In the summer of 1988, there were several 'Lizard Man' encounters reported. One encounter may have produced physical evidence after the creature was supposedly shot.
Most folks can recall the accounts of the Scape Ore Lizard Man. In the early morning hours of June 29th, 1988, a young man named Christopher Davis was driving along a dark and remote road through the woods of the Scape Ore Swamp in the area near Bishopville, South Carolina. He then got a flat tire and got out to fix it. As soon as the spare was put on, Davis had a terrifying encounter:
"I looked back and saw something running across the field towards me. It was about 25 yards away and I saw red eyes glowing. I ran into the car and as I locked it, the thing grabbed the door handle. I could see him from the neck down; it had three big fingers, long black nails and green rough skin. It was strong and angry. I looked in my mirror and saw a blur of green running. I could see his toes and then he jumped on the roof of my car. I thought I heard a grunt and then I could see his fingers through the front windshield, where they curled around on the roof. I sped up and swerved to shake the creature off."
Davis sped home after the creature took off. He told the dramatic account to his father, who then called the Sheriff Liston Truesdale, who was more than a bit skeptical. Although the damage to the vehicle was just as Davis had said, Truesdale suspected that it had been the work of pranksters, and that the boy had then made up the whole story of the lizard man. He was so suspicious of the outlandish story that he had Davis take a lie detector test, which he passed.
There were other reports of encounters that same summer, but another lizard humanoid encounter may have produced physical evidence. A witness from the Shaw Air Force Base, near Shaw, South Carolina named Kenneth Orr. On August 5, 1988, Orr claimed that he had encountered a Lizard Man out on Highway 15, and had actually managed to shoot it. In this case there was even physical evidence brought forward in the form of alleged blood and scales from the wounded beast. When authorities sought to charge him for carrying a pistol without a permit, he retracted his statement. It is unknown just what happened to the supposed physical evidence. This was one of the accounts that encouraged the radio station WCOS to offer a reward of 1 million dollars to anyone who could bring in the beast alive or dead, which brought in all manner of monster hunters traipsing about the area with loaded weapons.
Although the sightings dropped off somewhat after the summer of 1988, they did not stop altogether, and there have been sporadic sightings of the creature ever since.
In the 1990s there was the report by a Robert Cooper, of the Army Corps of Engineers, who claimed to have seen a creature that looked half-man, half-dinosaur running alongside the road. In 2004 a girl claimed that a huge lizard-like humanoid had leapt from the river to try and grab her. The following year in 2005 there was the account of a woman in Newberry, South Carolina, who reportedly saw two of the creatures with glowing red eyes outside of her rural home. More recently was a 2008 report, in which a Bishopville couple, Bob and Dixie Rawson, claimed that their minivan had been mauled by some sort of animal, leaving huge gashes and heavy damage to the sides and grill, and that there had been a dead cow and coyote found in a nearby field.
In 2013, monster hunter and author Lyle Blackburn wrote an excellent book titled 'Lizard Man: The True Story of the Bishopville Monster.' It was an expertly crafted allegory that is informative as well as entertaining. The investigations conducted by the local authorities are chronicled so well that the reader shares in the drama of the encounters. The book provides exceptional documentation for one of the most bizarre cases of an unknown creature. It is the first time that the full and genuine story behind the Bishopville Monster is disclosed. Lon
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Have you had a sighting of a winged humanoid or huge bat-like creature in the Chicago, Illinois metro area / Lake Michigan region? The entity has also been referred to as the 'Chicago Mothman', 'Chicago Owlman' & 'O'Hare Mothman.' - Chicago / Lake Michigan Winged Humanoid Regional Interactive Map - Please feel free to contact me at lonstrickler@phantomsandmonsters.com - your anonymity is guaranteed. Our investigative group is conducting a serious examination of his phenomenon. We are merely seeking the truth and wish to determine what eyewitnesses have been encountering. Your cooperation is truly appreciated.
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410-241-5974
Thanks. Lon Strickler
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