. He stated that not far from his home, he saw a low-flying object shoot down a beam to the ground near an automobile. There can be no doubt that Mona Stafford, Louise Smith, and Elaine Thomas saw a UFO, and were taken aboard this craft for medical procedures against their will.
12. 1976 The Dechmont Forest Abduction
The Robert Taylor Incident, sometimes also referred to as the Livingston Incident or the Dechmont Woods Encounter is the name given an event which occurred on Dechmont Law (“law” means “hill” in the Scots language) near Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland in 1979, in which local forester Robert “Bob” Taylor reported encountering an extraterrestrial spacecraft. It is notable as being the first reported UFO case to have been officially investigated by the Scottish Lothian and Borders Police. As of 2007, it was the only recorded incident in which a UFO sighting has been the subject of a criminal investigation in the United Kingdom.The site where Taylor’s encounter is said to have occurred has since become a tourist destination popular with UFO enthusiasts.
On November 9, 1979, approximately between 10:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Taylor, who was at the time working for the Livingston Development Corporation, parked his pickup truck at the side of a road just off the M8 motorway with the intention of examining the progress of some saplings in the forest. Being unable to access the forest by truck, Taylor and his dog made their way into the forest on foot along one of the forest paths that lead up the side of Dechmont Law.
Upon entering a clearing approximately 500 metres away from his truck, Taylor saw what he described as a large, circular object, spheroid in shape and approximately twenty feet (six metres) in diameter hovering above the forest floor. The object had a narrow rim running along its circumference with stems topped with propellers and the surface of the object seemed to be constructed from a dark metallic material which appeared transparent in places. Taylor later described the surface of the object having rough texture similar to that of sandpaper and suggested that by having transparent areas on its surface, the object was attempting to camouflage itself with its surroundings.
Taylor began to approach the object and upon doing so two smaller spheres three feet in diameter, which looked to be made from the same material, appeared to drop from underneath the larger sphere and began to roll towards him. Taylor described the smaller spheres as having appendages, making them similar to sea mines in appearance. As the small objects moved towards him, Taylor described them as making a “plopping” noise as the appendages made contact with the ground. The small spheres maneuvered around Taylor and by using their appendages, attached themselves to each side of his trousers, just underneath the pockets. Taylor said at this point, he heard a hissing noise coming from the small objects and he began to choke due to a strong acrid smell which he believes was being secreted by them. He described this smell as “burning automobile brake linings” which was also described as an “acrid smell” which caused him to cough. By now, Taylor was aware he was being dragged by the smaller spheres along the ground towards the larger object. He eventually fell forwards onto his face and lost consciousness.
Taylor later regained consciousness and upon doing so discovered the object had disappeared. Taylor then discovered he had trouble attempting to speak and could not get to his feet. He then crawled 100 metres along the ground and managed to stagger the rest of the distance back to where he had parked his truck. On reaching the truck he attempted to call for help on the truck’s two way radio, but struggled due to his loss of voice. Taylor then attempted to get back home in the truck, but accidentally ditched it in soft earth while trying to drive in his condition. Due to his vehicle being stuck, Taylor walked the rest of the way back home. Other sources state the truck did not start and Taylor had to walk home from its parked location.
Upon entering a clearing approximately 500 metres away from his truck, Taylor saw what he described as a large, circular object, spheroid in shape and approximately twenty feet (six metres) in diameter hovering above the forest floor. The object had a narrow rim running along its circumference with stems topped with propellers and the surface of the object seemed to be constructed from a dark metallic material which appeared transparent in places. Taylor later described the surface of the object having rough texture similar to that of sandpaper and suggested that by having transparent areas on its surface, the object was attempting to camouflage itself with its surroundings.
Taylor began to approach the object and upon doing so two smaller spheres three feet in diameter, which looked to be made from the same material, appeared to drop from underneath the larger sphere and began to roll towards him. Taylor described the smaller spheres as having appendages, making them similar to sea mines in appearance. As the small objects moved towards him, Taylor described them as making a “plopping” noise as the appendages made contact with the ground. The small spheres maneuvered around Taylor and by using their appendages, attached themselves to each side of his trousers, just underneath the pockets. Taylor said at this point, he heard a hissing noise coming from the small objects and he began to choke due to a strong acrid smell which he believes was being secreted by them. He described this smell as “burning automobile brake linings” which was also described as an “acrid smell” which caused him to cough. By now, Taylor was aware he was being dragged by the smaller spheres along the ground towards the larger object. He eventually fell forwards onto his face and lost consciousness.
Taylor later regained consciousness and upon doing so discovered the object had disappeared. Taylor then discovered he had trouble attempting to speak and could not get to his feet. He then crawled 100 metres along the ground and managed to stagger the rest of the distance back to where he had parked his truck. On reaching the truck he attempted to call for help on the truck’s two way radio, but struggled due to his loss of voice. Taylor then attempted to get back home in the truck, but accidentally ditched it in soft earth while trying to drive in his condition. Due to his vehicle being stuck, Taylor walked the rest of the way back home. Other sources state the truck did not start and Taylor had to walk home from its parked location.
Taylor was always cited as being a man of good character, honest and reliable. He never asked for payment on reciting his version of events and up until his death at the age of 89 in 2007, still defended what he had seen on Dechmont Law. Today, a plaque (which was later stolen) and a small statuette are located in the clearing where Taylor stated he saw the object.
Upon reaching home at 11:30 a.m., Mary Taylor, Taylor’s wife, expressed concern at his state. She assumed he had been attacked and called the police. Taylor intervened and requested she contact Malcolm Drummond, a supervisor at Livingston Development Corporation. While awaiting Drummond’s arrival, Taylor complained of a headache and kept saying that he had been “gassed”. Drummond and Taylor both attended the scene of the incident a short while later the same day and discovered strange indentations in the forest floor which Taylor stated had not been there earlier that morning. One set were described as looking like rungs in ladder, the other indentations which numbered forty in total were suspected to be the tracks left by the smaller objects. No scorch marks were seen on the forest floor. Staff of the Livingston Development Corporation later took photographs of the scene.
Taylor was seen by a doctor who found only grazing to his chin and thighs. Due to his injuries the police recorded the matter as a common assault. Taylor’s wife noticed tears in his trousers where Taylor claimed the small objects had attached themselves to him. The police later seized the trousers to be forensically examined. The forensic examination determined the tears in the trousers suggested the implements that had pierced the material, attempted to lift Taylor in an upwards fashion.
Taylor was seen by a doctor who found only grazing to his chin and thighs. Due to his injuries the police recorded the matter as a common assault. Taylor’s wife noticed tears in his trousers where Taylor claimed the small objects had attached themselves to him. The police later seized the trousers to be forensically examined. The forensic examination determined the tears in the trousers suggested the implements that had pierced the material, attempted to lift Taylor in an upwards fashion.
It has been suggested by investigative science writer Steuart Campbell that Taylor actually witnessed a mirage of Venus, which induced an epileptic fit causing him to hallucinate the whole encounter. According to Robert Taylor, he had never experienced epilepsy before or after the event.
The indentations have been described as being that of heavy construction equipment. CID Detective Sergeant Ian Wark investigating the case checked all the forestry equipment used in the area; none of it had tracks that matched and there were no construction vehicles in the vicinity.
Earlier during his investigation of the Livingston incident Steuart Campbell suspected that Robert Taylor had observed an exotic form of natural phenomena termed “black ball lightning”. This is an apparent variation of conventional ball lightning that somehow acquires a dark hue, patchy discolouration and/or an opaque aspect. However, while seemingly consistent with the sightings’ short duration and providing a potential explanation for the “sea mines”, their behaviour and possibly some of the physiological effects, the theory has many notable drawbacks. To begin with, the physical traces had no associated scorching or burning of the type one would expect of such an effect. Other aspects of the “sea mine” forms suggest they were physical objects capable of grasping Taylor, gripping and tearing his trousers and seemingly dragging him a short distance towards the object. It is equally of note that the witness had close contact with these forms without experiencing sensations of heat, burning or an electrical discharge of any kind, his dog also seemingly being unharmed. Finally (perhaps the most significant factor of all) the prevalent meteorological conditions were not notably conducive with the formation of ball lightning.
The indentations have been described as being that of heavy construction equipment. CID Detective Sergeant Ian Wark investigating the case checked all the forestry equipment used in the area; none of it had tracks that matched and there were no construction vehicles in the vicinity.
Earlier during his investigation of the Livingston incident Steuart Campbell suspected that Robert Taylor had observed an exotic form of natural phenomena termed “black ball lightning”. This is an apparent variation of conventional ball lightning that somehow acquires a dark hue, patchy discolouration and/or an opaque aspect. However, while seemingly consistent with the sightings’ short duration and providing a potential explanation for the “sea mines”, their behaviour and possibly some of the physiological effects, the theory has many notable drawbacks. To begin with, the physical traces had no associated scorching or burning of the type one would expect of such an effect. Other aspects of the “sea mine” forms suggest they were physical objects capable of grasping Taylor, gripping and tearing his trousers and seemingly dragging him a short distance towards the object. It is equally of note that the witness had close contact with these forms without experiencing sensations of heat, burning or an electrical discharge of any kind, his dog also seemingly being unharmed. Finally (perhaps the most significant factor of all) the prevalent meteorological conditions were not notably conducive with the formation of ball lightning.
A theory by author David Slater, proposes that Taylor’s experience may have been a belladonna induced hallucination that triggered memories of a recently aired Doctor Who episode in which a spaceship of similar appearance featured. It suggests the ground markings likely have a prosaic explanation such as post holes left over from a den that once occupied the site. The illustrated on-line article, Spaceships, Spheres and the Devil’s Herb, is admittedly speculative.
13. 1985 The Whitley Strieber Abduction
Well known writer Whitley Strieber would be abducted by aliens while in his isolated cabin in upstate New York over the Christmas season of 1985. He encountered 4 types of alien beings, which subjected him to medical tests.It is an accepted fact in the UFO community that very few scientists will entertain the idea that UFOs are real. To take this one step further, it is even rarer that an educated, professional person would delve into the dark, puzzling world of alien abductions. Author Whitley Strieber is one of those rare individuals. His book, “Communion,” is a must read for anyone interested in the subject. Strieber is an abductee himself, and his abduction is one of the most bizarre on record.
Strieber was already a well-known author when he was vacationing with his wife and son over the Christmas holidays in 1985. His strange abduction would take place in an isolated cabin in the northern part of New York state. The lonely setting of the cabin caused him to have concerns for this family’s safety, and he had only recently had a cutting edge security system installed.
Strieber had activated his system at about 11:00 PM on December 26, and his family began to retire for the evening. A few hours later, he heard a strange sound, which woke him from sleep. Thinking that he might have a burglar who had set off the alarm system, he went to check it out. As he did, he was shocked to see a creature standing in his bedroom.
The next thing that Strieber knew, he was sitting in the woods that encircled his cabin. He was at a loss to explain what had happened, and how he had gotten from the bedroom to the woods. His memories were lost, and he eventually sought the help of Dr. Donald F. Klein. Klein would perform regressive hypnosis on Strieber in an attempt to recover the lost time. The sessions would be helpful, and enable him to recover many of the details of what had really happened on the night of December, 26, 1985.
Strieber recalled being floated from his bedroom to a UFO, which was waiting somewhere above the thick woods. He would see several different types of alien beings on the ship: one a little robot type, another was a short, stocky humanoid, the third type was very thin and frail with haunting black, slanted eyes, and the last had smaller, button-type eyes. He would undergo a number of medical procedures on the UFO.
One of the harrowing procedures was the insertion of a long needle directly into his brain. The aliens also inserted a tool into his rectum, and took a blood sample from his finger. Because many of the details of his alleged abduction were so bizarre, Dr. Klein diagnosed Strieber as having “temporal lobe epilepsy.” One of the most common effects of the condition is the onset of hallucinations.
The features of seizures beginning in the temporal lobe can be extremely varied, but certain patterns are common. There may be a mixture of different feelings, emotions, thoughts, and experiences, which may be familiar or completely foreign. In some cases, a series of old memories resurfaces.
In others, the person may feel as if everything—including home and family—appears strange. Hallucinations of voices, music, people, smells, or tastes may occur. These features are called “auras” or “warnings.” They may last for just a few seconds, or may continue as long as a minute or two.
It is interesting to note that Strieber would not accept Dr. Klein’s diagnosis, and believed that all of the events he recalled in regressive hypnosis really happened. He would form a support group for abductees, and writes extensively on the subject. He maintains the Unknown Country web site.
The features of seizures beginning in the temporal lobe can be extremely varied, but certain patterns are common. There may be a mixture of different feelings, emotions, thoughts, and experiences, which may be familiar or completely foreign. In some cases, a series of old memories resurfaces.
In others, the person may feel as if everything—including home and family—appears strange. Hallucinations of voices, music, people, smells, or tastes may occur. These features are called “auras” or “warnings.” They may last for just a few seconds, or may continue as long as a minute or two.
It is interesting to note that Strieber would not accept Dr. Klein’s diagnosis, and believed that all of the events he recalled in regressive hypnosis really happened. He would form a support group for abductees, and writes extensively on the subject. He maintains the Unknown Country web site.
14. 1987 The Ilkley Moor Alien
A policeman named Philip Spencer claims to have taken a picture of an alien being. If this is true, it is one of only a few in existence. The scary Ilkley Moor in Yorkshire, England would hold the secret of the strange creature encountered one early morning. Godfrey was frightened, but ran after the creature, taking one photograph. See it here. Through hypnosis, he would recall an odd flying object, and an alien abduction.An extremely compelling account of alien abduction that took place in 1987 in the Ilkey Moor, Yorkshire, U.K. is a unique case which may include one of the very few photographs taken of a live alien being. The main character and only witness of a UFO and alien being is one Philip Spencer, a retired policeman. He claims to have been taken aboard an unidentifed flying object, and snap one photograph of an unknown being.
Ilkley Moor is very much like you would expect: a place of mystery and intrigue, and full of legends. There have been a number of reports of UFOs over the area, along with odd lights that seem to come and go. The lights, shining through the dense fog, can play tricks on the mind. There are two places where planes come and go-Menwith Hill Military Base, and Leeds Bradford Airport. Some of the strange sightings in the moor may be attributed to plane lights, but they will not explain what happened to Philip Spencer.
Spencer had worked as a policemen for four years in another location, but to fulfill his wife’s wishes to be closer to her family, he had moved the family to Yorkshire. Spencer was taking a walk across the moor one December morning to his father-in-law’s house, and was hoping to take some photographs of the strange lights on the moor. He had loaded his camera with ASA rated film to get the best quality pictures he could in the less than perfect lighting conditions. He could not imagine what was to soon befall him.
Spencer also brought along a compass to help find his way in the early morning hours before sun up. He was attempting to get some good angles for his photographs, when he saw a strange-looking being through the fog. The small being was on the slopes of the moor. Spencer took aim and photographed the small creature. He felt that the being was attempting to wave him away from the area. Whatever the being was, it ran away.
Spencer wanted to know more about what this strange being was, and what it wanted. He took off trying to catch up to it. Later, he would state that he must have just acted on impulse, as he had no fear of the unknown entity at the time. As he ran toward the being, he was stunned to see an unknown flying craft with a dome on top rising up from the moor grounds. It soon disappeared into the sky. He was not quick enough to photograph the UFO.
* The photograph that Spencer took of the creature on the moor was very blurry, but it is still quite evident that there is some type of being present. The being very much resembles the so-called “grays” of UFO legend. Spencer waited for a time to see if the UFO or the alien creature might return, but all was quiet across the moor. He began to make his way to the nearest village, to get his photograph developed, and as he did, he noticed that his compass was pointing south instead of north. Arriving at the village, he noticed that his watch was an hour behind.
* The photograph that Spencer took was first analyzed by a wildlife expert. He concluded that whatever was in the photograph was not any known animal. There was no way to ascertain if the subject of the photograph was a living creature or not just by looking at the picture. A recreation of the setting of the photograph was undertaken, and it was estimated that the creature was about four feet tall. An analysis of the photograph was done by Kodak laboratories in Hemel, Hempstead. They concluded that the object was indeed part of the original shot, and not added later.
The photograph was then shipped to America to be enhanced by computer, and analyzed. Dr. Bruce Maccabee, optical physicist with the United States Navy gave his expert conclusion:
” I had great hopes that this case would prove definitive. Sadly circumstances prevent it from being so.”
Spencer made no money from his photograph, and relinquished all rights to the photograph to UFO investigators.
There have been numerous theories and much speculation about the Ilkley Moor photograph. Because of the poor lighting conditions present on the moor at the time the picture was taken, it was not possible to get a complete and definite conclusion. But with Spencer being a well respected man, and not given to making up stories, it can be said with certainty that Spencer lost about an hour in the moor, saw an unknown flying object of some type, and took a photograph of some unknown creature on December 1, 1987.
15. 1988 Father & Son Abducted
John Salter Jr. and his son are abducted by benevolent aliens. One of the few cases in which alien abduction turned out to be a good thing. Medical experimentation has a happy ending, with improved health for both abductees.In most cases, a UFO abduction is a harrowing, humiliating experience… one that the participant would love to forget. In some cases, however, the abduction process becomes a rewarding one. Such was the case of John Salter Jr. and his son John III. John Jr. a faculty member of the University of North Dakota, was scheduled for a speaking tour of the southern states.
It was in March 1988 when he, accompanied by his son, drove his pickup truck down Route 61 heading for his first engagement. For some unknown reason, John drove his truck off of his scheduled route, and one hour later, the two found themselves traveling in the opposite direction. They decided to take a rest for the night, and continue their trip the next morning.
The two men were at a loss to understand what had happened the evening before, though they discussed it at length as they continued down their original mapped-out drive. Suddenly the two were shocked to see a shining UFO with a silvery “energy field.” The object had just “appeared” over the road they were on. John Jr. and his son both had a “familiar” feeling about what they were seeing, and they began to have flashbacks, refreshing their minds of the events of the previous day.
They looked at each other, both now aware that the day before they had been stopped dead in their tracks by the object they were now enthralled with. Both men had stepped out of the vehicle as a group of aliens came toward their pickup truck. At first John Jr. thought he was seeing a group of children, until he saw a taller being, which seemed half-human, half-alien.
The group of strange beings led the two men away in the direction of the object. The two men, though frightened in one way, felt that the alien beings would not hurt them. John Jr. would later relate that he felt a sense of being protected by the strange entities. He had taken a stumble while they were making their way to the ship, but a type of “energy” kept him from falling and being hurt.
John Jr. and his son were both led into a room with curved walls, where they were placed in chairs which resembled the fold-back type used by dentists. Both men would later recall a feeling of being “immobilized” while they laid back in the chairs, and were examined. John Jr.’s examination began with an implant being inserted into his nostril, remarkably though, without pain.
Next an instrument of some kind was injected into the side of his neck, and another one at the top of his chest. He felt the three areas chosen by the beings had a medical significance: the placement related to three glands; the pituitary, the thyroid, and the thymus. John had enough medical knowledge to know the three glands regulated human growth, metabolism, and immunity.
After the completion of the tests, John Jr. felt a sense of “bonding” with the strange, alien beings. He also sensed a message which stated they would meet again. These strange circumstances would take even a more bizarre turn after John and his son had returned home. John Jr. noticed a gradual improvement in his overall health. His fingernails and hair grew faster and thicker, and a scar on his forehead began to fade, and eventually almost disappeared.
John Jr. and his son were both led into a room with curved walls, where they were placed in chairs which resembled the fold-back type used by dentists. Both men would later recall a feeling of being “immobilized” while they laid back in the chairs, and were examined. John Jr.’s examination began with an implant being inserted into his nostril, remarkably though, without pain.
Next an instrument of some kind was injected into the side of his neck, and another one at the top of his chest. He felt the three areas chosen by the beings had a medical significance: the placement related to three glands; the pituitary, the thyroid, and the thymus. John had enough medical knowledge to know the three glands regulated human growth, metabolism, and immunity.
After the completion of the tests, John Jr. felt a sense of “bonding” with the strange, alien beings. He also sensed a message which stated they would meet again. These strange circumstances would take even a more bizarre turn after John and his son had returned home. John Jr. noticed a gradual improvement in his overall health. His fingernails and hair grew faster and thicker, and a scar on his forehead began to fade, and eventually almost disappeared.
16. 1989 Linda Cortile-Napolitano Abduction
An extremely compelling case of alien abduction is that of Linda Napolitano. Napolitano has claimed that she was abducted by the so-called “greys,” who floated her from a closed bedroom window into a hovering UFO. As time went by, several different eye witnesses came forward to substantiate her claims… Several bystanders, including a well known politician, actually see the incident.One of the landmark cases of UFO abduction occurred on November 30, 1989, in Manhattan, N.Y. The case centers around one Linda Napolitano, who claims to have been abducted from her closed apartment window into a waiting UFO by the “grays,” and subjected to medical procedures. The case became well-known through the efforts of researcher Budd Hopkins. The events began at 3:00 AM.
After the experience, Linda had almost no memory of what had occurred. She would occasionally recall a brief moment of what had happened, but she could recall actually being taken, and even the room she was examined in, but nothing more. The case was pieced together by the means of regressive hypnosis, witness statements, and the actual passing of time, as her mind began to heal itself.
It would be a year after the actual abduction before Hopkins began receiving mail from two men, who claimed to have seen the abduction. At first, Hopkins was suspect of their testimony, but in time their reports would help build the case into one of the most well-documented alien abductions in Ufology. Without any contact with Napolitano, their report agreed in all aspects with Linda’s memories.
Eventually, the two men would be identified as bodyguards of senior United Nations statesman, Javier Perez de Cuellar, who was visiting Manhattan at the time of the abduction. The bodyguards claimed that Cuellar was “visibly shaken” as he watched the abduction. The three men claimed that they saw a woman being floated through the air, along with three small beings, into a large flying craft.
Linda, who was forty-one years old at the time, described part of her ordeal:
Linda, who was forty-one years old at the time, described part of her ordeal:
” I’m standing up on nothing. And they take me out all the way up, way above the building. Ooh, I hope I don’t fall. The UFO opens up almost like a clam and then I’m inside. I see benches similar to regular benches. And they’re bringing me down a hallway. Doors open like sliding doors. Inside are all these lights and buttons and a big long table.”
There would eventually be more witnesses come forward with their accounts of what they had seen. Hopkins kept the details of the eyewitness testimony private until he felt the case was complete enough to release publicly. One of the most striking accounts came from Janet Kimball, who was a retired telephone operator. She had seen the abduction also, but thought she was watching a movie scene being filmed.
It would be some time before Hopkins discovered the name of the United Nations statesman. When he did, he knew that if he could get a man of such distinction to come forward with his testimony, it would be the smoking gun of alien abduction, and put Ufology into the hands of the scientific community at last. Hopkins’ wish would not come true. Although it has been said that Cuellar met privately with Hopkins, he would not go public.
Cuellar did aid Hopkins in verifying details of the case through correspondence, but explained to Hopkins why he could not go public with his testimony. This would always leave a gap in the investigation, although there were other witnesses, and Linda’s own account of her terrible ordeal. Despite some ups and downs, Hopkins probably did his finest work in bringing together the story of the abduction of Linda Napolitano.
It would be some time before Hopkins discovered the name of the United Nations statesman. When he did, he knew that if he could get a man of such distinction to come forward with his testimony, it would be the smoking gun of alien abduction, and put Ufology into the hands of the scientific community at last. Hopkins’ wish would not come true. Although it has been said that Cuellar met privately with Hopkins, he would not go public.
Cuellar did aid Hopkins in verifying details of the case through correspondence, but explained to Hopkins why he could not go public with his testimony. This would always leave a gap in the investigation, although there were other witnesses, and Linda’s own account of her terrible ordeal. Despite some ups and downs, Hopkins probably did his finest work in bringing together the story of the abduction of Linda Napolitano.
17. 1993 The Kelly Cahill Abduction
In August 1993, 27-year-old Kelly Cahill, her husband, and three children were driving home after a visit to a friend’s house. Their routine journey would soon become a harrowing trip into an unknown world of strange beings that occupied space but were void of color as we know it. The Dandenong foothills, near Victoria, Australia would be forever linked to one of the strangest creatures in Ufological archives.In August 1993, 27-year-old Kelly Cahill, her husband and three children were driving home after a visit to a friend’s house. Their routine journey would soon become a harrowing trip into an unknown world of strange beings that occupied space but were void of color as we know it. The Dandenong foothills, near Belgrave, Victoria, Australia would have its location forever linked to one of the most unusual sightings of a strange creature in Ufology archives.
After midnight, the Cahills were on their journey home when they first noticed the lights of a rounded craft with windows around it. It silently hovered above the road. Different colored lights were clearly visible on the bottom of the object. The UFO was so close to the ground that Kelly thought she could see people through the window openings. As she began screaming to her husband what she was seeing, the craft zoomed off to their left, disappearing as quickly as it had made itself known.
Continuing their drive home with a renewed interest in the sky, they suddenly came upon a light so bright they were practically blinded. Shading her eyes from the intense light with her hands over her eyes, Kelly begged of her husband, “What are you going to do?” Her husband, now frightened to death by the glowing presence before them, replied, “I am going to keep on driving.” Within what seemed only a second or two, Kelly was now very relaxed, suddenly calmed by the absence of the UFO.
The first words out of Kelly’s mouth were, “What happened, did I blackout?” Her husband said nothing, as he had no answer to give his wife. He cautiously drove his family home. Upon their safe arrival Kelly could smell a foul odor, like vomit, and she suddenly felt as though something was missing from their drive home. Something was missing… an hour or so of time had vanished from her and her family’s life.
That night as Kelly undressed for bed, she noticed a strange triangular mark on her navel-a mark she had never seen before. It must have been created early this every night. But how? And why? And most importantly, by whom? Kelly suffered from general malaise for the next two weeks, and was taken to the hospital on two occasions, one for severe stomach pain, and another for a uterine infection.
Kelly would recall the object they had seen in a slightly different place than she first remembered. It was hovering in a gully, and the UFO was big. She estimated it at 150 feet in diameter. She could also recall that when the object was first spotted, her husband had stopped the car, and both her and her husband had gotten out of the vehicle, and walked in the direction of the massive craft.
To their surprise, they noticed another car stopped on the side of the road. As they walked toward the craft, they saw a creature unlike either of them had ever seen before. It was black, not a black color but black as if all matter was removed where its presence was. Kelly would later describe it as “not having a soul.” Kelly’s words for the alien were “void of color.” The black alien entity was taller than an average man, about 7 feet tall, according to Kelly.
After being mesmerized by the sight of the being, she saw more of them. “Heaps of them” is how Kelly described them as she stared into the open field. The aliens were out there in the field, beneath the immense flying craft. The beings seemed to congregate in small groups, and one group glided toward Kelly and her husband, covering a hundred yards in a mere few seconds. Another group was approaching the other car which sat motionless near the hovering craft.
That night as Kelly undressed for bed, she noticed a strange triangular mark on her navel-a mark she had never seen before. It must have been created early this every night. But how? And why? And most importantly, by whom? Kelly suffered from general malaise for the next two weeks, and was taken to the hospital on two occasions, one for severe stomach pain, and another for a uterine infection.
Kelly would recall the object they had seen in a slightly different place than she first remembered. It was hovering in a gully, and the UFO was big. She estimated it at 150 feet in diameter. She could also recall that when the object was first spotted, her husband had stopped the car, and both her and her husband had gotten out of the vehicle, and walked in the direction of the massive craft.
To their surprise, they noticed another car stopped on the side of the road. As they walked toward the craft, they saw a creature unlike either of them had ever seen before. It was black, not a black color but black as if all matter was removed where its presence was. Kelly would later describe it as “not having a soul.” Kelly’s words for the alien were “void of color.” The black alien entity was taller than an average man, about 7 feet tall, according to Kelly.
After being mesmerized by the sight of the being, she saw more of them. “Heaps of them” is how Kelly described them as she stared into the open field. The aliens were out there in the field, beneath the immense flying craft. The beings seemed to congregate in small groups, and one group glided toward Kelly and her husband, covering a hundred yards in a mere few seconds. Another group was approaching the other car which sat motionless near the hovering craft.
Her great fear and dread would cause her to scream at the alien-looking entities to leave them alone. She remembered going unconscious, and then… she was back in their car. As strange as this encounter seems, it was not without corroboration. The occupants in the other car would come forward and tell almost an exact story, a story of abduction, mind control, and embarrassing medical procedures.
This particular case is the only one to my knowledge to describe such a being, although there are some very strange aliens described in various accounts. We have no reason to discount the Cahill account, and it remains one of the best cases of alien abduction on record.
This particular case is the only one to my knowledge to describe such a being, although there are some very strange aliens described in various accounts. We have no reason to discount the Cahill account, and it remains one of the best cases of alien abduction on record.
18. 1997 Abduction in Wales
One of the weirdest cases reported to the Welsh Federation of Independent Ufologists is the multiple sighting of UFOs on the same night – except one family got too close for comfort and were apparently abducted. The strange and disturbing events began to unfold when for several nights an elderly man living in Little Orme, Conwy, was troubled by what he called “frightening” beams of light over the Great Orme.A well researched case of alien abduction comes from Wales, and well-known researcher Margaret Fry. The case involves missing time and lost memories, a typical scenario for abduction. Multiple sightings of UFOs over the Great Orme, a legendary and mysterious mountainous region in North Wales, preceded the events of November 10, 1997 by several days. One family would have their entire lives changed within a short period of time by encountering a strange UFO.
The family was motoring on the Bodfair-Landemog highway, when without a warning, their car was overwhelmed by a purple flying object which seemed to attach itself to their car. This brief moment of terror would be followed by another in which the UFO was gone. They were again driving their car down the road, but now they were trying to understand what had happened. The had not a clue.
” But they could not account for considerable hours of time lost,” said Fry.
“The male was having trouble afterwards with a top molar tooth and he had to go to the dentist’s… and a black unknown object fell out while he was at the dentist’s-but he had no fillings,” she said.
After the trip to the dentist’s office, the husband made a report of the family’s strange encounter on the highway to local authorities. Shortly thereafter, he was visited on two separate occasions by plain-clothed men identifying themselves as Air Force personnel. He was warned to never talk about his family’s incident. The men looked like the legendary American “men in black.”
The family, wanting to discuss their incident with someone, told only a friend, who in turn, related their story to Margaret Fry. Fry contacted the family, but per their request, kept the names of the family members from the press. The family would get some satisfaction when another encounter on the same night was reported.
A business man from the same general area would come forward with his own story, similar to the family’s. On the very same road, on the same night, he saw a UFO which he described as enormous, shaped like a child’s spinning top, and the size of a football field. He made drawings of what the craft looked like. The UFO was also reported as hovering over nearby buildings near the highway. The craft was described as being large enough to be a mother-ship.
The report of an alien abduction is based solely on the missing time element as related by the family. The case could be weightier if more information was provided, although there is no reason to dismiss the testimony. There is no information on regressive hypnosis, or any follow-up to the case at this time. There can be no doubt that UFOs were seen over the area during the reported incident.
The family, wanting to discuss their incident with someone, told only a friend, who in turn, related their story to Margaret Fry. Fry contacted the family, but per their request, kept the names of the family members from the press. The family would get some satisfaction when another encounter on the same night was reported.
A business man from the same general area would come forward with his own story, similar to the family’s. On the very same road, on the same night, he saw a UFO which he described as enormous, shaped like a child’s spinning top, and the size of a football field. He made drawings of what the craft looked like. The UFO was also reported as hovering over nearby buildings near the highway. The craft was described as being large enough to be a mother-ship.
The report of an alien abduction is based solely on the missing time element as related by the family. The case could be weightier if more information was provided, although there is no reason to dismiss the testimony. There is no information on regressive hypnosis, or any follow-up to the case at this time. There can be no doubt that UFOs were seen over the area during the reported incident.
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