Reports from the Void: 'This Was the Scariest, Most Freakish Thing I've Ever Seen'

The Singular Fortean Society received the following report from a man via email on April 29th, 2020:

As I was headed to work, driving down 1050 North in Chesterton, I noticed a very odd, strange-looking flying "thing" approaching above my vehicle. As it flew past, I [saw] something that I've never seen before and something I can hardly explain. This creature was four to five feet long and flew in the air almost like how a snake moves on the ground. The tail of it looked almost like how a peacock tail would look with feathers on it. The head of it looked like a fish with sharp teeth coming out of it and it had very small, what seemed to be almost like bat wings, flapping.
As a police officer, this was the scariest, most freakish thing I've ever seen in my life. I told my wife about it, and we tried looking the creature up on Google, but found nothing until I came across this article and [saw] what this man had said he [had] seen. I'll never forget the day I [saw] this creature. It's so crazy to even explain and talk about, because I don't have a clue what I was even looking at.

Presumably, the witness is referring to Chesterton, Indiana, although that was unable to be confirmed, nor is it clear to which article he was referring, although it could have been one of the previously published pterosaur sightings—such as this one out of Wheaton, Illinois, published in July of 2019.

Lead investigator Tobias Wayland replied to the witness’s email in an attempt to gather more information, but no response was ever received.

A handful of potential pterosaur sightings have been received out of Gary, Indiana—a city on the southern shore of Lake Michigan—within the past several years, including a total of four sightings had by a husband and wife from 2015 to 2016. Two more recent sighting reports of an unexplained flying creature from September 2018 and January 2019 also exist, although they arguably could have been more humanoid in nature.

Assuming that the submitted report is referring to Chesterton, Indiana, then Gary is less than 20 miles to the west.

Many reported sightings of pterosaurs and other anomalous flying animals take place near the same areas in which flying humanoids have been reported around Lake Michigan.

Three officially published sightings of weird, winged humanoids have so far been reported near Muncie, Indiana; one each in 2007, 2011, and 2018.

These sightings all centered around the Prairie Creek Reservoir, which is around two miles southeast of Muncie, and approximately 140 miles southeast of Lake Michigan. Less than five miles to its south is Summit Lake State Park. Gary is the same distance from this sighting location as the great lake, around 140 miles to the west of the reservoir.

Numerous sightings of winged, flying humanoids have also been reported in the Chicago area within a few dozen miles west of Gary.

Because of its proximity to other unexplained sighting reports, this report could be related to the string of ‘Mothman’ sightings from within a few hundred mile radius surrounding Lake Michigan, including every state bordering the great lake. These sightings ostensibly began in the spring of 2017, but more historical accounts are being reported as more people become aware of the phenomenon. They generally take place in the evening or at night, often in or near a park, and around water. Witnesses consistently describe a large, gray or black, bat or bird-like creature—although in a small number of cases the creature was described as insect-like—sometimes with glowing or reflective red, yellow, green, or orange eyes, and humanoid features such as arms and legs are often reported. Some witnesses have reported feeling intense fear and an aura of evil emanating from the creature they encountered. Many of the sightings are also of something seen only briefly or are described only as a flying creature with few details, which leaves open the possibility that a large bird or bird-like being could explain some—although certainly not all—of the encounters. A number of associated high strangeness incidents have also occurred alongside the creature sightings; including reports of UFOs, other anomalous flying creatures and mysterious humanoids, parapsychological phenomena, and bizarre events experienced by those investigating the sightings.

To report a sighting reach out to us directly at the Singular Fortean Society through our contact page.

You can view a timeline of the sightings so far here.

Reports from the Void is a repository to share those stories for which we do not have enough information to make a full report. This is usually because of little or no communication from the witness following their initial submission. The Singular Fortean Society will always provide as much information as possible regarding any correspondence during our attempts to speak with those involved.

To report your own encounter with the impossible, reach out to us directly at the Singular Fortean Society through our contact page.

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