Witnesses Claim to Have Recorded Three "Winged Humanoids" in Bensenville, Illinois

The objects cannot be seen moving in the four second video. *(Manuel Navarette / UFO Clearinghouse)*

Manuel Navarette of UFO Clearinghouse recently received the following report from a man who said he was outside with his daughter in Bensenville, Illinois, when, at approximately 4 p.m. on May 17th, they witnessed “three human-shaped objects that looked like they had wings flying overhead.”

I was outside in my backyard and preparing for a family cookout with my daughter, when we both saw what I can only describe as three human-shaped objects that looked like they had wings flying overhead. It looked like they were all flying in circles about 60 to 70 feet above us and moving toward the expressway to the west of us. My daughter took out her camera and tried her best to take video of the flying people, but they did come out a bit grainy and unfocused.
She and I were talking about how we had both been hearing about the Mothman that seemed to haunt O’Hare, and since the airport is only about a mile and a half down Irving Park Road, it seemed logical to me that this could be the same thing. We kept watching them until they were no longer able to be seen and I asked her to please send me the video. I know it’s not much, I tried my best, but I’m an electrician and I’m not a professional photographer.
I can tell you that these were not planes and there were no planes in the area, and since we are accustomed to seeing planes landing, they pass over our house at very low altitude and would have been very plain to see and hear in great detail. I have lived at this house for over 10 years and we are quite used to seeing these planes as they come in to land at the airport. These flying things were too high up and too small to be mistaken for any sort of aircraft.
You didn’t need to be an expert to make out their shapes as roughly humanlike and what appeared to be wings, it could have been birds but these birds would have been pretty large if they were.

Navarette said he was able to speak with the witness about his sighting.

The man told Navarette that he was outside with his 15-year-old daughter, preparing their patio for an upcoming cookout, when they saw what appeared to be three winged humanoids flying 60 feet above them, circling overhead, "like buzzards do."

His daughter attempted to record a video of the creatures, which was later sent to UFO Clearinghouse.

Notably, the objects in the video are completely motionless, which might indicate an error that occurred when the video was shot or shared with UFO Clearinghouse. Navarette told the Singular Fortean Society that he has reached out to the witness about the anomaly, and this article will be updated with any new information as it is received.

"The witness stated that he was certain it was not a plane or any other sort of powered aircraft and stated that the area he lives in is in-line with the nearby O’Hare international Airport runways and he is used to seeing planes fly overhead on final approach to land at the airport," Navarette said.

The investigator said the man explained that planes "are extremely low in altitude and clearly visible in great detail and make a lot of noise as they fly overhead," and that "these objects were too small and too high up to be planes and were completely silent when they flew overhead."

Both father and daughter reportedly watched as the objects flew out of sight, to the west and towards Route 83.

"When asked if he had seen anything similar to this, the witness stated he had not and this was his first time seeing anything, although they had heard the reports coming from O’Hare airport about the string of winged humanoid sightings that have happened there in the past," Navarette said.

The village of Bensenville is directly adjacent to O’Hare International Airport, which has been the epicenter of recent winged humanoid sightings in the Lake Michigan Mothman investigation, with over a dozen sighting reports coming from the airport itself since August of 2019, and many more reported in the surrounding communities. Reports from the larger investigation have come from every state bordering Lake Michigan and date back to 1957.

Enlarged images of the objects in the video. *(Lon Strickler / Phantoms & Monsters)*

Navarette concluded by saying, "It is highly recommended that an investigator be dispatched to the area to gather photographic and video evidence and conduct a field investigation. The witness stated that he and his daughter would be open to talking to an investigator face-to-face if they were available. It is [my] opinion that the case merits further investigation and that it be forwarded to the Phantom & Monsters Fortean Research Team for further investigation. Once a field investigation is conducted all details will be posted to the UFO Clearinghouse website for further analysis."

This article will be updated with any further details from that investigation as they are reported.

The case described by Navarette bears a strong resemblance to one that took place in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood in May of 2018.

That sighting involved a man who was bicycling to work one afternoon when he saw what he would later describe to investigators as a “bat-like” creature resembling “someone in a wingsuit,” although the encounter did not mirror the seemingly paranormal aspects of some other winged humanoid cases or include any reported high strangeness.

The man had a GoPro camera that was filming during the event attached to his bicycle helmet, and helped the Singular Fortean Society isolate several stills of the creature from the video. The creature, upon examination of this evidence, appeared to be a bird.

Investigator Tobias Wayland ultimately found the witness credible, in that he showed no indication at all that he was attempting to hoax his sighting. Rather, the man seemed genuinely confused by what he had seen.

"As time has passed, I am still uncertain of what exactly I saw," the witness said of his experience. "Certainly none of the birds I typically see flying are similar, but I am increasingly more accepting to the idea that this could have been a very large migratory bird."

Springtime sees an influx of large migratory birds—such as cranes and herons—into the upper Midwest, and it’s possible that has led to misidentifications, especially since studies have shown that some species are roosting more often in urban areas due to the destruction of their usual wetland habitats.

This report constitutes the latest news in a 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 or natural area, and around water. Witnesses consistently describe a large gray, brown, 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 misidentified large bird—such as a heron or crane—or some type of anomalous avian species could explain some, although certainly not all, of the encounters. A number of associated high strangeness incidents have also occurred alongside the creature sightings; these include reports of UFOs, other anomalous flying creatures and mysterious humanoids, parapsychological phenomena, and bizarre events experienced by those investigating the sightings.

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

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