NOTE TO READERS : STIGMATA and CRUX , heretofore separate publications, are
being combined in this one issue for this year only. In 1987, each will
again be published separately (see additional note on back page).
SUBSCRIPTIONS: STIGMATA #22 (1985): $3.00. CRUX #1 (1985); $5.00. CRUX #2,
incorporating STIGMATA #23 (1986): $4,00. Payment must be in U.S.cash, Ca�
nadian cash, U.S, money orders or checks drawn on U.S, banks. Make checks
or money orders payable to Thomas R. Adams.
NOTE TO FOREIGN SUBSCRIBERS: For all countries outside the U.S., Canada &
Mexico, add $2.00 (U.S.) to the cost of each issue.
BACK ISSUES : For info on availability of back issues, send SASE to:
CRUX - c/o Thomas R. Adams - F.O. Box 1094 - Paris, Texas 75460 USA
caixnotes
The "theme 11 for this issue of CRUX, mentioned in CRUX #1 , has been held o-
ver for the next issue,*.Re: Grant Callison's flying critter report
on p, 12- for another account of a "winged wonder"(over Falls City,Nebras�
ka), see the first issue of a new & welcomed publication: JOURNAL OF THE
FORTEAN RESEARCH CENTER (P.O.Box 94627;Lincoln,NE 68509)..new books
to watch for:(I) A startling account of the personal UFO-related experien�
ces of a best-selling novelist, (2) EXTRA-TERRESTRIALS AMONG US by George
Andrews ($11.45 from Llewellyn PublicationsfP.O.Box 64383-LF010; St. Paul,
MN 55164), (3) LE GRANDE CARNAGE by French researcher Michel Granger, the
French view of the mutilation situation(see also p, 27,this issue).
Late news re: Loren Coleman's article beginning on p.7,and our commentary
on p* 10: Several major Texas newspapers have published in-depth retrospec�
tives on the life & misdeeds of Charles Whitman,these articles appearing
in mid-summer 1986,20 years later. Since we were responsible for Colemari* s
assimilation of "Samuel"*s tale, we must hasten to report that there is no
evidence whatsoever that Whitman ever spent any time in New Orleans.
More on the document discussed on pp.3-4: Another military source informs
us that "ORCON" means ORiginator CONtrolled; i,e ., that the document is not
to be disseminated without permission or direction from the agency origin�
ating the message..Next time, we�ll discuss if and why we should all
plan to meet at Capulin Mountain Nat.Mon.,New Mexico, on March 12, 1992.
423
Lite UFOlogy
PERUVIAN UFO/MILITARY RUN-IN
In response to his Freedom of Information Act request for information on
UFOs, Ray W. Boeche of the Fortean Research Center in Lincoln, Nebraska,
received a selection of documents from the Defense Intelligence Agency in
late 1985* A number of foreign reports were included, as well as several
references to Project Moon Dust, which other sources have described as the
retrieval of fallen spacecraft or space debris of unknown origin (some sug�
gest that UFOs easily fall within the purview of this project). One of the
documents Boeche received is identified as from the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Message Center and is concerned with events in Peru in May 1980. The sum-
mary of the event is as follows:
Source reported that a UFO was spotted on two different occasions near
Peruvian Air Force <FAP) base in southern Peru. The FAP tried to intercept
and destry the UFO, but without success.
The document then provides details:
Source told RD about the spotting of an unidentified flying object in the
vicinity of Mariano Melgar Air Base, la Joya, Peru.Source stated
that the vehicle was spotted on two different occasions. The first wes
during the morning hours of 9 May 80, and the second during the early
evening hours of 10 May 80.
Source stated that on 9 May, while a group of FAP officers were in forma�
tion at Mariano Melgar, they spotted a UFO that was round in shape, hov�
ering near the airfield. The air commander scrambled an SU-22 aircraft to
make an intercept. The pilot, according to a third party, intercepted the
vehicle and fired upon it at very close range without causing any apparent
damage. The pilot tried to make a second pass on the vehicle, but the UFO
out-ran the SU-22*
The second sighting was during hours of darkness. The vehicle was lighted.
Again an SU-22 was scrambled, but the vehicle out-ran the aircraft.
"AQUARIAN 11 REVELATIONS?
For several years ufologists have been scrambling for clues and definitive
information regarding "Project Aquarius" which, it has been suggested, is
a very crucial UFO-related operation, possible involving "official" contact
and relations with extraterrestrial ufonauts. Rumors abound. Hard facts are
virtually nonexistent. In 1986, a Texas researcher filed an FGIA request
with the "Puzzle Palace", the National Security Agency, for records and in�
formation pertaining to Project Aquarius. The NSA replied that a document
relating to his request had been located but that the request for informa�
tion was denied. In a letter (April 1986) the NSA stated that the document
must remain classified Top Secret and that.
The document is classified because its disclosure could reasonably be expected
424
3
to cause exceptionally grave damage to the national security- Because the docu�
ment is currently and properly classified, it is exempt from disclosure pur�
suant to the first exemption of the FOIA (5 U.S.C. section 552(b)(1))* In addi�
tion, this Agency is authorized by various statutes to protect certain inform-
tion concerning its activities- We have determined that such inf conation exists
in this document.
MORE "REVELATIONS"?
A one-page document has been circulating among ufologists for several months,
Our copy is too poor for reproduction here but, as it is not lengthy, we
will describe it here- The page, at top and bottom, has been stamped "Top
Secret" in large letters, but then stamped "Unclassified" in smaller let�
ters- There is no letterhead or departmental identification* Typed near the
top of the page is the phrase: "Sub Projects Under Project"* There is no
obvious "blackening out" of the name of the project, although other words
in the text of the document, when censored, are plainly "blackened out",The
text consists of three paragraphs, typed double-spaced. The paragraphs are
numbered 2, 3 and 4. Either the first paragraph was effectively "whitened
out" above paragraph no-2 (There is space for what could have been a first
paragraph) or this is the second page of a larger document. The text of the
document is as follows:
2. (TS/GRCXN) PROJECT SIGMA: (FRQWCBDi (censored))* Originally established as part
of Project (censored) in 1954- Became a separate project in 1976* Its mission was
to establish ccmrminication with Aliens- This Project met with positive success
when in 1959, the United States established primitive ccmrnmications with the Al�
iens. On April 25, 1964, a USAF intelligence Officer, met two Aliens at a pre�
arranged location in the desert of Mew Mexico- The contact lasted for approxi�
mately three hours, (censored), the Air Force officer managed to exchange basic
information with the two Aliens (Atch 7) . This project is continuing at an Air
Force base in New Mexico, (OPR: (censored))
3* (TS/QROQN) PROJECT SNOWBIRD: (PROWORD: (censored))* Originally established in
1972* Its mission was to test fly a recovered Alien aircraft. This project is con�
tinuing in Nevada- (censored)
4- (TS/QROCN) ERGJECT (censored): (censored). Originally established in 1968. Its
mission was to evaluate all UFO (censored) information pertaining to space tech�
nology* PROJECT POUNCE continues (censored)
We have been given a number of interpretations of "TS/QRCON". Some say "TS"
means "Top Secret", or "Technical Services". It may be neither. The Defense
Intelligence Agency has informed CRUX that "�ORCON 1 is a dissemination con�
trol marking used by government agencies to limit distribution of documents,
correspondence, etc."
About "Project Sigma": Its description resembles some descriptions we have
heard for Project Aquarius (see above). There have long been rumors of "of�
ficial 11 contact with aliens, back to President Eisenhower in 1954 and be�
yond, including an account of a landing-contact in Mew Mexico, which some
place at Holloman Air Force Base- One story has it that the famous Lonnie
425
Zamora-witnessed Socorro landing of April 24, 1964 was a
a landing and official communication was planned, all right
communications with the aliens being somewhat problematical,
landing on the wrong day (April 24th instead of April 25th]
landed at the wrong coordinates (Socorro, instead of Hollorn.
they got in right (so, what happened at La Madera,NM on Apr
that in a later issue). And, indeed, Lonnie Zamora saw two
this document & the description of Project Sigma would ap p^
some of these earlier rumors.
mistake" - that
But that, with
they ended up
and that they
an AFB). Next day,
il 26th? More on
humanoids. So
ar to back up
About "Project Snowbird": the ufological grapevine has sug
suit of leaks from within the military/intelligence commun
famous Cash-Landrum case near Houston in December 1980 was
bird" operation - that the craft seen (& felt) by the three*
an alien craft which the U,S,government had modified and w*i
fly. And, separate rumors have persisted over the years thci
matching the description of Project Snowbird has been under 1
So, again, the document ostensibly provides support for the*
About "Project Pounce"; In response to a FOIA request from
vestigator, the National Technical Information Service (NTl
abstract of a 1983 report titled "Surveillance/Pounce Model,
reference to UFOs nor to 1968, but the abstract, as follow!s
Lance,
will
th-
tween
A force of mobile targets is subject to a long period of surveil
by a sudden application of force (the 1 pounce'}, Sane targets
pounce because they have not been recently enough localized by
system. Hie problems considered are the division of a budget bei
and pounce, the allocation of pounce forces to targets, and the
how the fraction of targets that survives the pounce depends on
Many questions remain regarding the potential validity or
this document or partial-document, Is it a hoax, drawing some loose ends
as conveniently together as it does* Was it released "mistakenly" as a re�
sult of a FOIA request? Or was it a direct leak from within the military/
intelligence community, where a group of advocates feel theit some of the
"TEVTH" about UFOs should be released to the public, albeit: slowly? As for
the origin of the paper, it has been traced back to a California ufologist,
who supposedly received a visit fron intelligence agents ip regard to his
possession of the document,
JUST ANOTHER DAY AT THE LAKE
gested (as a re-
jjty) that the in-
a "Project Snow-
witnesses was
s attempting to
t a program
way in Nevada,
se allegations.
a Hawaiian in*
S) provided an
There is no
is of interest:
followed
escape the
surveillance
surveillance
description of
the budget.
Spuriousness of
Harlingen, Texas * Wednesday, August 21,1985 & Friday, Augu
woman A her two boys were walking around the Harlingen City
They saw a triangular-shaped object hanging silently over
gan following them, and they ran. The woman tripped over n
her knees. The three hid under trees while the object "sea
with a "spotlight". Finally, they ran home & called the po
night, the two boys saw the object again. They couldn't coa
into going out to see it (or be seen) again, so they enlist,
lived nearby. She had heard about the Wednesday event, but
st 23,1985: A
Lake Wed,night,
the lake. It be-
ocks, banging up
rched" for them
J^ice, On Friday
x their mother
ed a woman who
didn't pay much
426
attention to the story, as she knew the woman witness to be a heavy drink�
er. But the boys were obviously excited about something; so she went with
them to the lake and, sure enough, there it was. She described the object
as triangular, with three "beautiful blue lights" along the outside of 2
of the triangle's "angles"* The park was full of people. Teenage boys were
throwing rocks at lit, yelling "Hey, you got a good-looking girl up there?"
and "You want a Bud Lite?" + Unknown whether it could be related: For at
least a year before the August 1985 sightings, there had been other reports
of three "gorgeous blue lights" floating around the Harlingen area. How�
ever, they were of three different sizes and were three different shades
of blue.
WE HAVE SEEN UFONAUTS AND THEY ARE US?
We are interested in the possibility that some aspects of the UFO phenomenon
may be explained by terrestrially-originated technology (like remotely-pi�
loted vehicles - RPV's - for instance). An Ohio correspondent writes:
I was privileged once to get in on the observance of a real, genuine, solid,
tangible UFO model under construction where I was once an snployee at Good�
year Aerospace Corp. (now Goodyear Atomic!) in Akron for three years back in
the mid-SG's, I had "blue, secret" clearance then and the individual who
showed me the UFO in a special hanger there had "red, top secret" clearance.
At that time I was not allowed to disclose what I had seen due to just the
fact that I was an employee. We were under the threat of a Federal fine and
imprisonment if we talked about natters "secret" or "top secret". Of course,
now, it no longer applies. Anyhow, I found out later, through Mrs, C, (ed.note:
name on file at CRUX) that a (ufo investigator - name on file) had phoned her
about OTHER former employees of G.A.C* having seen the same thing 1 did. {Mrs.
C*) then proceeded to tell (the investigator) that I had seen it back in 1967.
(The investigator) then asked me to ocme over to his place to identify pic�
tures he had of it (taken by someone who sighted the UFO over in Indiana) up�
on which I did. It is oonroanly referred to as the "Zip Graft" and is now known
to fly in excess of 10,000 mph and is test-flown now and then throughout main�
ly Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky, The model I saw was still in the construction
stages but looked to be of an aluminum-type material, flat surface with a dome
in the middle, no visible portholes, about 20 feet in width, smooth as silk,
antenna on top of dcme,eic. I believe it was only about 60% completed so the
description cannot be totally accurate as I did not see a complete "Zip" with
my own eyes other than in (the investigator's) photos and slides. TO this day
I have no idea how G.A.C, could have constructed a UFO capable of fantastic
speeds, but my feeling is that seme of the ideas may have came fran knowledge
obtained from inspection of crashed UFOs.Whatever the case may be, I do
feel our government knows one helluva lot they're not telling the msses a-
bout. I feel one reason for the censorship is due to the fact that the whole
UFO picture is so confusing and ever so complex.
Along these same lines, do any CRUX readers have knowledge of the success
or efficacy of a flying-saucer-like commuter aircraft called the "XM-4"?
It was announced as being available to the public several years ago (ear�
ly 1980's). The manufacturer-or-distributor was the Moller Corporation
(Dr. P.S. Moller, President); 1222 Research Park Drive; Davis, CA 95616*
THE GALLUP WATCH
The following are events variously reminiscent of the "Gallup Incident 11
and similar events that we reported on in CRUX #1 in 1985:
Kansas City, Missouri - Sunday, November 4* 1984
Two loud booming sounds blasted across several counties in the Kansas City
Metropolitan area. They occurred seconds apart, around 4:00 P.M. Numerous
calls from concerned residents were fielded by law enforcement agencies
in south Kansas City and in Jackson, Johnson and Cass Counties* Officials
stumbled over themselves in attempting to explain the blasts- Fingers were
first pointed at Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base where military excercises
were suspected* Blasting during road construction was also announced as a
possible cause, and then the detonation of wastes by the Environmental Pro�
tection Agency* All these agencies denied involvement. Apparently, the Kan�
sas City Chiefs were involved in a particularly odious football game on
television, and it was suggested the booms were produced by disgruntled
fans quieking their TVs all over town. The mystery booms remained just
that (KANSAS CITY TIMES, KANSAS CITY STAR; Nov.5, 1984). Paul Schaeffer of
Kansas City's Ground Zero Club (to whom we're indebted for info on this e-
vent) saw the following letter of his published in the K*C*STAR(112-84):
The article, "Source of those big booms cn Sunday remains a mystery 11 , reminded
me of Dr. Nikola Tesla. He was the inventor of the alternating electrical sys�
tem of power which we are presently using. During the early part of this cent�
ury Dr, Tesla created similar booms by discharging electrical energy into the
atmosphere which an occasion resulted in destructive vibrations in various
structures.
If Patrick Rreheny of the Federal Emergency Management Agency did not cause
these boons by kicking his TV set during a Chiefs game perhaps the war games
at Richards-Gebaur may have been the source of seme electrical discharge
which did*
Washington to California - Thursday night, September 18, 1985
A series of bright lights - red, gold, orange and silver - was observed
around 10:30 PM from Seattle to San Francisco. "The most spectacular thing
I've seen in my life", said one witness. The light (singular, though mul�
tiple lights were seen in some areas) was reported traveling horizontally
from west to east. One woman in Brookings, Oregon, said lights covered
"three quarters of the sky". NORAD and the Oregon Musuem of Science and
Industry later announced that the lights were due to falling debris from
a Soviet Soyuas T-14 booster rocket. (UPI, 9-21-85)
Jefferson County, Missouri - Tuesday, May 26. 1970
The ST* LOUIS GLOBE-DEMOCRAT (5-27-70) reported that Mrs* Elida Kent was
working in her garden near Festus, Missouri around 9:00 AM Tuesday morning
when �he heard an explosion. She turned around to see a "red-hot" cylindri-
428
7
cal object about two inches long in the grass. It remained hot for ten or
fifteen minutes* then became heavily charred- Neighbors heard the explosion.
The object was turned over to the Jefferson County Sheriff�s Office,
Emmet County, Iowa - Saturday, May 10, 1879
An apparent meteorite fell near Estherville around 3:00 in the afternoon.
Chunks of it would end up being turned into rings* ornaments and watch
charms. Residents first saw it about 30 miles west of Estherville. It be�
gan as a crackling* sizzling, roaring sound. Looking up, observers saw a
"large ball of fire", emitting tongues and sparks of fire.Writer Don Buch�
an, in CAPPERS WEEKLY (May 2, 1972), repeated an account of the event writ�
ten by a pioneer Iowa attorney, John W. Cory* Sr.:
"Ibe tail...was characterized by a very strong anell of fire and sulfur and
vas pf a blackish color* being very much like a bush/ tail in appearance... -
It divided into three parts and each had the same appearance as the original.
The train meteor feu with such force as to be entirely embedded into the
earth firm 12 to 20 feet, washing everything in its way and leaving a large
open cavern in the ground*
There was controversy over the ownership of the object(s). Buchan writes
that the largest piece weighed 437 pounds and measured 22 by 27 by 15 in�
ches. A second piece* which fell on another farm, weighed 151 pounds. A
portion of the object ended up on display in the Estherville Public Lib�
rary. Other pieces ended up in the British Museum in London and at the
university of Minnesota. The object(s) was said to have been composed of
"iron, nickel* phosphorus, sulfur and an unknown substance merely called
Estherville metal.
The Occuh,MlDs, UFOs and Assassinations
LOREN COLEMAN
Copyright by Loren Coleman
Serious students of the political assassinations of the 1960's and the re�
searchers of Forteana ("the strange and the unknown") have begun to see a
surprising number of overlaps between their two fields. Perhaps assassina�
tion research is becoming such a mature artform it is allowing the rever�
berations of the supposed lunatic fringe to seep into its domain* Or is the
ever continuing search for clues and hints to the "truth" leading assasso-
buffs into an area populated by umbrella men, mystery tramps, and the elu�
sive men-in-black (MIBs), those strangely dark-clothed characters who have
terrorized UFO investigators since 1947? Whatever the reasons, a bizarre
number of links are beginning to be discussed.
Some of the things you hear making the rounds these days have to be taken
with the proverbial grain of salt. Some others don't. What pigeonhole a
common West Coast tale about Sirhan Sirhan knowing Charlie Hanson belongs
429
8
in, is anyone's guess. Supposedly, Sirhan and Manson got to know each oth�
er on some occult level when they were on the same cellblock in somewhere
prison, California, somewhen, but long before Manson Family member Squeaky
Fromme's botched attempt on President Ford's life- If a meeting ever did
occur, they probably had a lot to talk about. Like Jacson, the axe-wield�
ing assassin of Leon Trotsky, after Sirhan's arrest for allegedly killing
Robert Kennedy, Sirhan calmly requested a copy of The Secret Doctrine . This
occult bible was published in the 1890's by Madame Blavatsky who said she
was the disciple of a cluster of "secret masters 1 *. Charles Manson's inter�
est in warlockery, astral projection, magic and hypnotism went back many
years. Sirhan Sirhan�s special interest in hypnotism is a key part of Don�
ald Freed's theory in the semi-fictional The Killing Of RFK . Freed feels
Sirhan was controlled and used. And was also the alleged killer of Martin
Luther King, James Earl Ray? When Ray was captured in London, among his
possessions were four paperbacks on hypnosis.
Charlie Manson's use of hypnotism was for the control he could effect over
others. But before he was to have a say in the destiny of lives in Califor�
nia, some people tell of a weird intrigue of his in New Orleans, an impor�
tant city in the John Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories. Supposed�
ly, Charles Manson, Janis Joplin and Charles Whitman among "others'* were
all part of a loose-knit New Orleans coven. Charles Whitman, of course,was
the sniper who made the University of Texas Tower at Austin so infamous.
One source of this account comes from a former member of the coven we shall
call "Samuel". After leaving the coven, Samuel became deeply involved in
UFO research until a "mysterious stranger" visited him and his associates
several times and induced them to hand over all their files. This pattern
follows the weird men-in-black accounts which have been popping up in UFO
circles for years, and recently have been recounted by assassination buffs
who find themselves being silenced. But one wonders, who would be interes�
ted in terrorizing teen-agers, little old ladies and amateur researchers
into giving up their shoe boxes filled with yellowing news clippings on the
Kennedy assassination or flying saucer sightings? Whomever and whatever, it
was enough to make Samuel drop UFOs and move to Dallas.' There he now teach�
es yoga, the sufi disciplines and astrology, and infrequently talks of his
days in the Manson-Joplin-Whitman coven in New Orleans.
New Orleans- David Ferrie. Lee Harvey Oswald, How many times have we heard
of this trinity in the last few years. David Ferrie, Cia contract pilot and
Oswald's supposed contact man, was involved in some strange goings-on be�
fore his sudden death only days after Jim Garrison* conspiracy investiga�
tions were publicized. In the late 1940's, Ferrie stopped studying for the
priesthood and became a commercial pilot in Ohio. From there, Ferrie was
whisked, probably as a U-2 pilot, into the 1950's by the CIA whom he had to
thank for the loss of his body and head hair. After the Bay of Pigs, we
find David Ferrie in New Orleans as the self-appointed high priest in a
small religious sect called the Apostolic Old Catholic Church of North Am�
erica. Some members of the church were Tom Beckham and Jack S, Martin who
with Ferrie and Oswald worked out of Guy Bannister's Lafayette/Camp Street
office and figured in the Garrison investigation* The church conducted ser-
430
9
vices involving animal sacrifice and blood guzzling. During Lee Harvey Os�
wald's last weeks in New Orleans, he attended many ritualistic parties in
private homes and apartments with David Ferrie. Ferrie was heavily into
black magic and had a strong working knowledge of hypnotism. Ferrie was
even to use hypnotism as one of the romantic controls over his gay lovers.
But how engrossed was Lee Harvey Oswald in Ferrie r s hypnotic powers? Os�
wald felt he was a "patsy�. The nefarious projects of assassination con�
spirators could easily have as one of their important elements people who
practice or follow occult doctrines, A James Earl Ray? Sirhan Sirhan? Lee
Harvey Oswald? David Ferrie? Charlie Manson and Squeaky? Such visionary
neurotics may be easy dupes, and hypnosis may be a key.
In the end, though,theorizing on matters of connections between the occult
and political murders is a shadowy practice, at best. The link goes to the
depth of the meaning of the very word "occult�, for the affairs of assass�
inations are indeed "hidden�. It is the occasional break in this veil sur�
rounding these esoteric happenings which investigators have learned to ex�
amine, analyze and dissect. One such uncanny but concrete fissure is the per�
sonage of the late Fred Lee Crisman.
Fred Lee Crisman apparently was a cloudy figure in Dealey Plaza on the
22nd of November, 1963. But first, let us shoot back to 1947. It is the
21st of June, three days before Kenneth Arnold, a private pilot, sees disc�
shaped objects over Mt. Ranier, Washington. Arnold will coin the word "fly�
ing saucers" and the modern age of CFO mania will be born. But on June 21 ,
1947, no one thought in terms of UFOs or flying saucers.On that day, near
Maury Island, Washington, Fred Lee Crisman and Harold A. Dahl, harbor pa�
trolman, separately saw six donut-shaped metallic objects over Puget Sound.
One of these unidentified flying objects exploded and showered a metal
slag onto a boat owned by Crisman near Maury Island. The slag killed a dog
(the first modern animal mutilation case?) and injured Harold Dahl's son,
who was the boatfs pilot. Both Crisman and Dahl collected samples of the
slag.
The next day, Harold Dahl was visited by a medium-height man dressed in
black, driving a new 1947 Buick (This is the first modern case of a MIB).
This man sat down with Dahl and over breakfast told him detail for detail
everything Dahl had seen and done the day before, as if the stranger had
been there. When Dahl related this to Kenneth Arnold who had been sent by
editor Ray Palmer to investigate, Harold Dahl was still visibly upset by
the accuracy of the MIB r s account. The stranger then warned Dahl in no un�
certain terms, that if he valued the safety and health of his family, Dahl
would tell no one about the sighting.
The events that followed the Maury Island sighting are so bizarre that
their only parallel has been the strange events leading from Dallas to Wa�
tergate, from the silencing of assassination witnesses to the break-ins of
"The Plumbers�.
After Harold Dahl was interviewed by Kenneth Arnold, Dahl vanished. Fred
Lee Crisman, who had flown during World War II, was suddenly recalled into
431
10
the service in 1947- Crisman was shipped to Alaska and then to Greenland,
rwo Air Force officers, Davidson and Brown, were killed after they finished
their Maury Island investigation, when the plane taking them from Tacoma
crashed. Slag samples collected by Crisman and Dahl were switched. Addi�
tional samples contained in a cigar box in Ray Palmer's Chicago office were
stolen,
Kenneth Arnold and airline pilot E, J. Smith had many strange experiences
as they investigated the Maury Island Incident, as it has come to be known *
Arnold found hotel reservations were made for him in Tacoma although he
thought no one knew he was coming. Mysterious callers informed the local
newspapers of the details of the Arnold-Smith conversations- The two men
checked for bugging devices but could find none- Paul Lance, a Tacoma news-
itan who had assisted Arnold during his inquiry, died shortly after Arnold
left town. When Kenneth Arnold did leave Tacoma, he was almost killed. Ar�
nold got into hisplane and was heading home when his engine shut down. Ar�
nold only escaped a crash by some fast and expert maneuvering on his part.
The central mystery figure in the Maury Island Incident, Fred Lee Crisman,
was to have many missions after his two years of exile in Greenland.
On the 22nd of November, 1963, three "tramps� were arrested but not booked
by the Dallas Police and Sheriff's Office- Thanks to William Allen, George
Smith and Jack Beers of the Dallas Times Herald , the Fort Worth Star-Tele �
gram and the Dallas Morn i ng News , several photographs were taken of these
"mystery tramps" as they were led across Dealey Plaza. Richard Sprague,
computer specialist and a conscientious assassination investigator, main�
tains one of the "tramps" is Fred Lee Crisman, During Jim Garrison 1 s Grand
Jury hearings in New Orleans which looked into the conspiracy surrounding
the JFK murder, Crisman was called as a witness and gave testimony. The
eaxct nature of what Crisman said has never been released. And then, Fred
Lee Crisman 1 s name came up again as the subject of a possible investiga�
tion by the late Senator Frank Church's Senate Intelligence Committee.
if hat is the strange thread that comes down through the years from Maury Is�
land to Dallas and beyond? What is the purpose of the men-in-black and
their fellow silencers? What is Fred Lee Crisman*s role in a flying saucer
sighting and an assassination?
Whatever the logic may be, the fields of the researchers of the occult, the
UFO mystery, and the assassinations seem to be more interrelated than one
could ever have guessed only a few years ago.
SOME NOTES ON THE COLEMAN ARTICLE ;
We know "Samuel", Coleman's source for the New Orleans "coven" story. We,in
fact were Coleman's immediate source for the tale. Unfortunately, nothing
more is known, as we lost track of "Samuel' 1 many years ago.
We are very interested in the intriguing life story of Fred Lee Crisman. We
have delved into aspects of his existence for many years, with help from
researchers such as Brent Raynes, Floyd Murray and Kalani Hanohano. Hope-
432
11
fully, an extensive examination of the enigmatic life of "Mr.C." will be
published within the reasonable future* We solicit comments from our read�
ers regarding the Crisman story. No one seems to have the whole story, but
there are lots of pieces floating about. Also of interest is an individual
named Thomas Edward Beckham, briefly mentioned by Coleman. Unlike Crisman,
Beckham is still alive (as far as we know) and his shadowy likeness turns
up now and then. We'd like to know more about him, if any readers possess
such knowledge. The pages of CRUX are open to commentary regarding the po�
litical assassinations, particularly that of JFK. We do not find the "of�
ficial" line satisfactory. Some may have been under the impression that
CRUX is intended to be a "Fortean" publication - and, if so, what�s with
the assassinations? "Fortean", to us, is an outlook, a perspective, an at�
titude - not merely a term for a body of data. And if assassination cons�
piracy speculation and evidence which does not support the official posi�
tions isn�t "data of the damned 11 , we don't know what is.
Kenneth Arnold's own story of his Maury Island investigation is interest�
ing reading. If you can still find the book anywhere, it's THE COMING OF
THE SAUCERS by Arnold and Ray Palmer, published by the late Ray Palmer's
Amherst (Wisconsin) Press (1952).
Loren Coleman's article, above, also appears in the Dec. 1905 issue of THE
CONSPIRACY TRACKER; F.O. Box 596; Paterson, NJ 07524; $2.25 per copy.
Loren Coleman's two latest books are highly recommended and are, in fact,
essential reading for serious Forteans: MYSTERIOUS AMERICA (1983) and
CURIOUS ENCOUNTERS (1985), both published by Faber & Faber,Inc.; 39 Thom�
pson Street; Winchester, MA 01890.
"Coincidence, if traced far enough back, becomes inevitable."
Inscription on a Hindu temple,
quoted by Thomas Thompson
SOME WIDE-AWAKE THOUGHTS ON HYPNOSIS
The Amazing Kreskin has a standing offer of $100,000 to anyone who can
prove the existence of a hypnotic state* In 1985 (United Press Interna�
tional; 3-6�85) he spoke out against a bill that would license hypnotech-
nicians in New Jersey. He asked; "How can they license somebody to do some�
thing that has never been proven to exist?" The bill would allow the ad�
mission of testimony from hypnotized witnesses in court. Kreskin commen�
ted; "Psychiatrists have bulldozed us into ^lieving that we can use hyp�
nosis to alter behavior, to help us remember things. It's not hypnosis.
Benjamin Altman and Gordon MacLeod write in the NEW YORK STATE BAR JOURNAL
of October 1982 ("Hypnotism: Its Utilization in Criminal Law");
433
12
The future of hypnosis would not appear to be that bright as far as the judi�
ciary is concerned* The court system is not the most progressive arena to pre�
sent new concepts or new breakthroughs; it deals with extensive p^misfrnent and
the rights of individuals and great weight cannot be given to unknown or un�
trusted ocnoepts. The court system is not to be reprimanded for this approach*
The concept of hypnosis is likened to lighting a match- The act has some dan�
gers (burnt fingers; setting the entire box cn fire; dangerous in children's
hands), yet it sets off an illuminating glow vfoich in turn can be beneficial in
the potential the nonentary glow has (emergency lighting; warmth; energy)* Hyp�
nosis at the present stage represents concern and emits a anall amount of light*
While it is slightly helpful, there appears to be no collective progress of the
technique in general* It is equivalent to sporadically lighting matches and let�
ting them flicker out- (credit: Peter Gersten)
One final comment on hypnosis comes from Paramhansa Yogananda. In AUTOBIO�
GRAPHY OF A YOGI, he writes that .a hypnotic state is harmful to those
often subjected to it; a negative psychological effect ensues that in time
deranges the brain cells* Hypnotism is trespass into the territory of an�
other's consciousness 11 . (credit: Ruth Borne)
Zoodities
Winged Creatures Over Illinois
by GRANT CALLISQK
Galesburg, Illinois
The descriptions below were from our log of UFO sightings that my wife and
I started on May 3, 1967* The following is an account of how we happened to
see these giant "bird-like" creatures and the events that followed*
On 5/10/66, 10:05 P*M, f with a thin cloud cover, the ceiling was approxi�
mately 10,000 feet and the moon was partly visible, more than half but not
full* The wind was calm* I had gone to the kitchen to get a drink of water-
There is a window which faces east toward a shopping center two blocks a-
way* I saw something bright out of the corner of my eye that caught my at�
tention outside and at the top of the window* I looked out the window and
saw a giant "bird-like" creature that glowed fluorescent from the street
lights' reflection on it, I called my wife, Wilma, and we both ran out the
back door to get a better look* To our amazement there were three of them,
in a "V" formation, moving away from us- They were clearly visible flying
at an approximate height of 500 feet. They were moving from 25 to 35 mph.
They had gone over our house moving in a southeasterly direction* They
would have had to approach from the northwest.
434
13
They looked like they had either feathers or scales with a metallic appear�
ance that glowed fluorescent with the light reflected on them. They didn't
seem to have a neck, just a head. Their tail was short and seemed to be
cone-shaped. The wing spread was approximately 15 to 20 feet. It was real�
ly an unbelievable sight, and frightening. As they moved away we stood and
watched them. Their flight was not that of an ordinary bird - but instead
a graceful, fluttering motion that was breathtaking because of their size.
We then saw two objects to the south with pulsating red lights moving in
the same direction at the same speed. The objects appeared to be at about
the same height as the "birds", They were moving west, on a course to in�
tercept the "birds 11 * One of the objects turned out its lights and the oth�
er either circled or reversed itself to a point where they could meet. My
wife said that we must never mention this to anyone as no one would be�
lieve us.
A few days later we were visiting with my brother. Ward, and his wife,
Louise, but obviously did not mention what we had seen. After we had visi�
ted awhile, my brother casually asked if we had seen anything unusual a few
nights ago around 10:00 PM. We, of course, knew what he was referring to,
so we told him what we had seen. My brother lives one block east of the
shopping center, while we live two blocks west - three blocks from each
other.
He noticed the "birds" or "creatures" from the west window in his house. He
ran out the back door to get a better look. When he first saw them out the
window, they were approzimately 7 or 8 blocks away, which would be on the
edge of the city limits. They were coming from the northwest and toward his
home. When he got outside they were closer and were a frightening sight.
He could hardly believe what he was seeing. Since they were coming toward
him, he ran back into the house and called to his wife, Louise.They, both
watched from the west window as they changed course to the south and dis�
appeared. Their description matched ours in every detail.
On 10/20/68, 9:00 PM, is another entry in the "log" concerning a giant
"bird" or "winged creature". This bird-like creature was moving east to
west. When my wife and I first saw the "thing" it was approaching us at ap�
proximately 60 degrees, and it flew directly over us. Since it was higher
(500 to 1000 feet) the reflection of the street lights did not make it ap�
pear quite as luminous. This one was by itself but the description was the
same as the others. However, it seemed to be having trouble as the right
wing was slightly lower than the left wing. Both wings were barely moving,
and in an erratic manner. Its head (again, no neck) turned as if it had
spotted us looking at it. The head continued to look toward us as it went
over, tfe sighted no UFOs that night, but there had been other reports in
the area on previous nights. This really scared us and we went inside for
the rest of the night. These giant "birds or creatures" obviously do not
naturally inhabit this planet, so in my opinion they would have to be ex�
traterrestrial. I had never heard of reports of such "birds" or "creatures".
We cannot deny what we saw. The accounts are accurate and true to the best
of our ability.
435
14
BHM (Big Hairy Monster) NOTES :
A week before Halloween# 1985, a porch-chewing creature was
residents of Hearne# Robertson County# in Central Texas. On
noise and opened his front door to see a tail# man-like fig
ped at the door and began to chew on it. The witness slammej<
looked out the window to see his dog running off down the
later# the dog still had not returned. Other observers repc
a creature tore window screens and jumped around on rooftop
ING NEWS, 10-24-85)�
reported by the
e man heard a
ure which slap-
d the door and
treat. A week
rted that such
s (DALLAS MORN-
o East Pennsboro
In late September of 1985, something may have paid a call t
Township, near Harrisburg,Pennsylvania. Two residents saw it on the night
of September 29. One man was watching television with his family when they
began to gag on a noxious odor that was apparently coming through an open
window. The householder stepped outside and, under the light of a full moon#
saw a 6-or-7-foot-ta11 creature standing 40 or SO feet away
sitting on the creature's shoulders - no neck - and the shoulders appeared
about a yard wide. It was as wide at the hips as at the shoulders, and the
legs were long. It was covered with shaggy brown hair. The
a bear as, in profile, it had no snout. The witness screamej
loped off with its arms swinging at full length. Another ar
ported to police that, for the second time in a month, a ca
from a pen that had been secured with a hasp and pin. Somec
"strange noises" on the 29th, and something scared her hors
bolt into the barn. A motorist named Tom Leach saw a creatu
creature was not
d and the being
ea resident re-
t had disappeared
ne else had heard
e, causing it to
re behind a guard�
rail as he drove by on a road in East Pennsboro Township. Leach slowed down
as he passed with eight feet of the figure. He, also, repor
ing a neck, standing about 6^ feet tall and covered with ha
passed, the creature barred its teeth, revealing long fangs
ported the sighting to police, they made him repeat his acc
occasions, and the details were always the same. An officer
led Leach back to the site, and they both heard strange ,noi
remainder of the night (THE PATRIOT; Harrisburg,PA 10-9-85
Credit: Larry Arnold, Parascleace International, Harrisburg!}
There have been very occasional hairy creature reports over
Mexico over at least the past couple of decades. Nothing haj
for several years until early 1985. A "huge, hairy creature
was reported by a number of truck drivers along a lonely s
way 285, north of Tres Piedras, New Mexico and south of the
mark, San Antonio Mountain, on the Colorado border* Tres Pi
Duke Cozart talked to several drivers who had seen the watz
uary, one trucker saw what he said was definitely a bear al
leading to speculation that bears could explain all the si
seasonably warm weather having brought them out of hibernat
the reports, though, described the creature as more monkey
idents of the Tres Piedras area later said that a "strange
been reported for years. Not "officially" reported, though,
this remote region do not tend to be blabbermouths about su
(NM) NEWS, Jan.16, 1986; VALLEY COURIER; Alamosa, CO; Feb
ted it as lack-
ir. As Leach
When Leach re-
ount on several
Karns accompan-
ses through the
and 10-10-85.
northern New
d been reported
with red eyes"
t|retch of US High-
prominent land-
edras resident
it. In mid-Jan-
ong the highway,
g^htings, with un�
ion. Some of
like. Some res-
creature" had
as people in
ch matters (TAOS
11, 1986}.
436
15
Plug a bigfoot for science. Grover Krantz and John Lowenstein would seem to
agree on that aim. Krantz is the Washington State University anthropology
professor who has been dogging the bigfoot trail for years, and who suspects
the creatures may be a sort of latter-day Gigantopethicus. The Sasquatch is
an endangered species, he says, therefore it's important that one be shot as
soon as possible* This must be done, Krantz says, to establish the credibil�
ity necessary to ensure an aggressive preservation effort* Peopke at the
Smithsonian tell Krantz to ''put a skull on my table and I'll believe you".
So a carcass, preferably fresh, is to only way to prove Sasquatch reality.
And John Lowenstein? He's been accused of being out in left field. That�s
among the several positions he played for a number of American League base�
ball teams. He finished his career with Baltimore* He majored in anthropol�
ogy at Cal-Riverside and believes in Bigfoot. He announced in 1984 that he
was planning to pursue the creature in the field (no, not that field - in
Oregon somewhere). He said his plan was to shoot it. "Obviously", he said,
it's not something you�d bring back on a leash". (DALLAS TINES HERALD, Mar.
25, 1984; DELAWARE COUNTY DAILY TIMES (PA); Apr.27, 1986,credit:Floyd Murray)
THE CAPROCK WQLFPACK
The "Caprock" is an escarpment that runs roughly north-south through a siz�
eable portion of West Texas, separating the High Plains of Lubbock and Sem�
inole to the west from the lower plains to the east. In February of 1877,an
unusual occurrence - for Texas anyway - occurred in Yellow House Canyon,a-
bout 50 miles southeast of present-day Lubbock. After the army campaigns of
Col. Ranald Mackenzie pushed the Indians out of the region in the early-to-
mid 1870*3, frontiersmen moved in to quickly wipe out the area f s bison herds.
By 1876-77, cattlemen had settled the Caprock region, John Lovelady was
scouting bis new ranch that February morning when he noticed a gray wave
emerging from one of the canyons in the distance. According to Lovelady*s
account, which was published in 1901 by Lubbock newspaper editor Don Rig�
gers, he found as he drew closer on horseback that the "wave" was an immense
pack of wolves, about 20 wolves abreast and somewhere between 2 and 3 miles
in length. Wolves had been the bane (dare we say the wolfsbane?) of those
early cattlemen. With the eradication of the buffalo, their primary food
source, the wolves turned to the ranchers' cattle. Wolves remained numerous
in West Texas into the 1890's, but were almost non-existent by 1900. In the
1877 story, Lovelady fired into the wolf-wave but the pack itself barely
wavered from it's course. Some historians have greeted the Lovelady tale
with skepticism; but at least two Texas historians, David Hurrah and Wil�
liam C. Griggs, say they have no reason to doubt the story. The "1877 Mi�
gration of Wolves" is cited on a historial marker in Yellow House Canyon.
(DALLAS MORNING NEWS, March 30, 1986}
REPTILES OF A FEATHER
Back in 1972, Dr, James A. Jensen of Brigham Young University announced that
the ostrich (audits relatives, the rhea, cassowary and emu) is really not a
bird at all, but rather a feathered reptile more closely related to dino-
437
16
saurs than to today's flying birds* Jensen drew his conclusion following
his study of both modern "flightless birds" and fossil eggs of prehistoric
feathered-but-flightless reptiles. Commonly, the ostrich, emu,etc., were
thought to have developed from flying birds which eventuallylost the abil�
ity to fly and degenerated into surface-dwe1lers, The fossil evidence, ac�
cording to Jensen, indicates continuous existence of larger feathered,
flightless ground dwellers from the disappearance of the dinosaurs up to
the present. Flying birds and today's "flightless birds", he says, are des�
cended from different forebears.(DALLAS MORNING NEWS, Feb. 17, 1972).
Anthroplogist Melvin Conner interviewed an unnamed paleontologist who spec�
ializes in the study of the archaeopteryx, a primitive bird with reptilian
characteristics - some have even called it "the first true bird". The pal�
eontologist tola Conner that the archaeopteryx reminded him of the human
race, in that it was such a transitional creature. His comment about the
archaeopteryx was: "It's a piss-poor reptile, and it's not very much of a
bird". (PSYCHOLOGY TODAY, March 1982)
JIMMIE DODD WOULD BE PROUD
The following letter to the editor appeared in the WALL STREET JOURNAL of
April 3, 1966:
As America's largest organization of rat and mouse fanciers, we at the American
Fancy Rat and Mouse Association (AFRMA) have long enjoyed your excellent, fair-
minded coverage of rats.
We also enjoyed your delightful March 12 page-one story about our British cage-
mates, the National Mouse dub - until we cams to the patronizing and unsports�
manlike consents on the American mouse movement in general, on our organization
in particular, and on rats. British mouse fancier Frank Hawley's remarks to the
contrary, we are not namby-pamby and we do take mice seriously. We do agree that
mouse fanciers are warm, cheerful people (although Mr. Hawley mast have been
having an off day when your reporter talked bo him),
The AFRMA, 9230 64th St., Riverside, Calif. 92509 (not Fontana, Calif., as Mr.
Hawley suggested) holds regular oocpetitions in the California area for mice
and rats. Everyone who read your article and wished that he or she could trav�
el to Fhgland to see a real mouse show is welcome to visit our shows right at
heme.
Karen Houser, President, AFRMA
In September 1965, residents of northern Hungary reported seeing a great
beast with big eyes and ears "jumping in a peculiar way in the forest".
Turns out some kangaroos fled a circus,(DALLAS TIMES HERALD, 9-23-05)
A rare man-eating elephant was reported in the remote state of Meghalaya,
in northeastern India. It had killed and feasted upon at least five people
in 1985. (DALLAS TIMES HERALD, January 10, 1966)
438
STIGMATA
THE PROJECT STKMA REPORT ON HIE CONTINUING
INVESTIGATION INTO THE OCCURRENCE OF ANIMAL MimUHONS
23
ALABAMA
Mutilation Reports In 1985
Activity was centered in land, as far as we know, confined to) Marshall
County, in northeastern Alabama, less than 50 miles south-southeast of
Huntsville. On a unspecified date, a mare was killed near Arab, Alabama,
and its genitals were removed. Around the 21st of April, 1985, a cow was
found dead and with its genitals missing on the farm of Guntersville High
School Principal Les Click. Another incident - again on a unspecified
date, occurred on the farm of Weiton Tidmore, whose property adjoins the
Les Click farm, Tidmore lost a cow in a manner similar to Click's. The
tongue and ears were also missing from Tidmore 1 s cow.
Then, on the weekend of November 15-16-17, 1985, three goats were killed
on two consecutive nights. The animals belonged to Guntersville business�
man Ty Dorman, According to the Guntersville newspaper, the Advertiser -
Gleam (November 23, 1985):
All 3 of their throats were cut, but there was no sign of the blood that
must have been spilled when that happened. The sexual parts of one goat had
been cut out. A hole had been cut in the side of another goat, and parts of
three ribs removed.
The carcasses were found in the old county school bus shop on Ligon Street,
behind Finis St.John's plumbing and boiler shop. Mr. Dorman has been renting
the property from the Hospital Board, which now owns it. He buys and sells scrap
materials and has been using the property as a storage place. "I had the goats
there to keep the grass down 11 , Mr. Dorman said. He found the largest of the
three when he went there Saturday morning. She was about 7 years old and weighed
about 150 pounds. She was on the verge of giving birth. She had been killed in
the night. She was lying on the floo of the old shop, as if she had been run
inside and cornered. Two smaller goats, each pregnant for the first time, were
fine. �I thought at first sane dogs had probably killed her", Mr. Dorman said.
He hauled her body to the woods to dispose of it and noticed that her sexual
organs had been cut out.
Sunday afternoon Mr. Dorman and his wife Betty went to the shop and found both
of the younger goats dead. A hole had been cut in the side of ene of them, and
some of the fat under the skin had been polled out. It didn't appear that any
interior organs had been raroved but Mr. Dorman couldn't tell for sure. Their
439
18
sexual parts hadn't been cut out* There was scidb b lood over near cne side of
the shed, possibly where one of the goats had been stabbed or slashed while
it ran, but no sign of a large volume of blood fran cutting the throats*
In April of 1986, almost a year to the day after the discovery of Les
Click's cow, another cow was found dead and mutilated on the Vandervoort
farm which, like the Tidmore farm, adjoins Les Click's property. The night
after the Vandervoort mutilation, school principal Click heard a helicop�
ter flying low over his farm. More on the 1986 activity in STIGMATA #24.
{Sources: ADVERTISER-GLEAM; Guntersville, AL (11-23-85, 4-23-86); THE
HUNTSVILLE TIMES (4-22-86, 4-30-86); THE BIRMINGHAM POST-HERALD (4-23-86,
4-30-86); Credits Lynn Phillips via Lucius Parish; Mark A. Hall).
COLORADO
Elbert County - El Paso County
Over the past dozen or so years, this has been one of the most consistent�
ly mutilation-prone areas in the country. Some claim that might be no ac�
cident, citing some connection to the heavy concentration of military in�
stallations in the Colorado Springs-El Faso County area. Many readers are
familiar with the exploits, investigations and comments of Elbert County
Sheriff George Yarnell. He was sheriff during the mutilation-madness of
1975 - and he's still The Law in Elbert County, USA. Sheriff Yarnell re�
cently reminisced for Monty Gaddy in the RANCHLAND NEWS (Simla, Colorado),
He recalled that, in the mid-70's, when the mutilation reports were so
numerous, reports of low-flying aircraft (some obviously helicopters) were
equally numerous. Yarnell had seen some the aircraft and the bright search-
light- type lights they so often emitted. And, he said, when the big muti�
lation wave finally stopped (though there have been sporadic reports since)
the aircraft reports ceased as well. In the exclusive interview with Gaddy,
Yarnell also recounted a run-in with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation
(CBI) in Denver, who conducted their own much-ballyhooed mutilation inves�
tigation In 1975, Yarnell had submitted hide samples from mutilated live�
stock to CBI for analysis by their lab. The mutilations were then persis�
tently reported by the CBI to be predator-caused, much to Yarnell*s frus�
tration, Yarnell sent CBI a sample of hide he had cut with his own knife.
The verdict: what else? Predators. Yarnell was "infuriated 11 , "disgusted",
and he "didn't waste much time" with the CBI beyond that. In 1985, Monty
Gaddy asked Carl Whiteside for his comment on Yarnell's story. Whiteside
headed the 1975 investigation and is now CBI director. Concerning Yarnell f s
account, Whiteside said: "I have no way to refute that. It was obviously
an oversight in our lab".
Elbert and adjoining El Faso Counties were not safe in 1985 ^ at least not
the livestock residing in that domain. A possible mutilation was investi�
gated by Yarnell in July, on the Max Kelly ranch, three miles south of
state highway 86, Kelly found a heifer down in his pasture on July 18. It
appeared a large circular area had been cut out around the rectum. The
440
19
weather was extremely hot, though; the carcass had bloated and dried out
considerably. Then, four mutilations were reported in the area in a two-
week period in early-to-mid September 1985. On September 2, George Cvaniga
found the carcass of a 9-month-old steer on land he leases near Ramah.The
rectum, genitals and "half the face" were reportedly removed from the an�
imal. About a week later. Art Rasner found a 7-month-old calf about three
miles west of his house, in extreme southeastern El Paso County. The calf
had been healthy the day before. When found, there appeared to be "smooth
circular cut around the rectum".
On September 6, rancher Ralph Rickey was driving around checking cattle
with his foreman, Ray Green, on the Rickey Ranch, about 32 miles southeast
of Simla. They noticed a leg sticking up out of tall grass. It belonged
to the carcass of a 5-month-oid heifer calf. Green said that: "Right be�
hind the front leg was a perfect circle about 12" in diameter, just like
somebody used a real sharp object to cut it 11 . Some kind of incision had
also been made around the mouth area. Another of Rickey's calves was found
mutilated in the same general area in the mid-70's.
On Saturday, September 14, an apparently-mutilated 5-year-old cow was dis�
covered of the Clifford Gertsch ranch in southeastern Elbert County, about
19 miles south of Matheson. Jim and Billie Trembly are caretakers of the
ranch, where Gertsch grazes about 75 head of cattle. Trembly thought the
cow had been dead about two days. According to Monty Gaddy in the RANCH-
LAND NEWS 19-19-85)*..
A circular cut about eight inches in diameter had been made around the ani�
mal's rectum, and another oblong piece of hide about six inches in length was
removed from the udder area. The areas appeared to have been cut away with
surgical expertise. No blood had dripped from the animal onto the sandy soil,
and no footprints or unusual markings were found in the area. The meat appeared
to be untouched.
Besides the classic clues pointing to a mutilation, the a nimal had several other
unusual features. There was a substance slowly oozing from the animal's nose,
M I*ve never heard anyone say anything about oozing from the nose in any of the
mutilations I've read about", Mrs, Trenbly said. Even more peculiar was an un�
explainable spot on the cow's belly where the hair had been rubbed off. Addi�
tionally, there were marks directly in front of both the left and right rear
legs. Judging from the marks, it appears seme sort of claw device must have
pinched the hide with such intensity as to break the skin and cause bruises.
(The) Tremblys said they suspect the animal was airlifted and dropped at the
point where they made the discovery.
Mrs, Trembly told the ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS (4-21-86) that:
She's convinced the government is doing something "sleazy". The cuts are so
precise she believes they could have been made with a laser, "it's frighten�
ing", she said. "Our dog wouldn't go near the dead cow. The birds left the
area far a long time".
In late November or Early December, the El Paso County Sheriff's Department
441
20
investigated the mutilation of a Hereford cow on the Eldon
on Murphy Road in El Paso County. According to the invest!
the cow's belly had a 14-inch hole cut by "some type of sh
strument". The animal's genitals were missing. Incredibly,
declared that "it's the work of predators 11 . Rancher Butler
you kind of sore when you can see with your own plain eyes
couldn't leave such a clean hole' 1 . The night before he fou
carcass, Butler heard a helicopter hovering about 300 yardjs
Though it was hovering and was "real loud", he thought lit
military aircraft often fly over his ranch
Butler ranch
gative report,
,arp cutting in-
the same report
said "That makes
a butcher
,nd the cow's
from his house,
tie of it, as
WELD COUNTY
Another area traditionally hard-hit by mutilators. A singl
ted in October 1985. It has been suggested that this was t
County mutilation since the famous/infamous Briggsdale,Col
1980 (see "Covert Capers Crown Colorado Cow Case" in STIGI
ually, another case occurred in extreme northern Weld Coun
1982, almost on the Wyoming border. It was investigated by
deputy and a Wyoming veterinarian (whose most intriguing f
tured in STIGMATA #20, p. 13 >. The carcass of a young cros
found in a field 2 miles SE of Roggen, Colorado, on or abo
by rancher Robert Holsten. A week before, a two-year-old H
had been found dead on the same property, but the carcass
On Oct. 7, a passerby informed Holsten that two animals we
field. Holsten, of course, knew of one, and the other, the
about 50 yards from the heifer. Holsten suspected the bull
for up to two days. Holsten said; "It was pretty obvious i
tilated. Its penis was removed, the scrotum had been cut a
us area had been cut. There was no obvious cause of death
ten and a sheriff's deputy) could find". The "word" among
that another mutilated carcass had been found, but not rep
same general area.
LOGAN COUNTY
Perhaps the hardest-hit county of all. We know of no speci
from Logan County in 1985. Tex Graves, the sheriff at the
mutilation furor there, told the COLORADO SPRINGS GAZETTE
2-86) that he "knows who or what is responsible for the mu
I won't repeat it'"* In November 1985, Project Stigma rece
from a Logan County law officer, from which the following
As a law enfarosrent officer in Logan County I have had the privl
cuss the phenomena with numerous individuals who were involved w::
fcilations in varying aspects. Some of these individuals held, anql
high and respectable positions within their lxj [inanities. When di
issues, I couldn't help but feel a strong paranoia pervading frofi
pie, especially the ones who were active in the investigation of
tions. Some were evasive, angry and even hostile! This is very
e case was repor-
he first Weld
orado cases of
TA #13). Act-
ty in November of
a Weld County
indings we fea-
sbred bull was
ut Oct* 7, 1985,
ereford heifer
was unmarked,
re down in his
bull, was found
had been dead
t had been mu-
way and the an-
that we (Hols-
ranchers was
orted, in the
fics on reports
height of the
TELEGRAPH <2-
tilations, 'but
ived a letter
is excerpted:
lege to dis-
th the mu-
still hold,
^cussing the
these peo-
the mutila-
piculiar, oon-
442
21
sidering the mutilations supposedly ceased in the late 7G*sI I have even
been warned bo proceed with caution upon examining the matter 1 Unusual I. I
am not implying that the mutilations are still occurring as frequently and
that a fantastic "cover-up" has been implemented, but X do believe that
they (mutilations) are still happening on a limited basis (in Logan County,
anyway) and that the ranchers and other involved citizens are no longer re�
porting the strange deaths to the proper authorities because doing so, of
course, would be in vain,
GREELEY (Colo,) TRIBUNE, 10-12-85. Credit: Monty Gaddy, Linda M. Howe,
Bill Jackson, David Perkins, Shirley Rickard)
KANSAS
The carcass of an 11-year-old cow was discovered near Sawyer, in Pratt co.,
Kansas, on February 10, 1985. An approx* 14-inch-diameter circle was cut
away from the rear of the cow,removing the anus and vagina. There was no
sign of bleeding, no tracks of coyotes or other predators * only the tracks
of the cow's 2i-month-old calf. The cow was pregnant again. A veterinarian
who lived nearby came to look, said he couldn�t figure out how the animal
died.
MONTANA
Cascade County (another area reeking with mutilation-related lore). In late
October, a horse was found dead between Vaughn and Fairfield in NW Cascade
County. The horse could be seen lying in a strange position on top of a
hill. On Halloween night, owner Tom Denning went to investigate, Denning
told the GREAT FALLS TRIBUNE:
"We noticed the face was stripped back on one side, completely cut back right
down to the bone 11 , Denning said. "All you could see was the jaw and the skull.
Cn the back end, the sexual organs were cut out in (a) circular pattern and re�
moved, and the maaimaries were also removed". He said an ear and an eyeball al�
so were missing, and neck moscles were removed to expose the windpipe, "It's
really strange", Denning said. "The cuts are so precise. Where it's skinned
off her face, it's an absolutely straight cut with nothing left at all except
the bone structure".
Denning was mystified by the lack of any evidence of bleeding, Capt. Keith
Wolverton of the Cascade County Sheriff's Office investigated. The GREAT
FALLS TRIBUNE asked Sheriff Glenn Osborne about the results of Wolverton T s
investion, Osborne stated that Wolverton "said it was nothing but preda�
tors". When contacted by the newspaper, Wolverton refused to comment. Tom
Denning, the owner of the horse and an eighth-grade schoolteacher, disa�
greed with Wolverton's conclusion:
"He tried to tell me it was predators on the back end", Denning said, "There's
443
22
no way I'd agree with that because it was too precise a cut - it wasn't
southing that was chewed out. It was a perfectly circular pattern. If it
was a predator, it would have had jagged edges". While Wblvertcn said
predators might have caused the cuts on the hack of the animal , Denning
said ffolvertcn could not explain the cuts to the horse's face. "He said
it was unusual and he had no ansrars", Denning said. There have been re�
ports of cattle mutilations in the Sun River Valley over the past nine
years. (GREAT FALLS TRIBUNE, Ndv. 8, 1985; Credit: James R. Laning)
NEW JERSEY
In Atlantic City, in July 1985, police arrested 19 people of Cuban descent
in an apartment strewn with the remains of chickens, ducks and lambs, buc�
kets of blood, and ritualistic altars. Hundreds of chicken, duck and lamb
parts were discovered, along with three lamb carcasses minus legs and a
number of live fowl. The practitioners were in various stages of butcher�
ing and blood-smeared reverie. A similar scene had been discovered in a
house in Pleasantville, near Atlantic City, a week earlier. We mention all
this for contrast with our other data. This would not be considered "clas�
sic" animal mutilation evidence. (WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL; Madison, Wiscon�
sin; July 23, 1985; Credit; Richard W* Heiden).
NEW MEXICO
There were no known livestock mutilations reported in New Mexico in 1984,
not even in Rio Arriba County - like Elbert, El Paso and Logan Counties in
Colorado - a perennial mutilation "hot spot". That was almost the case in
1985 - for only one case was reported, in - where else? - Rio Arriba Coun�
ty.
It had been a year and a half since the last mutilation in the county, un�
til Friday, March 29, 1985. When rancher Tony Martinez went out to feed his
cattle that morning, he discovered the carcass of a 5-year-old registered
Hereford cow. The udder, anus and genitals appeared to have been removed
with "the clean slice of a knife". The animal had been alive and well at
around 2:00 PM the previous day. Although the cow was found within a couple
of hundred yards of the ranch house, family members heard nothing during
that night, Martinez told reporter Thom Barnes of the RIO GRANDE SUN (Es-
panola, NM):
"It seemed Like (the cattle) were scared or something", he said, adding the
cattie were acting unnaturally. No sign of a struggle was apparent near the
cow, but Martinez said ground around the area was stirred up slightly, prob�
ably by movement of the other cattle. The dead cow had no visible wounds other
than the mutilated areas, and Martinez said he has no idea what caused her
death. "You can usually tell if a cow is sick and she looked fine yesterday",
he said. Martinez checks his 65 head of Herefords daily. Martinez left the cow
as he found her after covering her with a blanket, and called N.M. State Police.
444
23
Officer Keith Elder arrived about S a.nu to examine the ccw and found the
carcass intact, lout stiff and bloated- Elder observed there was no blood on
the ground and speculated the cuts could have been made with a hunting knife.
Elder found no apparent cause of death, but noted no signs of an animal at�
tack.
In a bit of a twist (as far as most potentially-genuine mutilation cases
are concerned, anyway}, predators did address themselves to the carcass
that Friday night. Dogs were apparently the culprits. Cattle inspector ar�
rived to view the carcass after the dogs had been at work. Based on what
he learned from Officer Elder, inspector Ray Gallegos considered that the
case might be �authentic 11 . He remarked that mutilation reports were rare in
the southern part of vast Rio Arriba County; that most of the reports ov�
er the previous decade emanated from the northern fringe of the county, a-
round Dulce, Chama and Cuba.(RIO GRANDE SUN;Espanola, NM; April 4, 1985)
OHIO
In April 1985, there was a flurry of media coverage focused on Union County,
Ohio, just northwest of Columbus. The sheriff, John Overly, had appointed
a deputy, John Lala, to work full-time investigating an outbreak of "an�
imal mutilations" and ritual slaughters believed associated with at Least
five groups of "satanic worshipers" thought to frequent the area. Lala's
investigation began in December of 1984. He said there had been at least
200 animal mutilations in Union County, involving the torturing of lambs,
dogs and other animals, the eating of the animals f flesh and the drinking
of their blood. Union County, just 20-or-so miles from Columbus, was said
to offer cultists remote areas where they could do their thing without de�
tection. Overly & Lala were worried that the crimes could escalate from
animal mutilations to something even more serious. But the most gruesome
findings (this gets grim; younger readers should stop here): Lala was ab�
le to enter certain Union County homes and photograph bookshelves i These
shelves contained such titles as" THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ANCIENT AND FORBIDDEN
KNOWLEDGE, THE ANATOMY OF WITCHCRAFT and MAGICKS AND CEREMONIES (Wo-O-O-e,
baby! A dead give-away if we ever heard of onel). Further north in Ohio,in
Toledo and Lucas County, authorities were looking into reports that cult�
ists had ritually slaughtered up to 75 people, most of them children and
newborn babies. Unidentified informants were making such claims, anyway.
{Sources: DAILY OKLAHOMAN, 4-16-85; THE MONTANA STANDARD (Butte,MT),4-16-
85; THE PLAIN DEALER (Cleveland,OH),4-15-85; NATIONAL EXAMINER, 4-9-85;
NEW YORK POST, 6-21-85. Credit: Jack Gilluly, R.W. Andersen)
SOUTH CAROLINA
Spartanburg County: Two dogs were found decapitated in December, one near
Campobello, one near Inman. More such incidents would be reported in the
county in 1986.(CHARLOTTE <NC) OBSERVER, Feb. 1 5, 1 986;Credit: George Fawcett)
445
24
SOUTH DAKOTA
In May (5-22-85), a possible cattle mutilation was reported near Porcupine,
on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, the site of several mutilations In
recent years. The cow was found around sundown about 2-3 miles from both
the owner's house and the nearest road. Normally, anyone going to the
site would have to pass right by the owner's house. The cow, laying on
its left side, suffered mutilation of the rectal area, the tongue, the
jaw (''skinned 1 ') and the udder (cut off deep into the peritoneum, the mem�
brane lining the abdominal cavity and covering the viscera). The jaw-
skinning extended partially around from one side of the snout to the oth�
er. Some white material was found on the carcass - white flecks like paint
flipped off a paintbrush. No known anaysis was performed. Some sort of
"skid mark" was said to be on the ground nearby. Nine or ten paces to the
northeast of the carcass were pieces of flesh, apparently from the victim
cow. As investigators left the scene, other cows came up to stand over and
sniff at the carcass. (Sources: David Brewer, Linda M. Howe)
TEXAS
In early January, 1985, a rancher in Duval County in South Texas found a
cow missing. The carcass of the animal was discovered the next day in a
field 11 miles south of San Diego, Texas. The cow was 12 years old, lead�
ing Deputy Adolio Briones to suggest the animal probably died of old age
and certain body parts were eaten away by buzzards. He suggested the ani�
mal had probably died two weeks before it was found, directly contradic�
ting the rancher, Tomas Hinojosa,and his brothers. Briones felt that re�
cent cold spells in the area had preserved the carcass longMrthan normal.
The CORPUS CHRISTI CALLER reported that:
Hinojosa disagreed.
She cow had not been dead for tw> weeks, Hinojosa said. One of his brothers
saw the animal the day before it was discovered missing, he said, and the ani�
mal was found dead the following ni^it.
The animal's tongue, tail and genitals had been removed, with "clean inci�
sions". There was no blood or evidence of bleeding. Both Hinojosa and the
deputy, Briones, agreed that there was no blood in the carcass.
There was not enou^i time for the animal's carcass to decay to a great extent
nor for the blood to dry up, ac c ording to Hinojosa. "We cut into it ard the
meat was still fresh", he said. Hinojosa, who was bom and raised cn the
ranch he owns, said that he has seen many dead cows and animals through the
course of his life. ''But not with these characteristics", he said."l have
seen a lot of dead animals eaten by buzzards and coyotes", he said, adding
that the carcass.does not have the signs of teving been preyed upon by
buzzrds.Another strange twist in the incident was that no drops of blood
or tracks of any kind were found at the scene.....Hinojosa was missing two
other animals as of last week. The animals were discovered missing the day
446
25
that the carcass was found, said Hinojosa.
(Source; CORPUS CHRISTI (TX) CALLER; Jan. 31,1985 ;Credit: Walter H,Andrus,Jr,)
In mid-March of 1985, the remains of two horses were found near Leander in
Central Texas, along the Williamson/Travis County line. The animals were
evidently found just across the line in Travis County, as that county's
sheriff's office investigated- The owner of the horses was Mrs, Connie Gra�
dy, who was alerted by a neighbor that two horses were down. The 7-year-old
gelding and the 10-year-old mare were found in a 130 acre pasture (not ter�
ribly isolated; people living nearby) about 50 feet apart. The WILLIAMSON
COUNTY SUN reported that...
An autopsy was performed on the horses by a Round Rock veterinarian, who said
the horses had been mutilated. He said he was unable to determine the cause of
death. Hie veterinarian, Guy Rowland, told the Sun that the animals were killed,
the eyes then removed, their tongues cut out and their sex organs sliced off,
"The mutilations had been dene after the horses were dead", Rowland said. He
said he conducted a thorouefr examination of the horses and he could find no
signs of starvation or disease.
He said the animals were killed by people. He estimated that the first horse
had been dead for about 24 hours before it was discovered- The second animal had
been dead for about 48 hours- Rowland speculated that the horses may have been
drugged before they died. He added that he found evidence around the bodies that
a struggle had occurred. ,f That was obvious around both horses", the veterinarian
said. "This is the first time I've ever seen anything like this". Rowland's prac�
tice is centered entirely on horses. He has been a veterinarian for about five
years, practicing in Round Rock for three and a half years.
There was little or no bleeding from either mare and Dr. Rowland told Pro�
ject Stigma it was for this reason that he suspected the animals had been
mutilated some time after death. On one animal - the mare - both eyes were
taken, leaving "cleaned out 11 , white eye sockets. In addition to the muti�
lation of the tongue and genitals, as reported by the newspaper, the rec�
tal area was also damaged on the 7*months-pregnant mare. There was also
evidence that the mare had a broken hip, according to Dr, Rowland- Only one
eye was taken from the gelding, and there was a cut "around the penis",al�
though it is unclear whether the penis was taken. The Austin, Texas, sher�
iff's office investigated- They would not discuss the case with the inquir�
ing newspaper. As of June, 1985, they had never contacted Mrs. Grady re�
garding the results of their investigation, (WILLIAMSON COUNTY SUN; George�
town, Texas; April 17, 1985* Credit: Walter H, Andrus, Jr.; Connie Grady;
Guy Rowland, DVM)
On Saturday, July 6, 1985, a helicopter pilot flying over a farm near Kel�
ler, Tarrant County (near Port Worth) saw the carcasses of approximately 50
cows of various sizes and ages, lying in a circle. Sheriff's deputies and
the Humane Society of North Texas investigated, but no one could find the
carcasses, A Society official said about 12 horse had been found dead and
sexually mutilated in the Keller area in the preceding year, (FORT WORTH
STAR-TELEGRAM; July 7 & 8, 1985, Credit: Philip White)
447
26
CANADA - MANITOBA
We have details on only one mutilation report from Canada in 1985 - cer�
tainly a far cry from the "peak 11 year for mutilations in Canada - 1979*
The Moosehorn area of Manitoba lies between Lake Manitoba and Lake Winni�
peg, about 100 miles north of the city of Winnipeg. A cow was killed under
"suspicious circumstances u on a Moosehorn-area farm around Sunday, October
20, 1985, Wesley Cook and his son)* Lyle, spent the weekend combining on
their farm. They were still at it on Tuesday afternoon, October 22* Mrs*
Wesley Cook was using binoculars to watch her husband, in case he became
stuck while combining. At the same time, she used the binoculars to watch
some calves, when she noticed a cow on the ground* She informed her hus�
band, and, according to a Stonewall, Manitoba newspaper:
Cbok called the RCMP that evening because he believed the cow had not died
of natural causes* On Wednesday morning an RCMP officer arrived with Dr* L.
Milin, the Ashem area veterinarian. Dr* Milin inspected the animl and re�
ports, "Saneone cut the throat of the animal and it bled out, then the tongue
and udder were cut off". The dead cow was found in approximately the centre
of an open field about 160 acres in size. There are roads on two sides of the
field and the site is in plain view of roads and a farm site.
"We were containing practically around the clock all weekend". Cook said, "and
on Saturday, we worked through until 5:30 Sunday morning* I saw sane lights
driving up and down the roads but at the time I never thought anything of it".
Wesley Cook told Project Stigma that he did not pay a lot of attention to
the car lights, even though that road is rarely traveled, especially at
night. Something else occurred that same night - Saturday night/Sunday
morning- Every now and then, Wesley Cook noticed a "flicker" of light in
a nearby field - as though from a flashlight being quickly turned on and
off. On Tuesday, the cow was found just where the lights had been located
that Sunday morning. More from the Stonewall newspaper:
When asked what they thought had happened, Wesley Cook explained, "I believe
that saneone is doing a demonic ritual, killing and taking the tongue, udder
and blood for an occult ritual". Lyle Oook, Vtesley's son and farm partner
agreed, "It's got to be something haywire like that because if they were rust�
ling beef, they would have taken sane choice cuts of beef".
When RCMP officers were asked if there was any connection between this kill
and four others which happened in 1982 and were described in a similar way by
some area residents, RCMP spokesman for the Ashem detachment said, "No, there
is no connection because all the rest died of natural causes". The dead ani�
mals in 1982 were found between July and October with locations as far apart
as Pecnan Point and Siglunes. Records of the 1982 incidents show the causes
of death as natural and mutilations on those carcasses were caused by scav�
engers, coyotes, wolves, skunks and birds. When asked for a statement regard�
ing the dead Ocw on Cbok's pasture, the RCMP spokesman stated, ,l We can 1 ! de�
termine fould play tut we can't rule it out either."
27
Wesley Cook told Project Stigma that, despite the throat of the 8-to-10-
year-old cow having been cut, there was no evidence of bleeding nor blood
on the gound. When asked if he thought it was possible that the cow could
have been cut upon elsewhere and then deposited at the site. Cook said he
fej-t certain that the animal just fell and sta_yed where she was found. The
veterinarian. Dr. Milin, noting the lack of blood on the ground, decided
to have a look at the animal's heart. He cut out the heart and cut it o-
pen. There was no blood in the heart. {STONEWALL ARGUS/TEULON TIMES; Stone�
wall, Manitoba; October 30, 1985. Credit: Denis Corneau)
UNITED KINGDOM - WALES
On one night in May, 21 lambs were found dead under unusual circumstances
on two farms at Tywyn, South Gwynedd, Wales. The farms were owned by Mr.
Richard Lewis and Major Norman Corbett* On one side of each of the Iambs 1
carcasses was a puncture wound the size of a lOp coin (about the size of
a U. S� half dollar). Apparently, in the month of May, approximately 120
sheep were killed in the same manner in the area. Only one kind of lamb
was targeted: white Welsh ewes. Brown and off-white lambs and male lambs
were apparently ignored. It was revealed that Major Corbett and other a-
rea farmers had found other dead lambs In 1984 - each with the same round
puncture wound. The lamb deaths stopped abruptly in October 1984 but be�
gan again in May 1985. It is not known whether any necropsies or other a-
nalyses were conducted. (SUNDAY EXPRESS; May ?, 1985; NATIONAL EXAMINER;
July 2, 1985. Credit: David Taylor)
Mr. David Taylor was also kind enough to provide us with the following it�
em from the DAILY MAIL, September 21, 1985:
In September 1985 the savagely mutilated bodies of 100 animals and birds
were found on the mid-Glamorgan refuse tip at Maesycwmer in Wales. The
grisly collection in plastic bags included goat hooves, fox heads, canaries,
budgies, badgers, moles, hares and stoats. There were no vivisection labora�
tories in the area, and an official said that they would not experiment with
protected species like badgers anyway.
ANIMAL MUTILATIONS IN NORTH AMERICA
PRELIMINARY FINDINGS BY A GROUP OF FRENCH SCIENTISTS
by JEAN SIDER
J. Sider, the writer of this article, was contacted late in 1983 by a team
of scientists working in French universities and state agencies, in order
to obtain a maximum of credible clues about animal mutilation cases repor�
ted in some states of the U.S.A. and several provinces of Canada. Previous�
ly, the writer had gathered an important file of newsclippings about these
kinds of incidents, obtained in particular with the kindness of Mr. Tom
Adams, American private researcher specializing in animal mutilation af�
fairs. The purposes of these French scientists were based upon a sociolog-
449
28
ical and historiai study of these incidents in order to verify the possible
revival of ancient cults in North America practising ritual ceremonies with
organs of animals, on the one hand, and on the other hand, to analyse the
impact of these events and their perception by all the parties concerned
with these incidents, in order to see if a new modern myth was developing
in North America*
The writer began an attempt by mail to gather a maximum of data such as
police reports, necropsy reports, and so on - and up to now, more than 600
potential American and Canadian correspondents have been contacted* Alas,
we have seen immediately with the first answers that we have received, that
a sort of wall of diverse obstructions has appeared before us, For differ�
ent reasons, most of our potential correspondents refused or eluded our re�
quests for assistance, or more simply did not answer our letters.
Of these 600 letters, we have received about 100 answers, of which maybe
thirty contained copies of various more-or-less credible documents, such
as those described above* Among those correspondents agreeing to give us
their assistance, there are several county sheriffs (four from Colorado),
University Colleges of Veterinary Medicine (among them: Colo.State Univ.,
Fort Collins) and also several state police agencies (such as the Colorado
Bureau of Investigation). We have also solicited the help of some state Go�
vernors. The Honourable Richard D. Lamm, Governor of Colorado, was probab�
ly the most co-operative American high official to help us in our research.
Unfortunately, the information obtained from the Colorado Bureau of Inves�
tigations (CBI through the kindness of Governer Lamm, are without great in�
terest in our study.
In spite of these difficulties, we have made some preliminary findings which
are of interest. The first discovery was the fact that neither satanic cults
nor other pseudo-religious underground groups were responsible for all of
these incidents. It was a material impossibility. We have checked this point
out with several American & Canadian sociologists, and have ruled out the
existence of rituals of this kind among such groups, involving the handling
of very heavy animals, sometimes weighing several hundred pounds.
Our second finding concerns state veterinarians working for state depart�
ments of agriculture or livestock boards. Despite numerous requests for doc�
uments from these agencies, we have never obtained so much as one necropsy
report, as if this type of document was top-secret information. The rare
state veterinarians who answered our letters always denied the existence
of livestock mutilations by humans. But as we have obtained necropsy records
from other sources, in which it is stated that a sharp instrument is used -
some of these coming precisely from these same state departments of agricul�
ture or livestock boards - that means that these state veterinarians have
written inaccurate assertions. The same thing occurred involving two heads
of animal science diagnostic laboratories of state universities (T).
The third finding concerns the "official" investigators especially appoint�
ed to inquire into the cattle mutilations in some states. Not only have they
not conducted serious investigations, but their thought processes have been
450
curious. For instance# Mr. Carl Whiteside of the CBI in Den 1
ted in 1975 to investigate cattle mutilation cases in Color,
spite of this official commission, the CBI never conducted
tion in situ; in other words - in the field. The three CBI
ting examinations of samples of hide from mutilated animals
uates in animal pathology, an enormous lacuna in this insta:
ver was appoin-
ado. But in
an investiga-
axperts conduc-
were not grad-
ace.
Another typical example: In 1979 several Canadian areas, in
ta, were subjected to these type of incidents, A special in*
appointed to inquire into these affairs: Corporal Lyn Laube
ous Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Pleae note: a simple cor^
duct a special investigation, which meant many things to ou
ral Lauber gave numerous statements to the media. In Februa
stated that 150 cases had been reported to the RCMP. Of thi
were confirmed '�classic mutilations 11 , perpetrated almost in
ner, 12 cases were "copy-cats 11 , done in rough fashion. In t
the cause of death was not determined- 13 other cases were
tilations, but the cause of death was natural and identifie
sic mutilations 11 were attributed to "cults 11 ; the "copy cats
excited by the media coverage- But later, in June 1980 (cur
ter the disclosure of the final conclusions of another "off
gator, former FBI agent Kenneth Rommel in New Mexico) the R
that all the so-called mutilations were the result of damag
animals. We have written two requests for information to th
the "K" Division, Edmonton, and the other to the superinten
We have received two answers, entirely negative, of course,
culprits were named: predatory animals. Most curious was th
both texts were rigorously identical. For us, it was an evi
usion in an effort to dissimulate some ambarrassing facts.
2 �
eluding Alber-
vestigator was
r of the fam-
poral to con-
r group. Corpo-
ry 1980, he
s number, 13
a surgical man-
hese 25 cases,
"possible' 1 mu-
I. The "clas-
to pranksters
iously, justaf-
icial" investi-
EMP claimed
e by predatory
5 RCMP: one to
lent, Calgary.
in which the
e fact that
ience of coll-
In the O.S.A., the thought processes of some police agencie
same* Almost all of the investigators first claimed that "s
were responsible for the animals' deaths. Then, suddenly, t
without adequate explanation, accused predatory animals. Fo
havior indicated that there was something wrong somewhere.
Our fourth finding, probably the most important of all, rel
behavior of predators and scavengers invented by several Am
tists - in particular by some state veterinarians who have
to give inaccurate statements to oblige some "official" inv
as Kenneth Rommel. A great act of dishonesty has been perpe
is very easy to prove it. According to all the French and
in wildlife that we have consulted, the following should be
ing predatory and scavenging animals:
s was much the
atanic cults"
hese policemen,
r us, this be-
afces to a new
erican scien-
not hesitated
estigators such
trated, and it
erican experts
noted regard-
Am
(1) There are no predatory and scavenging animals in the wo
ability to makes cuts as straight and smooth as a sharp ins
knife, scalpel, scissors. The animals have neither the phys
the intelligence to act in such a manner.
rid having the
trument, such as
ical means nor
(2) When predatory and scavenging animals are feeding on th
large mammal (whether dead of natural causes or killed by h
begin by tearing into the abdomen, first devouring the vise
e carcass of a
umans), they
era, particular-
451
30
ly the digestive viscera, then the muscular masses. They have no special
attraction for the sex organs, the ears and the lips, and they are not in
the habit of cutting out precise sections of hide without taking out the
good flesh below. On the contrary, they prefer the flesh over the hide,
(3) There are several species of predators and scavengers in the areas of
the incidents. These species come one after another to feed on a carcass.A
carcass is generally devoured within 12 to 36 hours after death. This de�
pends on various factors: abundance of particular species, the distance
from human presence, the climate and temperature, and so on. Generally, af�
ter 48 hours, a carcass is usually cleaned to the bones.
All persons, whoever they may be, having claimed that predators and scaven�
gers were able to duplicate cuts made by surgical tools, have not respected
the scientific knowledge on this manner, and they have acted with dishones�
ty. For those interested in scientific works in this field, we would sug�
gest: Procedures for Evaluating Predation on Livestock and Wildlife by Drs.
Dale A. Wade and James �. Bowns, 1981, published jointly by the Texas Agri�
cultural Extension Service, the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station and
the Texas A4M University system, under the auspices of the United States
Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior. Additionally, we have
consulted with the best French specialists, including Professor A.L.Parodi,
head of the Animal Pathological Anatomy Department at the National Veter�
inary School of Alfort, near Paris, the only school of this kind in France,
All of our American and French consultants are in agreement with the three
points above regarding the behavior of predators and scavengers. We submit�
ted to our consultants a set of photographs showing cattle mutilated in
various states of the U.S, A State Veterinarian belonging to a state live�
stock board in a northern state claimed that the pictures indicated damage
by predatory animals. But all of our consultants have assured our group
that the wounds depicted on these photos were made with a sharp instrument.
We still have an important lack of data. For instance, we have not obtained
a single report from some of the Colorado County sheriff departments who
became very involved in mutilation affairs. We received a reply from the
El Paso County Sheriff's Department, in which a Lieutenant Jere T. Joiner
stated: "All reports from 1975 are on microfilm and are unable to be ex�
tracted without a case report number". Later on, we obtained several case
report numbers from Mr. Carl Whiteside of the CBI in Denver. These were
relative to incidents occurring in El Paso County. We sent these numbers in
another letter to Lt. Joiner. We never received a reply, in spite of a third
letter to the County Sheriff, Bernard J. Barry*?* Another example is a reply
we received from the sheriff of Logan County, Colorado, Donald Bollish: "At
that time I was not sheriff and when I took office all records were taken
with Hr. Tex Graves when he left office". From Douglas County, Mr. Robert
M. Kraus, Chief of Operations: "My denial of your request is based on a
fire that totally burned the sheriff's department records and office in
1977", But later on, we found that there was a case reported after that
year, on September 10, 1982. In a letter dated April 17, 1985, Sheriff
Steve Zotos told us: "I have checked the computer records kept in this of�
fice and I have been unable to find any report having been made".
With some states, including Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Texas and others,
452
31
numerous letters were sent to state police agencies, and even to their at�
torneys general and governors* We never received letters from these agen�
cies, not even perfunctory courtesy replies. This makes it difficult for
our group to gain an understanding of the situations that developed in the
areas where these events were occurring- In spite of this, we have succeed�
ed in gathering a good file containing more than 100 police reports and a-
bout 50 necropsy reports, with most coming from private veterinarians and
colleges of veterinary medicine at state universities. We also have 5 ne�
cropsy reports from state veterinarians (state departments of agriculture
and state livestock boards). This data has allowed our group to make some
observations, including the following?
(1) Many police reports claim that there was no blood on or around the car�
casses, leading to the assumption that all the blood had been drained off by
the mutilators. This appears to have occurred in rare cases, but this is
generally not an accurate assumption. We have noted that, in almost all ca�
ses, the animal had been dead several hours before being mutilated. In real�
ity, the blood had clotted in the viscera, arteries and veins. Consequent�
ly, the fact that no hemorrhagic effusion occurred is explainable. Moreov�
er, we have noted that in several cases the animal was probably killed by a
strong electric output (by lightning or by artificial means). Except per�
haps for some burns, the cause of death is not evident for police investi�
gators. We have several cases in our files with burns on the carcass. Also,
a death by lightning or other artificial electrical means causes a rapid
blood clotting in the carcass.
(2) We have noted that in several cases there are indications that the ani�
mal was displaced in an upward movement, then in a downward movement, as
though somebody or something had lifted up the animal. However, we do not
have sufficient data to drawn a conclusion on this point. Indeed, as we
have noted, it is possible that pranksters were active during some of these
events. Some of them (perhaps even helicopter pilots from the USAF, one
never knows) may have perpetrated hoaxes to mystify policemen and ranchers.
We have noted in some reports that policemen have found tracks on the ground
much like those of a landed helicopter. This might explain some cases where
the feet or limbs of the animal were broken or dislocated. Certainly this
is all a hypothesis only, not an affirmation.
Our first conclusions will be very limited and circumspect. There are pro�
bably good explanations in most of the cases, but the curious behavior of
some "official" investigators and state veterinarians have helped to give
these incidents an aura of mystery. Veritably, the question is not: Who were
the mutilators (because they probably will never be identified, be they
prankster, madmen, farmers taking revenge or making insurance claims, and
so on)? But rather the question is: Why have authorities in some states ex�
hibited behavior incompatible with their duty, having created an atmosphere
of suspicion, making rather sad statements without facing the reality of a
situation which seemed to be beyond them?
Footnotes :
(1) There are always exceptions. Following the completion of the report a-
bove, I have received two necropsy reports from the Utah Department of Ag-
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riculture, and three from the Arkansas Livestock Board, these last being
obtained from another agency different from the one with which they origi�
nated,
(2> A few weeks after the completion of this report, I received six reports
from the El Paso County (Colorado) Sheriff Vs Office, the six reports match�
ing the case numbers obtained from Mr, Carl Whiteside- But these reports
provide poor documentation and little of scientific interest- I think that
these case numbers were provided by the CBI in Denver because of their
lack of evidence . Almost one hundred reports of cattle mutilation have been
recorded by the El Paso County Sheriff�s Office between mid-1975 and 1982,
(3) The fact that'they suddenly modified their point of view about these
incidents, without the least apparent reason, indicates that most likely
orders, from a superior level, were given to stop the investigations- This
is a supposition only. But in blaming predatory animals, there were no more
human mutilators to arrest.
Livestock mutilations in 1986 have occurred in such states as Alabama, New
Mexico (Rio Arriba County, naturally), South Dakota, Washington and Kentuc�
ky- Details will be provided in STIGMATA No, 24, which we are planning as a
separate publication in 1986.
Please share any potentially-mutilation-related news you may come across
with us. Also, we would like to ask if any readers have info to share re�
garding any of the following:
(1) An "outrageous 11 film titled "Cattle Mutilations" by George Kuchar. (2)
the "mysterious deaths 11 of 100 pigs on a farm in Dane County,Wisconsin (no
date), (3) Rumors of animal mutilations and black, unidentified helicopters
in the vicinity of the sensitive U,S,/Australian "Pine Gap" installation
Down Under. (4) A cattle mutilation near Kingman, Kansas in October 1967.
(5) Livestock mutilations somewhere along the Arizona/New Mexico border in
1985 and/or 1966.
In May 1985, 74 cattle were killed during Army war games at Fort Hunter Lig�
gett, California.Odessa, Texas college professor Gayland Hurst says
there may be 10,000 "devil worshippers" in Texas..Cleburne,Texas: A
murder trial defendant was prompted to confess his guilt after watching a
"very gross" movie: "Endangered Species"..Protomorphogins or "glandu-
lars", the ground-up glands of cattle, are being consumed by some nutri�
tion-minded humans. These goodies must be properly refined, though, or one�s
own glands will be prevented from producing hormones-
NOTE TO SUBSCRIBERS: Anyone who subscribed to both CRUX (#2) and STIGMATA
(#23) this year will have their subscriptions extended into next year.
