1 00:00:01,836 --> 00:00:03,502 NARRATOR: Shadowy figures appear in the night, 2 00:00:03,653 --> 00:00:06,654 terrifying all who encounter them. 3 00:00:06,674 --> 00:00:08,156 I don't even know how to describe 4 00:00:08,175 --> 00:00:09,750 - that level of fear... - (gasps) 5 00:00:09,902 --> 00:00:12,419 because it was this big, hulking black mass. 6 00:00:12,571 --> 00:00:15,255 NARRATOR: They paralyze their prey. 7 00:00:15,349 --> 00:00:18,350 It was like being chained to the bottom of the ocean. 8 00:00:18,502 --> 00:00:21,261 You can't move, you can't breathe. 9 00:00:21,413 --> 00:00:23,004 NARRATOR: And according to some, 10 00:00:23,024 --> 00:00:27,084 they are not only frightening but deadly. 11 00:00:27,102 --> 00:00:28,602 DAVID CHILDRESS: They explained it as 12 00:00:28,754 --> 00:00:32,031 these shadow entities were killing them. 13 00:00:32,182 --> 00:00:33,590 (sustained beep) 14 00:00:33,683 --> 00:00:35,092 NARRATOR: Could dark entities 15 00:00:35,185 --> 00:00:37,277 known as the shadow people 16 00:00:37,429 --> 00:00:41,431 be more than just a product of the imagination? 17 00:00:41,525 --> 00:00:44,526 Are there beings coming to Earth from other worlds 18 00:00:44,545 --> 00:00:47,695 or other dimensions, with malicious intentions 19 00:00:47,790 --> 00:00:49,548 for the human race? 20 00:00:49,699 --> 00:00:50,941 JONATHAN YOUNG: It seems menacing, 21 00:00:50,959 --> 00:00:54,278 it seems from another place. 22 00:00:54,371 --> 00:00:56,446 It's a mystery, but it's a mystery 23 00:00:56,540 --> 00:00:59,183 that a lot of people are encountering. 24 00:01:02,454 --> 00:01:04,646 NARRATOR: There is a doorway in the universe. 25 00:01:06,883 --> 00:01:09,651 Beyond it is the promise of truth. 26 00:01:11,221 --> 00:01:13,630 It demands we question everything 27 00:01:13,649 --> 00:01:15,890 we have ever been taught. 28 00:01:15,910 --> 00:01:19,469 The evidence is all around us. 29 00:01:19,488 --> 00:01:23,398 The future is right before our eyes. 30 00:01:23,492 --> 00:01:26,234 We are not alone. 31 00:01:26,328 --> 00:01:29,421 We have never been alone. 32 00:01:37,431 --> 00:01:39,656 Vientiane, Laos. 33 00:01:39,675 --> 00:01:42,768 December 2, 1975. 34 00:01:44,012 --> 00:01:46,438 In the wake of the Vietnam War, 35 00:01:46,590 --> 00:01:50,091 the Hmong people, a group of indigenous Laotians, 36 00:01:50,111 --> 00:01:52,352 are forced to flee their country 37 00:01:52,504 --> 00:01:55,672 as the Communist Party seizes political control. 38 00:01:55,765 --> 00:01:58,266 Thousands of displaced Hmong people 39 00:01:58,360 --> 00:02:00,619 immigrate to the United States. 40 00:02:00,770 --> 00:02:03,697 But as they become settled in their new communities, 41 00:02:03,791 --> 00:02:07,709 they face an unexpected and much more mysterious threat. 42 00:02:09,797 --> 00:02:14,024 There was a very strange rash of deaths of Hmong men 43 00:02:14,117 --> 00:02:16,969 who suddenly died in their sleep. 44 00:02:17,196 --> 00:02:20,046 And medical technicians could find no reason 45 00:02:20,199 --> 00:02:23,383 for these strange deaths. 46 00:02:23,477 --> 00:02:25,886 If you look at the statistics, 47 00:02:25,980 --> 00:02:28,630 suddenly, when the Hmong people arrived in the United States, 48 00:02:28,649 --> 00:02:33,134 their death rates skied. Why? 49 00:02:33,228 --> 00:02:35,879 Nobody knows why, because they didn't have any symptoms. 50 00:02:35,898 --> 00:02:38,215 They just died. 51 00:02:38,233 --> 00:02:40,826 NARRATOR: After numerous inconclusive autopsies, 52 00:02:40,977 --> 00:02:44,554 mystified doctors were unable to find a cause of death 53 00:02:44,573 --> 00:02:47,724 but gave the phenomenon a name: 54 00:02:47,743 --> 00:02:51,503 "sudden unexpected nocturnal death syndrome." 55 00:02:51,730 --> 00:02:56,157 All but one of the 117 men who died were in good health, 56 00:02:56,177 --> 00:02:59,736 with a median age of 33. 57 00:02:59,755 --> 00:03:02,830 So, while some doctors now speculate that the deaths 58 00:03:02,925 --> 00:03:07,019 might be explained by an obscure genetic cardiac arrhythmia, 59 00:03:07,246 --> 00:03:11,839 the Hmong believe there is another explanation. 60 00:03:11,859 --> 00:03:14,693 Modern medical science could not explain these deaths. 61 00:03:16,255 --> 00:03:18,346 But among the Hmong, they knew it was because 62 00:03:18,365 --> 00:03:22,016 they couldn't practice their original religion. 63 00:03:22,036 --> 00:03:25,111 In Laos, there is a belief that there are night spirits 64 00:03:25,206 --> 00:03:27,355 that are dangerous, but if you have done your rituals, 65 00:03:27,374 --> 00:03:29,190 your prayers, your ceremonies, 66 00:03:29,284 --> 00:03:31,785 and have your ceremonial objects near your bed, you're fine. 67 00:03:31,937 --> 00:03:34,195 It's all under control, when you're in Laos. 68 00:03:34,215 --> 00:03:35,789 But when you're brought to another country 69 00:03:35,941 --> 00:03:38,108 and you're working odd shifts and things, 70 00:03:38,201 --> 00:03:40,201 maybe your rituals get a little off. 71 00:03:40,221 --> 00:03:42,554 So you're in trouble and the night spirits get you 72 00:03:42,706 --> 00:03:44,631 and you die, which is just so strange. 73 00:03:44,725 --> 00:03:47,133 I mean, these are night spirits. They're-- that's superstition, 74 00:03:47,228 --> 00:03:48,376 but they died. 75 00:03:48,470 --> 00:03:49,561 The deaths are real. 76 00:03:51,214 --> 00:03:52,731 NARRATOR: These shadowy night spirits 77 00:03:52,958 --> 00:03:56,460 are known by the Hmong people as "cho chua" 78 00:03:56,553 --> 00:03:59,071 and are often described as "pressure demons." 79 00:03:59,222 --> 00:04:01,965 That is, demons that exert pressure 80 00:04:02,058 --> 00:04:04,243 by sitting on their victims' chests 81 00:04:04,470 --> 00:04:06,894 until they can no longer breathe. 82 00:04:06,914 --> 00:04:09,489 The Hmong people talked about some of the symptoms 83 00:04:09,583 --> 00:04:13,827 they experienced, not just nightmares but visions, 84 00:04:13,979 --> 00:04:17,405 and a terrible pressure on their bodies, 85 00:04:17,499 --> 00:04:21,760 because their ancestral spirits were no longer protecting them. 86 00:04:21,987 --> 00:04:24,154 The Hmong themselves explained it 87 00:04:24,172 --> 00:04:30,435 as these shadow entities were killing and punishing them 88 00:04:30,662 --> 00:04:34,088 for not having done their rituals correctly. 89 00:04:34,108 --> 00:04:36,850 HENRY: The reason why we know that they believed 90 00:04:36,944 --> 00:04:39,611 they were dying from this is because medical experts, 91 00:04:39,838 --> 00:04:41,113 researchers talked with the family members 92 00:04:41,264 --> 00:04:43,282 and that's what they said. 93 00:04:44,843 --> 00:04:45,933 NARRATOR: The Hmong people's description 94 00:04:46,028 --> 00:04:47,511 of their interaction 95 00:04:47,604 --> 00:04:49,679 with the pressure demons known as cho chua 96 00:04:49,698 --> 00:04:51,698 bears a striking resemblance 97 00:04:51,850 --> 00:04:54,293 to what ancient astronaut theorists describe 98 00:04:54,520 --> 00:04:58,297 as mysterious entities called shadow people. 99 00:04:58,448 --> 00:05:00,357 An extraordinary experience has been reported 100 00:05:00,450 --> 00:05:02,692 by thousands of people worldwide. 101 00:05:02,786 --> 00:05:06,029 They're asleep, suddenly they wake up, 102 00:05:06,048 --> 00:05:09,549 and there's this dark humanoid figure that's opaque. 103 00:05:09,701 --> 00:05:12,369 It appears to be made of some ethereal substance 104 00:05:12,387 --> 00:05:15,630 that reflects no light. 105 00:05:15,724 --> 00:05:19,467 MIKE RICKSECKER: Shadow entities can be a lot of different things. 106 00:05:19,486 --> 00:05:22,712 But in general, what we see with these shadow entities 107 00:05:22,731 --> 00:05:26,550 are some common traits, such as no facial features. 108 00:05:26,568 --> 00:05:28,660 Everything is black and dark in nature. 109 00:05:28,812 --> 00:05:31,479 Some may be very solid, some may be very translucent, 110 00:05:31,498 --> 00:05:33,123 but we're not getting any detail. 111 00:05:34,651 --> 00:05:36,501 NARRATOR: Due to their shadowy nature, 112 00:05:36,728 --> 00:05:38,986 experiencers have difficulty making sense 113 00:05:39,006 --> 00:05:42,082 of just what these entities are. 114 00:05:42,176 --> 00:05:47,095 But for most, the encounters are terrifyingly real. 115 00:05:49,183 --> 00:05:51,758 Los Angeles, California. 116 00:05:51,852 --> 00:05:55,579 February 2011. 117 00:05:55,597 --> 00:05:58,023 On a quiet night, 118 00:05:58,250 --> 00:06:00,842 journalist Paul Christensen is asleep in bed 119 00:06:00,861 --> 00:06:04,087 when suddenly, he's jolted awake 120 00:06:04,180 --> 00:06:08,015 by a jarring physical sensation. 121 00:06:08,035 --> 00:06:11,536 It was like being chained to the bottom of the ocean. 122 00:06:11,688 --> 00:06:14,264 You can't move, you can't breathe. 123 00:06:14,282 --> 00:06:18,710 You open your eyes, and there is a presence in the room with you. 124 00:06:18,937 --> 00:06:21,129 You can't make out who it is, what it is. 125 00:06:22,365 --> 00:06:23,790 It looks like... 126 00:06:23,942 --> 00:06:26,510 just a dark entity. 127 00:06:27,554 --> 00:06:29,203 The air behind them-- 128 00:06:29,223 --> 00:06:30,463 I don't know how to describe this-- 129 00:06:30,616 --> 00:06:33,517 It's kind of fuzzy, it's kind of moving. 130 00:06:34,803 --> 00:06:36,953 And then I was just trying 131 00:06:36,972 --> 00:06:40,232 to make something move or come out of me, 132 00:06:40,383 --> 00:06:43,217 and it ended in just the most bloodcurdling scream 133 00:06:43,311 --> 00:06:45,219 that I could get out of my mouth. 134 00:06:45,239 --> 00:06:48,240 - (screams) - As soon as I screamed, 135 00:06:48,467 --> 00:06:50,224 my girlfriend that was laying next to me woke up, 136 00:06:50,318 --> 00:06:51,910 and I turned the light on... 137 00:06:53,155 --> 00:06:55,414 and it was gone. 138 00:06:55,565 --> 00:06:59,809 NARRATOR: Paul is uncertain how long the encounter lasted, 139 00:06:59,828 --> 00:07:02,145 but it was only the first of several 140 00:07:02,164 --> 00:07:05,482 that would take place over the next five years. 141 00:07:05,575 --> 00:07:09,261 Each left him paralyzed with fear. 142 00:07:09,412 --> 00:07:11,337 CHRISTENSEN: At the time these were happening, 143 00:07:11,432 --> 00:07:13,247 I was frightened for my life. 144 00:07:13,267 --> 00:07:15,659 Part of me feels like 145 00:07:15,752 --> 00:07:19,271 there's some kind of demonic presence around them. 146 00:07:19,498 --> 00:07:22,348 I've never felt that they were there for good intentions. 147 00:07:22,443 --> 00:07:25,610 It's always come with a heavy feeling of darkness... 148 00:07:27,931 --> 00:07:29,263 that they were there for something 149 00:07:29,357 --> 00:07:31,616 other than anything good. 150 00:07:33,287 --> 00:07:35,770 NARRATOR: While Paul's encounters with shadowy beings 151 00:07:35,789 --> 00:07:38,773 have left him frightened and desperate for answers, 152 00:07:38,792 --> 00:07:41,534 his experience is not unique. 153 00:07:41,628 --> 00:07:46,965 In 2001, author Heidi Hollis released The Secret War, 154 00:07:47,116 --> 00:07:50,694 in which she shared her own startling experiences 155 00:07:50,712 --> 00:07:53,138 with entities she called shadow people. 156 00:07:54,975 --> 00:07:57,200 HEIDI HOLLIS: I don't even know how to describe that level of fear, 157 00:07:57,293 --> 00:07:59,811 because it was absolutely hulking over me. 158 00:08:02,057 --> 00:08:03,965 And this started my whole journey 159 00:08:03,984 --> 00:08:06,559 into the topic of shadow people. 160 00:08:06,653 --> 00:08:08,712 I'm a person that's not afraid 161 00:08:08,805 --> 00:08:10,972 to say I've experienced something. 162 00:08:11,066 --> 00:08:14,141 I'm like, bring it out into the light, and let's talk about it. 163 00:08:14,236 --> 00:08:19,831 From the start, when I finally got the book published in 2001, 164 00:08:20,058 --> 00:08:23,409 thousands of people from around the world, 165 00:08:23,504 --> 00:08:27,914 from priests to schoolteachers, have written me seeking help. 166 00:08:28,066 --> 00:08:31,234 So my goal is to try to help people to understand 167 00:08:31,327 --> 00:08:33,086 that you can keep these things at bay. 168 00:08:33,238 --> 00:08:35,514 NARRATOR: According to Heidi's research 169 00:08:35,741 --> 00:08:37,924 collecting and studying people's encounters, 170 00:08:38,018 --> 00:08:40,426 these dark entities can appear 171 00:08:40,521 --> 00:08:43,763 as various shapes and figures. 172 00:08:43,857 --> 00:08:47,842 The experiences that I receive often involve a person 173 00:08:47,861 --> 00:08:50,529 waking up, and they feel a presence is in the room. 174 00:08:51,757 --> 00:08:54,199 And if they spot it, 175 00:08:54,426 --> 00:08:58,111 the thing comes even closer and pins them down, 176 00:08:58,205 --> 00:09:00,780 and they're paralyzed. 177 00:09:00,932 --> 00:09:03,099 They often come at nighttime because your guard is down, 178 00:09:03,192 --> 00:09:05,451 so they're taking advantage of you 179 00:09:05,546 --> 00:09:07,937 when you're not at your best. 180 00:09:08,031 --> 00:09:10,940 So, they're sneaky, they're deceptive, 181 00:09:11,034 --> 00:09:13,200 and they evoke a lot of horrific things 182 00:09:13,295 --> 00:09:15,945 into people's lives. 183 00:09:15,964 --> 00:09:19,558 NARRATOR: The dark, humanoid appearance of shadow beings 184 00:09:19,709 --> 00:09:23,728 has caused some to identify them as apparitions or ghosts. 185 00:09:23,880 --> 00:09:27,123 But many researchers believe the shadow people 186 00:09:27,216 --> 00:09:29,976 are a much different type of entity. 187 00:09:30,128 --> 00:09:33,963 A ghost is a human spirit 188 00:09:34,057 --> 00:09:36,390 that is taking some sort of corporeal form. 189 00:09:36,410 --> 00:09:39,969 With a ghost, we get a lot of detail in the apparition. 190 00:09:39,988 --> 00:09:41,913 We can see facial features. 191 00:09:42,140 --> 00:09:45,658 We can see clothing. We can see details in the hair. 192 00:09:45,752 --> 00:09:48,044 Where with shadow entities, we get almost nothing. 193 00:09:49,256 --> 00:09:51,089 NARRATOR: While many psychologists 194 00:09:51,240 --> 00:09:53,666 continue to dismiss the phenomenon 195 00:09:53,760 --> 00:09:55,668 as a symptom of sleep paralysis, 196 00:09:55,821 --> 00:09:59,413 researchers point out that people have reported 197 00:09:59,433 --> 00:10:03,343 encounters that happened when they were wide awake. 198 00:10:03,437 --> 00:10:06,253 In my own personal experience with the shadow people, 199 00:10:06,273 --> 00:10:08,773 I was getting ready to go to sleep, sitting up in bed, 200 00:10:08,925 --> 00:10:12,001 and all of a sudden, this black humanoid figure 201 00:10:12,020 --> 00:10:15,280 enters into the room, walks across the room. 202 00:10:15,507 --> 00:10:18,265 I follow it and watch it, and it just vanishes. 203 00:10:18,285 --> 00:10:20,768 I didn't experience any fear. 204 00:10:20,787 --> 00:10:22,846 I was totally perplexed by what I've seen 205 00:10:22,939 --> 00:10:24,748 and thought, "Wow, what was that?" 206 00:10:25,959 --> 00:10:27,459 HOLLIS: Believe it or not, 207 00:10:27,610 --> 00:10:29,777 the first shadow people experience that I had 208 00:10:29,796 --> 00:10:32,279 was witnessing it following another friend of mine 209 00:10:32,299 --> 00:10:34,115 in broad daylight. 210 00:10:34,209 --> 00:10:37,284 And I saw this entity, this big, hulking black mass-- 211 00:10:37,379 --> 00:10:38,970 It kind of looks like a man 212 00:10:39,122 --> 00:10:41,122 with its head directly connected to its shoulders-- 213 00:10:41,141 --> 00:10:43,032 Going tree to tree 214 00:10:43,051 --> 00:10:45,459 and bush to bush as we're walking along. 215 00:10:45,479 --> 00:10:48,313 And I was just beside myself. 216 00:10:48,540 --> 00:10:50,649 The whole way that we go, we see this thing. 217 00:10:50,876 --> 00:10:53,300 I really thought, you know, I just witnessed 218 00:10:53,395 --> 00:10:56,396 one crazy thing, and that was it. 219 00:10:56,490 --> 00:10:58,973 I trust myself, and I know what it is I experienced, 220 00:10:58,992 --> 00:11:01,067 and I know what was going on. 221 00:11:01,161 --> 00:11:04,721 NARRATOR: If the so-called shadow people are not merely 222 00:11:04,814 --> 00:11:07,648 a trick of the mind but very real 223 00:11:07,668 --> 00:11:10,410 and possibly dangerous entities, 224 00:11:10,504 --> 00:11:12,486 what exactly are they? 225 00:11:12,506 --> 00:11:14,989 Perhaps further clues can be found 226 00:11:15,008 --> 00:11:16,749 by examining similar accounts 227 00:11:16,843 --> 00:11:21,137 that were recorded thousands of years ago. 228 00:11:28,413 --> 00:11:30,021 NARRATOR: Choctaw Nation, Oklahoma. 229 00:11:30,248 --> 00:11:32,173 This nearly seven-million-acre territory 230 00:11:32,192 --> 00:11:35,418 is home to Native people who have occupied North America 231 00:11:35,437 --> 00:11:38,345 for more than 4,000 years. 232 00:11:38,440 --> 00:11:41,774 The Choctaw continue to carry on the centuries-old traditions 233 00:11:41,927 --> 00:11:45,036 of their ancestors to this day. 234 00:11:45,263 --> 00:11:48,598 And one story that continues to loom large 235 00:11:48,616 --> 00:11:51,117 is that of the Nalusa Chito, 236 00:11:51,269 --> 00:11:55,455 which the Choctaw describe as a shadow being. 237 00:11:55,549 --> 00:11:57,457 This Nalusa Chito 238 00:11:57,609 --> 00:12:01,052 is a demonic entity. 239 00:12:02,630 --> 00:12:06,466 And the Choctaw believe that if you're having bad thoughts, 240 00:12:06,618 --> 00:12:10,228 that this will attract the Nalusa Chito to you. 241 00:12:10,379 --> 00:12:12,455 YOUNG: The Nalusa Chito 242 00:12:12,474 --> 00:12:15,066 would get you by creeping inside you 243 00:12:15,218 --> 00:12:17,477 and eating your soul. 244 00:12:17,629 --> 00:12:20,463 The Choctaw were so afraid of this creature, 245 00:12:20,556 --> 00:12:22,240 they would not say the name. 246 00:12:23,726 --> 00:12:26,727 And many people would move along and abandon huts and things 247 00:12:26,747 --> 00:12:30,373 because of the fear of this shadow figure. 248 00:12:32,477 --> 00:12:34,994 BIRNES: We see the shadow people 249 00:12:35,146 --> 00:12:38,314 in the stories of other Native American people. 250 00:12:38,407 --> 00:12:41,334 On Native American reservations, 251 00:12:41,486 --> 00:12:43,577 particularly the Jicarilla Apache reservation 252 00:12:43,597 --> 00:12:45,263 in Dulce, New Mexico, 253 00:12:45,414 --> 00:12:47,657 they talk about the shadow people 254 00:12:47,675 --> 00:12:50,918 as if they are their regular companions. 255 00:12:51,012 --> 00:12:53,830 The legend is this. 256 00:12:53,848 --> 00:12:58,351 If a shadow person, who's really a spirit, sees you 257 00:12:58,445 --> 00:13:01,780 and that shadow people attaches itself to you, 258 00:13:01,931 --> 00:13:04,908 it will be with you for the rest of your life. 259 00:13:06,435 --> 00:13:08,602 NARRATOR: The traditions of these Native American tribes 260 00:13:08,696 --> 00:13:11,030 originated centuries ago. 261 00:13:11,182 --> 00:13:14,459 And as ancient astronaut theorists point out, 262 00:13:14,610 --> 00:13:17,962 accounts of shadowy entities can be found in the legends 263 00:13:18,189 --> 00:13:21,115 of ancient cultures all around the world. 264 00:13:21,209 --> 00:13:24,527 While there are stories of shadow people in modern times, 265 00:13:24,546 --> 00:13:26,863 what I find interesting is 266 00:13:26,881 --> 00:13:30,716 there are also references to what seem to be 267 00:13:30,869 --> 00:13:33,627 shadow people in ancient texts, 268 00:13:33,647 --> 00:13:36,964 and frankly, they're very strange accounts. 269 00:13:36,983 --> 00:13:39,392 Shadow beings go far back into antiquity, 270 00:13:39,486 --> 00:13:41,820 all the way back to the time of ancient Sumer, 271 00:13:42,047 --> 00:13:45,990 where, in that culture, you see accounts of Alû, 272 00:13:46,142 --> 00:13:48,326 which is a type of udug, 273 00:13:48,553 --> 00:13:50,829 which, in their culture, was a type of demon. 274 00:13:50,980 --> 00:13:54,574 Now, Alû, in the way that he would appear to people, 275 00:13:54,668 --> 00:13:56,909 it was very much like our shadow entities of today 276 00:13:57,062 --> 00:13:59,153 where he was very dark in nature. 277 00:13:59,172 --> 00:14:02,732 He had no facial features, no eyes, no nose, no mouth, 278 00:14:02,750 --> 00:14:04,759 and he would hover over people at night. 279 00:14:06,329 --> 00:14:08,329 YOUNG: Of course, there are many accounts of demons 280 00:14:08,348 --> 00:14:09,906 in the scriptures, 281 00:14:09,999 --> 00:14:12,258 the Christian Bible, the Talmud. 282 00:14:12,410 --> 00:14:14,853 In Jewish lore, there is the shadow of death 283 00:14:15,004 --> 00:14:16,429 or the death shadow. 284 00:14:16,581 --> 00:14:18,915 There is this idea that there are 285 00:14:19,008 --> 00:14:21,508 malevolent spirits that could harm you. 286 00:14:21,528 --> 00:14:24,195 NARRATOR: Commonly compared with the shadow people 287 00:14:24,422 --> 00:14:28,274 is an entity known in Islam as the djinn, 288 00:14:28,426 --> 00:14:31,685 supernatural creatures that are often invisible 289 00:14:31,705 --> 00:14:34,780 and have the ability to shape-shift. 290 00:14:34,875 --> 00:14:39,452 The derivation of djinn comes from an Arabic, uh, root, 291 00:14:39,546 --> 00:14:43,548 J-N-N, which literally means to hide or to conceal. 292 00:14:45,110 --> 00:14:48,035 The djinn are created of smokeless fire. 293 00:14:48,129 --> 00:14:50,296 Our English word "genie," 294 00:14:50,390 --> 00:14:53,116 you know, the mythical spirit that lives inside of a lamp, 295 00:14:53,134 --> 00:14:55,376 comes from the word "djinn." 296 00:14:55,470 --> 00:14:58,955 RICKSECKER: The djinn are considered more trickster in nature. 297 00:14:59,048 --> 00:15:01,290 They have some interesting abilities, 298 00:15:01,309 --> 00:15:03,568 such as they can instantly transport 299 00:15:03,719 --> 00:15:07,130 from one place to another. 300 00:15:07,148 --> 00:15:11,058 They also seem to appear very dark and shadowy in nature, 301 00:15:11,077 --> 00:15:13,894 that they were these big, looming type of characters 302 00:15:13,988 --> 00:15:16,822 when they enter the room. 303 00:15:16,917 --> 00:15:20,585 As a Muslim, you know, I believe the djinn to be real. 304 00:15:20,736 --> 00:15:22,921 Djinn can be angelic. 305 00:15:23,072 --> 00:15:25,164 They can be demonic. 306 00:15:25,316 --> 00:15:27,316 And so, this idea is 307 00:15:27,410 --> 00:15:29,427 that you have to be careful with them 308 00:15:29,654 --> 00:15:31,578 because they are these powerful figures. 309 00:15:31,598 --> 00:15:34,415 They are these literally supernatural figures. 310 00:15:34,434 --> 00:15:36,917 And so, across the Muslim world, 311 00:15:37,011 --> 00:15:40,012 in the present day, particularly in places like North Africa, 312 00:15:40,165 --> 00:15:41,681 you may wear an amulet. 313 00:15:41,833 --> 00:15:43,942 You may have things to ward off the djinn. 314 00:15:44,093 --> 00:15:45,592 You may have, you know, certain things 315 00:15:45,612 --> 00:15:47,779 that you do to protect you from the djinn, 316 00:15:48,006 --> 00:15:50,173 because the idea is that the djinn, 317 00:15:50,266 --> 00:15:53,451 when they're in their demonic capacity, 318 00:15:53,678 --> 00:15:55,602 will do things that can be harmful 319 00:15:55,622 --> 00:15:58,030 or tormenting to human beings. 320 00:15:58,124 --> 00:16:00,366 What I find fascinating is that you have a myriad of cultures 321 00:16:00,518 --> 00:16:01,942 from all over the world 322 00:16:01,962 --> 00:16:03,536 that have very, very similar beliefs 323 00:16:03,688 --> 00:16:05,112 about these shadow entities. 324 00:16:05,131 --> 00:16:07,873 Now, they may call it something different, 325 00:16:07,968 --> 00:16:11,694 but you see in Turkey the Karabasan, the dark presser, 326 00:16:11,787 --> 00:16:14,880 as a very, very similar entity 327 00:16:15,033 --> 00:16:18,701 as to the kana tevoro in Fiji 328 00:16:18,794 --> 00:16:20,961 as to the Pisadeira in Brazil. 329 00:16:20,981 --> 00:16:24,148 They're all talking about the same type of being, 330 00:16:24,300 --> 00:16:25,984 the same type of entity, 331 00:16:26,135 --> 00:16:29,636 and it calls into question, how are these beings visiting 332 00:16:29,656 --> 00:16:32,548 all of these different cultures from all over the world 333 00:16:32,567 --> 00:16:34,492 since they did not have any contact with each other? 334 00:16:36,237 --> 00:16:38,721 GEORGE NOORY: Historically, since the beginning of time, 335 00:16:38,740 --> 00:16:42,908 we have had creature stories of strange beings, 336 00:16:43,061 --> 00:16:45,578 of shadows, of the bogeyman. 337 00:16:45,730 --> 00:16:48,064 And they somehow echo some of the reports 338 00:16:48,082 --> 00:16:49,490 that we're hearing today. 339 00:16:49,584 --> 00:16:51,400 They're somewhat similar. 340 00:16:51,494 --> 00:16:52,918 I don't think they've ever gone away. 341 00:16:53,071 --> 00:16:54,804 They're still here on the planet. 342 00:16:56,257 --> 00:16:58,665 NARRATOR: Have separate cultures around the world 343 00:16:58,685 --> 00:17:00,501 and throughout history 344 00:17:00,520 --> 00:17:04,263 been haunted by the same dark figures? 345 00:17:04,415 --> 00:17:08,359 And if so, just what kind of entities are they? 346 00:17:08,511 --> 00:17:10,862 Perhaps further clues can be found 347 00:17:11,013 --> 00:17:14,848 by examining eyewitness accounts of strange energy 348 00:17:14,868 --> 00:17:17,660 when face-to-face with shadow people. 349 00:17:27,105 --> 00:17:28,362 NARRATOR: Virginia City, Nevada. 350 00:17:28,381 --> 00:17:30,381 October 28, 2016. 351 00:17:30,533 --> 00:17:33,125 Researcher Michelle LeBaron and a group of colleagues 352 00:17:33,278 --> 00:17:36,295 are investigating reports of a shadowlike entity 353 00:17:36,447 --> 00:17:39,873 at a historic saloon called the Washoe Club. 354 00:17:39,893 --> 00:17:42,118 RICKSECKER: She and another woman 355 00:17:42,211 --> 00:17:44,711 ventured into one particular room. 356 00:17:44,806 --> 00:17:47,640 And between her and her friend, 357 00:17:47,792 --> 00:17:50,884 this large shadow loomed up. 358 00:17:50,904 --> 00:17:55,131 She described it as about six-five, six-six in height. 359 00:17:55,224 --> 00:17:57,967 But, again, very, very dark in nature, 360 00:17:57,985 --> 00:17:59,560 so there was no detail. 361 00:17:59,654 --> 00:18:01,728 At one point, she thought 362 00:18:01,748 --> 00:18:04,731 it had completely engulfed her friend, 363 00:18:04,826 --> 00:18:07,919 and they ended up screaming and running out of the room. 364 00:18:10,406 --> 00:18:12,757 Now, this woman, 365 00:18:12,984 --> 00:18:14,908 a few minutes later, after they collected themselves, 366 00:18:14,928 --> 00:18:17,002 walked back over to the hall, 367 00:18:17,097 --> 00:18:21,841 and there stood again this very tall, dark shadow, 368 00:18:21,993 --> 00:18:23,843 but it started doing something very unusual. 369 00:18:23,995 --> 00:18:26,345 There was this pulsating energy 370 00:18:26,497 --> 00:18:28,164 that was emanating forth from it, 371 00:18:28,257 --> 00:18:29,849 like a "whoop, whoop, whoop." 372 00:18:30,001 --> 00:18:32,110 And she could hear it as well as feel it. 373 00:18:34,005 --> 00:18:37,782 In many cases, people feel a certain energy 374 00:18:37,933 --> 00:18:41,010 projecting out from these beings. 375 00:18:41,103 --> 00:18:43,287 And in this particular woman's case, 376 00:18:43,439 --> 00:18:46,124 it was this pulsating type energy. 377 00:18:46,275 --> 00:18:48,960 With other people, it may be more constant. 378 00:18:49,111 --> 00:18:52,112 So, people are experiencing different types of energy 379 00:18:52,132 --> 00:18:54,114 from these beings but, with each of them, 380 00:18:54,208 --> 00:18:55,800 energy nonetheless. 381 00:18:56,970 --> 00:18:59,303 JASON OFFUTT: I have interviewed people 382 00:18:59,455 --> 00:19:01,380 who have encountered shadow beings, 383 00:19:01,532 --> 00:19:05,476 and they've heard what sounded like electricity buzzing. 384 00:19:05,628 --> 00:19:07,628 Uh, and-and the sound would disappear 385 00:19:07,647 --> 00:19:10,130 when the shadow people left the room. 386 00:19:10,150 --> 00:19:11,724 RICKSECKER: There was another woman I interviewed 387 00:19:11,818 --> 00:19:13,818 who saw a flash of light 388 00:19:14,045 --> 00:19:15,469 out in her hallway, and all of a sudden, 389 00:19:15,488 --> 00:19:18,138 this shadow man ran into her room, 390 00:19:18,232 --> 00:19:19,657 jumped on top of her 391 00:19:19,808 --> 00:19:22,493 and pressed her down into the bed. 392 00:19:22,645 --> 00:19:23,886 And the shadow man jumped back off, 393 00:19:23,979 --> 00:19:25,646 ran back out into the hallway, 394 00:19:25,665 --> 00:19:28,148 and she saw another flash of light. 395 00:19:28,168 --> 00:19:29,742 The next morning when she woke up, 396 00:19:29,836 --> 00:19:32,152 she noticed that 397 00:19:32,172 --> 00:19:35,748 all the electronics in that room had been absolutely fried, 398 00:19:35,900 --> 00:19:37,416 and she had to call the fire department 399 00:19:37,568 --> 00:19:39,468 for them to come and inspect everything. 400 00:19:41,739 --> 00:19:45,090 NARRATOR: In addition to hearing and feeling surges of energy, 401 00:19:45,243 --> 00:19:47,927 witnesses often report another curious detail 402 00:19:48,021 --> 00:19:49,929 about the shadow people: 403 00:19:50,081 --> 00:19:52,839 the appearance of glowing eyes. 404 00:19:52,859 --> 00:19:55,434 HENRY: A lot of the shadow people have 405 00:19:55,528 --> 00:19:58,587 no facial features whatsoever. Just blackness. 406 00:19:58,681 --> 00:20:00,865 But some do have glowing eyes, 407 00:20:01,016 --> 00:20:04,260 and, in particular, it's the one with the red glowing eyes 408 00:20:04,353 --> 00:20:06,186 that appear to be the most malevolent. 409 00:20:06,206 --> 00:20:09,765 OFFUTT: When it comes to shadow beings with eyes, 410 00:20:09,858 --> 00:20:12,526 especially blazing red eyes, 411 00:20:12,545 --> 00:20:16,029 people also experience a fear 412 00:20:16,049 --> 00:20:19,717 that is deeper than just "there's an entity in my room." 413 00:20:19,868 --> 00:20:21,277 And they feel that these entities 414 00:20:21,370 --> 00:20:23,796 are-are up to nefarious means. 415 00:20:23,890 --> 00:20:26,615 NARRATOR: So many reports of shadow encounters 416 00:20:26,634 --> 00:20:29,134 are associated with pulsating energy, 417 00:20:29,287 --> 00:20:32,805 glowing eyes and electronic disturbances 418 00:20:32,957 --> 00:20:35,733 that researchers wonder if some shadow entities 419 00:20:35,960 --> 00:20:39,195 might actually be misunderstood technology. 420 00:20:40,465 --> 00:20:41,981 HENRY: It's often discussed 421 00:20:42,133 --> 00:20:44,300 that powerful alien technology can influence 422 00:20:44,393 --> 00:20:47,136 human electronics and technology. 423 00:20:47,154 --> 00:20:48,913 This is definitely something that is reported 424 00:20:49,064 --> 00:20:51,249 with the shadow people experiences. 425 00:20:51,476 --> 00:20:53,584 RICKSECKER: There's also an interesting idea 426 00:20:53,811 --> 00:20:56,312 in which these extraterrestrials may be using 427 00:20:56,330 --> 00:20:58,664 some sort of cloaking device 428 00:20:58,816 --> 00:21:00,741 to hide themselves from our view. 429 00:21:00,760 --> 00:21:03,335 But since they may not quite understand 430 00:21:03,488 --> 00:21:05,412 the physiology of our eyes, 431 00:21:05,431 --> 00:21:07,990 it comes off more of like a shadow. 432 00:21:08,009 --> 00:21:09,658 So, what we may be seeing 433 00:21:09,677 --> 00:21:12,436 is an imperfect type of alien technology. 434 00:21:12,663 --> 00:21:15,331 OFFUTT: I've interviewed two different people 435 00:21:15,349 --> 00:21:18,943 who have described to me what sounds like it could be 436 00:21:19,094 --> 00:21:21,595 some sort of cloaking technology. 437 00:21:21,614 --> 00:21:27,026 One person in particular said that he saw a cloak open 438 00:21:27,178 --> 00:21:30,362 and saw beyond the disguise. 439 00:21:30,456 --> 00:21:34,107 And what he saw, he said, was reptilian scales. 440 00:21:34,201 --> 00:21:38,354 Uh, I-I spoke with someone else who saw something similar 441 00:21:38,372 --> 00:21:41,281 but described the skin as more, like, slick. 442 00:21:41,301 --> 00:21:43,359 Like a... like a frog's but gray. 443 00:21:43,377 --> 00:21:45,469 TSOUKALOS: Could it be 444 00:21:45,696 --> 00:21:48,213 that we're not talking about shadow people 445 00:21:48,366 --> 00:21:51,383 but some type of a technology 446 00:21:51,536 --> 00:21:55,054 that appeared like a shadow and it maybe... 447 00:21:55,206 --> 00:21:57,056 You know, sometime a technology did not work, 448 00:21:57,208 --> 00:21:59,558 it would reveal that person underneath the cloak 449 00:21:59,710 --> 00:22:01,134 or underneath the device. 450 00:22:01,154 --> 00:22:02,561 And so they will be seen 451 00:22:02,713 --> 00:22:04,155 for maybe a fraction of a second. 452 00:22:05,474 --> 00:22:07,399 NARRATOR: For ancient astronaut theorists, 453 00:22:07,552 --> 00:22:09,401 the notion that the shadow people 454 00:22:09,495 --> 00:22:12,221 might be some form of misunderstood technology 455 00:22:12,314 --> 00:22:14,740 is an intriguing possibility. 456 00:22:14,892 --> 00:22:18,002 But what many consider an absolute certainty 457 00:22:18,229 --> 00:22:21,839 is their connection to extraterrestrials. 458 00:22:22,066 --> 00:22:25,343 As evidence, they point to the many accounts 459 00:22:25,570 --> 00:22:28,087 linking the shadow people phenomenon 460 00:22:28,239 --> 00:22:30,014 and alien abduction. 461 00:22:31,834 --> 00:22:33,333 There are a lot of common denominators 462 00:22:33,353 --> 00:22:36,428 with people who experience shadow figures 463 00:22:36,581 --> 00:22:38,097 and those who are abducted. 464 00:22:38,249 --> 00:22:40,358 You wake up in the middle of the night. 465 00:22:40,509 --> 00:22:42,342 You are taken by surprise. 466 00:22:42,362 --> 00:22:44,587 You are paralyzed. 467 00:22:44,680 --> 00:22:46,922 You cannot move. You cannot speak. 468 00:22:46,941 --> 00:22:48,866 You are helpless. 469 00:22:49,093 --> 00:22:52,870 You feel that this entity has taken over you. 470 00:22:53,097 --> 00:22:55,856 It is projecting some sort of energy 471 00:22:55,875 --> 00:22:58,876 that you cannot control. 472 00:22:59,027 --> 00:23:01,604 In my professional, uh, experience 473 00:23:01,697 --> 00:23:03,864 as an investigative reporter 474 00:23:03,883 --> 00:23:06,442 talking with maybe about 3,000 people 475 00:23:06,460 --> 00:23:09,870 in the abduction syndrome over about four decades, 476 00:23:09,889 --> 00:23:12,781 one of the common experiences 477 00:23:12,875 --> 00:23:15,117 that you will hear from abductees 478 00:23:15,136 --> 00:23:17,636 is that they feel paralyzed 479 00:23:17,788 --> 00:23:19,880 in the presence of something in their room, 480 00:23:19,899 --> 00:23:21,899 usually an entity. 481 00:23:23,218 --> 00:23:25,736 A few call them shadow people. 482 00:23:26,981 --> 00:23:29,407 In March of 1991, 483 00:23:29,558 --> 00:23:32,818 in my mail, I received an envelope 484 00:23:32,912 --> 00:23:36,138 that contained illustrations and an audio cassette 485 00:23:36,157 --> 00:23:38,231 and a letter from a woman 486 00:23:38,251 --> 00:23:40,993 who lived in Porterville, California. 487 00:23:41,145 --> 00:23:43,421 And part of the story was her encounter 488 00:23:43,572 --> 00:23:45,405 with shadow people. 489 00:23:45,499 --> 00:23:48,050 And I would like to read a little bit about what she wrote. 490 00:23:50,504 --> 00:23:53,246 "I was in bed asleep when something woke me up. 491 00:23:53,266 --> 00:23:55,415 "The room was filled this time 492 00:23:55,435 --> 00:23:57,509 "with an orange glow, 493 00:23:57,662 --> 00:23:59,920 "and at the center of the room was a hole, 494 00:23:59,939 --> 00:24:04,275 "out of which two well-formed, seemingly three-dimensional 495 00:24:04,426 --> 00:24:06,927 "solid shadow people were stepping. 496 00:24:07,021 --> 00:24:11,356 "The two shadow men grabbed me and pulled me toward the hole. 497 00:24:11,509 --> 00:24:14,026 "That is the last I remember. 498 00:24:14,178 --> 00:24:17,012 "And later, I realized that the little guy, 499 00:24:17,031 --> 00:24:19,515 "the Grey guy that I call the creep, 500 00:24:19,533 --> 00:24:21,775 "was standing off to the right, 501 00:24:21,794 --> 00:24:24,444 "watching my reaction to the whole thing. 502 00:24:24,464 --> 00:24:28,132 He also seemed to be in charge of what was happening." 503 00:24:32,120 --> 00:24:35,121 NARRATOR: Could the accounts of alleged alien abductees 504 00:24:35,141 --> 00:24:38,200 reveal that reports of shadow people are, in fact, 505 00:24:38,293 --> 00:24:41,312 extraterrestrial encounters? 506 00:24:41,539 --> 00:24:43,981 Perhaps further clues can be found 507 00:24:44,132 --> 00:24:47,543 by examining a shadowy being often encountered 508 00:24:47,561 --> 00:24:49,712 by UFO witnesses, 509 00:24:49,730 --> 00:24:52,823 an entity known as the Hat Man. 510 00:24:59,999 --> 00:25:01,832 NARRATOR: Shadow people witnesses 511 00:25:02,059 --> 00:25:04,393 often describe the entities they encounter 512 00:25:04,411 --> 00:25:05,244 as appearing vaguely humanoid with no discernible features. 513 00:25:05,338 --> 00:25:07,246 But in some accounts, 514 00:25:07,398 --> 00:25:10,657 they take a curiously recognizable form. 515 00:25:10,751 --> 00:25:13,919 RICKSECKER: One of the most mysterious types of shadow entities 516 00:25:14,071 --> 00:25:18,182 is what people refer to as the Hat Man. 517 00:25:18,333 --> 00:25:19,758 This type of entity 518 00:25:19,910 --> 00:25:21,593 may be wearing a fedora-type hat 519 00:25:21,746 --> 00:25:23,670 with an accompanying trench coat. 520 00:25:23,689 --> 00:25:26,098 It may be a top hat with or without the cape. 521 00:25:26,192 --> 00:25:29,026 We don't see a lot of detail with the Hat Man. 522 00:25:29,177 --> 00:25:32,512 We see that vague outline. 523 00:25:32,532 --> 00:25:36,700 OFFUTT: The Hat Man appears just like any other shadow being. 524 00:25:36,927 --> 00:25:38,869 There's no definition. You-you can't see, 525 00:25:39,021 --> 00:25:41,613 uh, a nose, a chin, uh, the eyes. 526 00:25:41,766 --> 00:25:43,707 You see the outline of a fedora. 527 00:25:43,934 --> 00:25:45,768 RICKSECKER: Many times, people report 528 00:25:45,786 --> 00:25:47,861 these hat-wearing entities 529 00:25:47,880 --> 00:25:50,789 coming into their bedrooms at night, sometimes flanked 530 00:25:50,941 --> 00:25:53,867 by two humanoid type of shadow entities. 531 00:25:53,961 --> 00:25:56,053 And they strike fear 532 00:25:56,204 --> 00:25:58,280 into the person there lying in bed 533 00:25:58,299 --> 00:26:00,891 and, like an energy vampire, 534 00:26:01,043 --> 00:26:03,394 feed off of that fear. 535 00:26:03,621 --> 00:26:04,953 HOLLIS: There's confusion out there 536 00:26:05,047 --> 00:26:06,730 between different entities. 537 00:26:06,957 --> 00:26:10,216 Something I once called Hat Man shadow, 538 00:26:10,311 --> 00:26:12,127 he is not a shadow person. 539 00:26:12,146 --> 00:26:15,297 He can take on different forms, yes, 540 00:26:15,316 --> 00:26:18,317 as far as being able to blend into a shadow. 541 00:26:18,411 --> 00:26:20,911 But he could step out, and he could be very solid, 542 00:26:21,138 --> 00:26:24,081 so he's a very different type of entity. 543 00:26:24,232 --> 00:26:27,826 But people think he directs the shadow people. 544 00:26:27,920 --> 00:26:32,664 So, shadow people are essentially minions to Hat Man. 545 00:26:32,758 --> 00:26:35,909 NARRATOR: Could reports of the so-called Hat Man 546 00:26:35,928 --> 00:26:39,338 shed new light on the shadow people phenomenon? 547 00:26:39,490 --> 00:26:42,766 Perhaps further clues can be found by examining 548 00:26:42,993 --> 00:26:45,251 one of the very first reported encounters 549 00:26:45,346 --> 00:26:47,104 with these dark entities. 550 00:26:50,092 --> 00:26:51,775 Bridgeport, Connecticut. 551 00:26:52,002 --> 00:26:55,337 1953. 552 00:26:55,356 --> 00:26:56,947 Albert K. Bender, 553 00:26:57,174 --> 00:26:59,842 the nation's top UFO investigator, 554 00:26:59,860 --> 00:27:01,619 receives a threatening visit 555 00:27:01,770 --> 00:27:06,365 that will bring his research to an abrupt and premature halt. 556 00:27:06,517 --> 00:27:07,958 RICKSECKER: Albert K. Bender founded 557 00:27:08,185 --> 00:27:09,627 the International Flying Saucer Bureau. 558 00:27:09,854 --> 00:27:13,038 This was during the big UFO flap of 1952 559 00:27:13,132 --> 00:27:15,448 when flying saucers were witnessed over Washington, D.C., 560 00:27:15,468 --> 00:27:17,301 and many other areas around the world. 561 00:27:17,452 --> 00:27:20,195 And this organization blew up big 562 00:27:20,214 --> 00:27:21,972 within that first year. 563 00:27:22,124 --> 00:27:26,535 However, just a year later, he suddenly ended 564 00:27:26,553 --> 00:27:28,479 the International Flying Saucer Bureau, 565 00:27:28,630 --> 00:27:30,981 and people wondered why. 566 00:27:31,133 --> 00:27:33,558 And what happened was that he came home one night, 567 00:27:33,653 --> 00:27:35,319 went into his bedroom, 568 00:27:35,546 --> 00:27:39,564 and suddenly these three dark, shadowy figures 569 00:27:39,717 --> 00:27:42,734 materialized through his wall into his bedroom. 570 00:27:42,887 --> 00:27:45,570 They were wearing the hats and the overcoats. 571 00:27:45,665 --> 00:27:49,482 They had glowing eyes, and they smelled like sulfur. 572 00:27:49,502 --> 00:27:52,503 NARRATOR: According to Bender, the three entities 573 00:27:52,730 --> 00:27:55,080 communicated with him through telepathy, 574 00:27:55,232 --> 00:27:58,158 warning him to discontinue his UFO research 575 00:27:58,177 --> 00:28:00,994 and stop publishing his influential magazine, 576 00:28:01,013 --> 00:28:02,829 the Space Review. 577 00:28:02,923 --> 00:28:05,073 Afterwards, he became ill 578 00:28:05,167 --> 00:28:07,910 and didn't eat for three days. 579 00:28:07,928 --> 00:28:09,520 HENRY: After this experience, 580 00:28:09,671 --> 00:28:11,504 Bender was repeatedly visited, he said. 581 00:28:11,524 --> 00:28:12,523 They gave him headaches, 582 00:28:12,750 --> 00:28:14,692 they-they controlled him telepathically, 583 00:28:14,919 --> 00:28:16,843 and he ultimately gave up his UFO researches 584 00:28:16,862 --> 00:28:19,029 and stopped publishing the Space Review, 585 00:28:19,256 --> 00:28:21,606 in which he documented UFO sightings 586 00:28:21,701 --> 00:28:23,033 throughout the world. 587 00:28:25,262 --> 00:28:28,188 He told the people that had been subscribers 588 00:28:28,207 --> 00:28:30,949 and he was working with, "They told me, 589 00:28:31,101 --> 00:28:35,212 "'We come from a very, very far distant place 590 00:28:35,363 --> 00:28:36,880 "'in this universe. 591 00:28:37,032 --> 00:28:39,441 "'And we have been coming and going 592 00:28:39,534 --> 00:28:41,868 "'from your planet for some time, 593 00:28:41,962 --> 00:28:44,370 "'and we cannot allow you 594 00:28:44,465 --> 00:28:46,873 "'or anyone to interfere. 595 00:28:46,892 --> 00:28:49,893 "'And, in fact, we have taken many humans 596 00:28:50,045 --> 00:28:52,304 "'from this planet 597 00:28:52,398 --> 00:28:55,733 to cover up our operations until we are done.'" 598 00:28:55,884 --> 00:29:00,145 RICKSECKER: This is a very influential point in our history, 599 00:29:00,297 --> 00:29:02,055 especially in the ufology community, 600 00:29:02,074 --> 00:29:04,633 in which shadow entities interfered 601 00:29:04,726 --> 00:29:06,802 and thwarted somebody's research 602 00:29:06,820 --> 00:29:09,913 and possibly set the field back a number of years. 603 00:29:10,065 --> 00:29:13,083 NARRATOR: The visitors Albert Bender encountered 604 00:29:13,235 --> 00:29:16,253 match descriptions of what is today known as the Hat Man, 605 00:29:16,480 --> 00:29:19,314 but he called them by another name: 606 00:29:19,333 --> 00:29:21,407 the Men in Black. 607 00:29:21,502 --> 00:29:24,762 While the Men in Black are often portrayed in pop culture 608 00:29:24,913 --> 00:29:26,579 as government agents, 609 00:29:26,599 --> 00:29:28,840 many who claim to have encountered them 610 00:29:28,993 --> 00:29:31,251 believe they are something other than human. 611 00:29:31,270 --> 00:29:32,770 HENRY: The Men in Black are 612 00:29:32,921 --> 00:29:34,938 mysterious and nefarious entities. 613 00:29:35,090 --> 00:29:38,166 They're shadowy. They wear black clothing. 614 00:29:38,185 --> 00:29:40,760 Many people believe that they're either extraterrestrials 615 00:29:40,780 --> 00:29:43,263 or somehow, they're working for extraterrestrials 616 00:29:43,282 --> 00:29:45,282 to prevent humans from learning the truth 617 00:29:45,433 --> 00:29:47,451 about extraterrestrials on Earth. 618 00:29:50,531 --> 00:29:53,198 OFFUTT: They talk to UFO witnesses. 619 00:29:53,350 --> 00:29:54,866 Some people have reported 620 00:29:54,960 --> 00:29:57,110 they seem to not know things that are common, 621 00:29:57,129 --> 00:30:00,355 like, you know, which end of a pen to use. 622 00:30:00,374 --> 00:30:03,041 Or, uh, if they're offered something to eat or drink, 623 00:30:03,193 --> 00:30:05,135 they don't know how to eat or drink it. 624 00:30:05,287 --> 00:30:07,879 HENRY: Both the Hat Man and the Men in Black 625 00:30:08,032 --> 00:30:10,123 are known for wearing a hat. 626 00:30:10,142 --> 00:30:12,884 They both influence people telepathically. 627 00:30:13,037 --> 00:30:16,054 They both appear to be sometimes malevolent, 628 00:30:16,148 --> 00:30:18,557 and they could, in fact, be the same type of a being. 629 00:30:18,709 --> 00:30:20,876 There's a theory that the Hat Man 630 00:30:20,894 --> 00:30:23,061 and the Men in Black are actually the ringleaders 631 00:30:23,213 --> 00:30:25,489 of the shadow people 632 00:30:25,716 --> 00:30:27,473 and that, in fact, they direct the shadow people 633 00:30:27,493 --> 00:30:30,385 to influence humans in particular 634 00:30:30,404 --> 00:30:33,789 to keep them from investigating UFO experiences. 635 00:30:35,059 --> 00:30:36,391 NOORY: There's no question 636 00:30:36,484 --> 00:30:38,669 that the stories of shadow people, 637 00:30:38,896 --> 00:30:41,171 Men in Black and other visitations 638 00:30:41,323 --> 00:30:43,415 are all mixed in together. 639 00:30:43,567 --> 00:30:46,068 Are they the same? Possibly. 640 00:30:46,086 --> 00:30:48,587 But what I think what is really happening on this planet 641 00:30:48,681 --> 00:30:50,589 is mass hysteria 642 00:30:50,683 --> 00:30:53,241 of real events that are happening to real people, 643 00:30:53,335 --> 00:30:56,578 and they can't understand what's going on. 644 00:30:56,597 --> 00:30:57,646 Who knows what's happening? 645 00:30:59,191 --> 00:31:02,084 NARRATOR: For ancient astronaut theorists, 646 00:31:02,102 --> 00:31:04,603 the wide variety of reported shadow people encounters 647 00:31:04,697 --> 00:31:07,347 makes finding an explanation for the phenomenon 648 00:31:07,441 --> 00:31:09,257 all the more difficult. 649 00:31:09,276 --> 00:31:12,352 But some researchers suggest 650 00:31:12,371 --> 00:31:14,187 that we may come closer to the answer 651 00:31:14,281 --> 00:31:16,206 by asking the question, 652 00:31:16,358 --> 00:31:18,834 "Where do they come from?" 653 00:31:27,369 --> 00:31:28,944 NARRATOR: One of the most common and most curious observations 654 00:31:29,037 --> 00:31:30,554 reported by shadow people experiencers 655 00:31:30,705 --> 00:31:32,389 is that these entities are able to make 656 00:31:32,540 --> 00:31:34,040 physical contact with them 657 00:31:34,059 --> 00:31:35,893 but then often disappear 658 00:31:36,120 --> 00:31:38,228 as though they are merely holograms. 659 00:31:39,881 --> 00:31:43,734 OFFUTT: Generally, the shadow people will leave the room. 660 00:31:43,961 --> 00:31:46,294 Either they will dissolve in a puff of smoke 661 00:31:46,388 --> 00:31:47,863 or they will walk through a door. 662 00:31:49,316 --> 00:31:52,484 And they may or may not be material, 663 00:31:52,636 --> 00:31:55,987 have mass, have structural form. 664 00:31:56,081 --> 00:31:57,748 And there's been talk about maybe they come 665 00:31:57,899 --> 00:32:00,325 from some other dimension. 666 00:32:00,477 --> 00:32:04,046 We take for granted that we live in a three-dimensional universe. 667 00:32:05,499 --> 00:32:08,550 The quantum theory makes possible higher dimensions. 668 00:32:09,820 --> 00:32:12,671 Think of fish living in a pond, for example. 669 00:32:12,823 --> 00:32:15,340 The pond is two-dimensional. 670 00:32:15,434 --> 00:32:18,827 The fish are stuck in a two-dimensional world. 671 00:32:18,845 --> 00:32:21,772 They cannot visualize a third dimension. 672 00:32:21,923 --> 00:32:24,516 But you could lift one of these fishes 673 00:32:24,668 --> 00:32:27,277 into the third dimension, and they'd be shocked. 674 00:32:27,429 --> 00:32:29,780 Shocked to realize there's a whole universe 675 00:32:30,007 --> 00:32:33,450 in the third dimension beyond their pond. 676 00:32:33,601 --> 00:32:37,696 Well, we physicists, some of us believe that we are the fish. 677 00:32:37,790 --> 00:32:41,107 We spend all our life in a three-dimensional pond 678 00:32:41,201 --> 00:32:43,443 thinking that that's all there is 679 00:32:43,537 --> 00:32:44,869 when right above us, 680 00:32:45,022 --> 00:32:47,464 there could be higher dimensions, 681 00:32:47,615 --> 00:32:50,592 hyperspatial dimensions up to 11. 682 00:32:52,120 --> 00:32:55,547 RICKSECKER: Theoretically, we have up to 11 dimensions, 683 00:32:55,699 --> 00:32:57,790 and there may be other entities and other life-forms 684 00:32:57,884 --> 00:32:59,792 living within these dimensions. 685 00:32:59,812 --> 00:33:02,370 Now, how would they look to us 686 00:33:02,464 --> 00:33:04,706 if they crossed over those dimensions 687 00:33:04,799 --> 00:33:06,891 and entered into our world? 688 00:33:07,044 --> 00:33:09,878 Well, maybe a shadow entity 689 00:33:09,896 --> 00:33:12,397 is one of these interdimensional beings 690 00:33:12,549 --> 00:33:15,400 that has crossed over from some other place in space-time 691 00:33:15,494 --> 00:33:16,994 into our world. 692 00:33:17,145 --> 00:33:19,329 And we're seeing them as a shadow 693 00:33:19,556 --> 00:33:23,834 because their energy and their personal resonance 694 00:33:23,985 --> 00:33:26,819 doesn't quite adhere 695 00:33:26,839 --> 00:33:30,007 to the energy and the resonance of our planet. 696 00:33:31,326 --> 00:33:33,010 NOORY: If shadow people exist, 697 00:33:33,237 --> 00:33:35,754 and it's very possible that they do, 698 00:33:35,848 --> 00:33:37,756 I think they're coming from other dimensions 699 00:33:37,908 --> 00:33:39,182 within our universe. 700 00:33:40,686 --> 00:33:43,928 I think there are entities that somehow leak through 701 00:33:44,081 --> 00:33:46,005 because some of them even look disoriented, 702 00:33:46,025 --> 00:33:47,932 like they-they don't know where they are. 703 00:33:48,027 --> 00:33:50,769 Somehow, they're coming through another dimension 704 00:33:50,863 --> 00:33:52,529 into ours, 705 00:33:52,680 --> 00:33:54,197 and we're stuck with them. 706 00:33:55,701 --> 00:33:58,276 NARRATOR: Could it be that shadow people experiencers 707 00:33:58,428 --> 00:34:00,353 are witnessing entities 708 00:34:00,372 --> 00:34:03,373 that are capable of traveling between dimensions? 709 00:34:03,600 --> 00:34:05,767 According to ancient astronaut theorists, 710 00:34:05,786 --> 00:34:07,693 there is evidence 711 00:34:07,788 --> 00:34:11,548 that certain places on Earth act as interdimensional portals. 712 00:34:11,699 --> 00:34:13,699 RICKSECKER: We see shadow entities 713 00:34:13,719 --> 00:34:16,219 in these certain locations around the world 714 00:34:16,446 --> 00:34:18,704 in which they seem to appear more often. 715 00:34:18,724 --> 00:34:20,782 There are locations around our planet 716 00:34:20,875 --> 00:34:23,134 where there's more of that Earth energy 717 00:34:23,287 --> 00:34:25,228 that is rising out of the ground. 718 00:34:25,455 --> 00:34:27,622 You know, Stonehenge, the pyramids, 719 00:34:27,641 --> 00:34:30,625 Carnac, places with that ancient energy 720 00:34:30,718 --> 00:34:32,903 that's rising from the ground. 721 00:34:33,054 --> 00:34:36,965 Now, an interdimensional being may be using those locations 722 00:34:36,983 --> 00:34:39,701 to enter into our domain. 723 00:34:41,154 --> 00:34:44,230 NARRATOR: Some researchers believe it is also possible 724 00:34:44,249 --> 00:34:45,990 that shadow people 725 00:34:46,085 --> 00:34:48,310 can alter the human mind 726 00:34:48,403 --> 00:34:50,754 to see into other dimensions. 727 00:34:50,905 --> 00:34:52,756 BIRNES: Ancient peoples believe 728 00:34:52,907 --> 00:34:55,592 that shadow people have the ability 729 00:34:55,743 --> 00:34:58,486 to enter a person's mind 730 00:34:58,580 --> 00:35:01,098 and change that person's perception 731 00:35:01,325 --> 00:35:04,492 so the person can see the spirit. 732 00:35:04,511 --> 00:35:08,754 They've entered from their world into our world. 733 00:35:08,774 --> 00:35:11,850 NARRATOR: According to ancient astronaut theorists, 734 00:35:12,002 --> 00:35:14,277 the notion that the human mind can be altered 735 00:35:14,429 --> 00:35:16,504 to access other dimensions 736 00:35:16,523 --> 00:35:18,598 is supported by experiments 737 00:35:18,617 --> 00:35:21,509 with a powerful hallucinogen called dimethyltryptamine, 738 00:35:21,528 --> 00:35:23,286 or DMT, 739 00:35:23,513 --> 00:35:25,622 the active ingredient in ayahuasca. 740 00:35:26,792 --> 00:35:29,200 This South American drug 741 00:35:29,294 --> 00:35:31,019 is traditionally used throughout the Amazon 742 00:35:31,112 --> 00:35:34,464 to produce intense visions. 743 00:35:34,616 --> 00:35:38,284 Between 1990 and 1995, 744 00:35:38,303 --> 00:35:41,045 scientists at the University of New Mexico 745 00:35:41,198 --> 00:35:43,623 administered DMT to 60 volunteers 746 00:35:43,642 --> 00:35:45,383 and were surprised 747 00:35:45,535 --> 00:35:48,536 to find that many of them had very similar visions, 748 00:35:48,555 --> 00:35:52,891 including encounters with strange beings. 749 00:35:52,985 --> 00:35:56,486 One of the greatest scholars about the effect of DMT 750 00:35:56,638 --> 00:35:59,138 and human beings and what we see in the other world 751 00:35:59,232 --> 00:36:01,324 is Terence McKenna. 752 00:36:02,569 --> 00:36:04,828 Terence McKenna explained 753 00:36:04,979 --> 00:36:08,648 that the strangest thing to him was 754 00:36:08,667 --> 00:36:11,984 those who'd taken ayahuasca generally saw the same thing. 755 00:36:12,004 --> 00:36:13,578 What did they see? 756 00:36:13,730 --> 00:36:15,563 Little green people. 757 00:36:15,582 --> 00:36:17,582 People like Terence McKenna 758 00:36:17,734 --> 00:36:20,159 are saying that's the entrance to another world, 759 00:36:20,179 --> 00:36:22,679 another dimension. 760 00:36:22,830 --> 00:36:25,665 And we know, he says, 761 00:36:25,684 --> 00:36:28,000 that it has a separate existence from us 762 00:36:28,020 --> 00:36:31,262 because people from all different walks of life 763 00:36:31,415 --> 00:36:33,190 see the same thing. 764 00:36:33,341 --> 00:36:35,767 HENRY: These beings appear to be coming 765 00:36:35,919 --> 00:36:38,253 from higher or lower realms 766 00:36:38,346 --> 00:36:40,530 and entering into our physical realm, 767 00:36:40,757 --> 00:36:42,273 perhaps to demonstrate that we, too, 768 00:36:42,426 --> 00:36:44,367 can cross over into these realms. 769 00:36:44,519 --> 00:36:47,095 It's very important that we understand the nature 770 00:36:47,188 --> 00:36:48,947 and origins of these beings 771 00:36:49,099 --> 00:36:51,041 because it could be that they are gonna lead us 772 00:36:51,192 --> 00:36:54,360 to innumerable different species that exist in our universe 773 00:36:54,454 --> 00:36:55,879 as well as how we, too, 774 00:36:56,030 --> 00:36:58,381 can cross over into these other realms. 775 00:36:58,533 --> 00:37:02,368 NARRATOR: Experiments with electric stimulation of the brain 776 00:37:02,387 --> 00:37:05,722 have also caused people to have unexplainable encounters. 777 00:37:05,873 --> 00:37:07,465 OFFUTT: There was a study 778 00:37:07,559 --> 00:37:10,134 done, uh, in-in Sweden 779 00:37:10,287 --> 00:37:12,454 where these scientists put electric charges 780 00:37:12,547 --> 00:37:14,289 in certain parts of the brain 781 00:37:14,307 --> 00:37:17,400 just to see how the subject would react to them. 782 00:37:17,552 --> 00:37:20,737 And a young undergrad was sitting there with a notebook, 783 00:37:20,964 --> 00:37:23,131 and when they increased the voltage 784 00:37:23,149 --> 00:37:24,908 to a certain part of her brain, 785 00:37:25,059 --> 00:37:26,985 she started pulling away 786 00:37:27,137 --> 00:37:29,471 from something that wasn't there. 787 00:37:29,564 --> 00:37:31,639 And afterwards, uh, when she was asked 788 00:37:31,658 --> 00:37:33,992 by the scientist to describe what was going on, 789 00:37:34,086 --> 00:37:37,312 she said that she saw a shadow entity behind her. 790 00:37:37,330 --> 00:37:39,923 And when the voltage was at its highest, 791 00:37:40,074 --> 00:37:41,907 she said it was trying to take the notebook and pen 792 00:37:41,927 --> 00:37:43,409 out of her hands, and she was jerking 793 00:37:43,428 --> 00:37:45,820 to keep it from removing them. 794 00:37:45,913 --> 00:37:48,506 So, is it some part of our brain 795 00:37:48,658 --> 00:37:50,675 that needs an electrical charge 796 00:37:50,827 --> 00:37:53,103 or some charge from ayahuasca 797 00:37:53,330 --> 00:37:55,847 to help us see what's already there? 798 00:37:55,941 --> 00:37:57,232 Very possibly. 799 00:37:58,443 --> 00:38:00,351 NARRATOR: Are shadow people witnesses 800 00:38:00,504 --> 00:38:04,339 encountering entities from other dimensions? 801 00:38:04,432 --> 00:38:06,524 Some ancient astronaut theorists 802 00:38:06,618 --> 00:38:10,345 suggest there is an even more profound explanation: 803 00:38:10,363 --> 00:38:13,790 that just outside the range of human perception, 804 00:38:13,941 --> 00:38:16,442 Earth is inhabited by a great multitude 805 00:38:16,536 --> 00:38:19,296 of otherworldly beings. 806 00:38:24,619 --> 00:38:26,636 NARRATOR: The dark, hulking figure 807 00:38:26,788 --> 00:38:28,880 that comes in the night and paralyzes its prey 808 00:38:28,974 --> 00:38:32,100 remains the most common shadow people experience. 809 00:38:33,645 --> 00:38:36,871 But reports of these entities appearing in broad daylight, 810 00:38:36,890 --> 00:38:39,983 as well as other types of shadow people accounts, 811 00:38:40,210 --> 00:38:42,802 make it difficult for investigators to pin down 812 00:38:42,821 --> 00:38:45,655 exactly what this phenomenon is. 813 00:38:48,068 --> 00:38:50,142 When it comes to the different types of shadow entities, 814 00:38:50,162 --> 00:38:51,494 their behavior, to me, 815 00:38:51,721 --> 00:38:53,738 differentiates one from the other. 816 00:38:53,832 --> 00:38:56,391 The ones that don't pay any attention to people at all, 817 00:38:56,409 --> 00:38:58,651 they could be interdimensional. 818 00:38:58,745 --> 00:39:02,672 The ones that are spying on us could be extraterrestrial. 819 00:39:02,824 --> 00:39:04,674 The ones that instill fear 820 00:39:04,826 --> 00:39:07,177 could be demonic entities. 821 00:39:07,404 --> 00:39:10,922 So, even though they look the same, 822 00:39:11,074 --> 00:39:13,850 generally, I-I don't think a lot of them are. 823 00:39:15,837 --> 00:39:19,263 HENRY: The multifactorial explanation makes a lot of sense. 824 00:39:19,358 --> 00:39:21,340 It could explain why some of them instill fear 825 00:39:21,434 --> 00:39:23,008 and some of them don't, 826 00:39:23,028 --> 00:39:24,844 why some of them appear during daytime 827 00:39:24,863 --> 00:39:26,696 and some of them only appear at nighttime. 828 00:39:26,848 --> 00:39:28,698 The fact is we just don't know enough 829 00:39:28,850 --> 00:39:30,441 about the shadow people, 830 00:39:30,594 --> 00:39:33,203 and a lot more research needs to be done. 831 00:39:33,430 --> 00:39:35,947 NARRATOR: While answers remain elusive, 832 00:39:36,041 --> 00:39:38,875 one popular new theory is that the shadow people 833 00:39:39,102 --> 00:39:42,361 exist outside the limits of human perception, 834 00:39:42,381 --> 00:39:45,273 not occupying an alternate dimension 835 00:39:45,291 --> 00:39:47,291 but vibrating at a frequency 836 00:39:47,444 --> 00:39:50,053 we are not normally able to perceive. 837 00:39:51,448 --> 00:39:53,281 TSOUKALOS: It's a scientific fact 838 00:39:53,299 --> 00:39:57,877 that the human eye can only see certain things. 839 00:39:57,896 --> 00:40:02,232 For example, we cannot see the infrared light spectrum. 840 00:40:02,459 --> 00:40:06,628 So you have to wonder if shadow people operate 841 00:40:06,646 --> 00:40:11,557 in a spectrum that we humans simply cannot see. 842 00:40:11,576 --> 00:40:15,412 And perhaps there are certain people 843 00:40:15,639 --> 00:40:18,823 whose brains operate in a different way, 844 00:40:18,975 --> 00:40:21,901 and they're able to process 845 00:40:21,920 --> 00:40:25,422 more of the reality that we currently experience. 846 00:40:26,758 --> 00:40:29,167 CORY: There are other spectrums that continue on 847 00:40:29,261 --> 00:40:33,488 past our physical brain and our physical self. 848 00:40:33,581 --> 00:40:36,674 And so, why is it so difficult 849 00:40:36,826 --> 00:40:40,562 to imagine that these entities could be existing? 850 00:40:41,831 --> 00:40:44,256 That these entities exist 851 00:40:44,350 --> 00:40:46,759 in these other spectrum 852 00:40:46,853 --> 00:40:49,003 and tap into our spectrum 853 00:40:49,022 --> 00:40:51,072 at will and upon command. 854 00:40:52,358 --> 00:40:54,433 RICKSECKER: I think the benefit for mankind 855 00:40:54,453 --> 00:40:57,102 in learning about these entities... 856 00:40:57,197 --> 00:41:00,014 I think we'd get a better understanding of our universe 857 00:41:00,033 --> 00:41:02,608 and how everything in this universe is connected. 858 00:41:02,702 --> 00:41:04,461 You know, I to you. 859 00:41:05,855 --> 00:41:08,465 Us to the planet, the planet to the Sun 860 00:41:08,616 --> 00:41:11,801 to the solar system to our galaxy. 861 00:41:11,953 --> 00:41:15,046 Everything is interconnected. We're all made of stardust. 862 00:41:15,140 --> 00:41:16,973 And I think we'll have a better understanding 863 00:41:17,124 --> 00:41:18,308 of our origins 864 00:41:18,535 --> 00:41:20,535 and where we're going in the future. 865 00:41:20,553 --> 00:41:22,053 TSOUKALOS: One can argue, 866 00:41:22,205 --> 00:41:24,388 "Oh, it's just a figment of their imagination." 867 00:41:24,541 --> 00:41:26,207 But some of these people have experienced this 868 00:41:26,226 --> 00:41:29,210 for their entire lives. 869 00:41:29,229 --> 00:41:31,729 And I think that we need to investigate 870 00:41:31,823 --> 00:41:34,824 and listen to the people who tell us these stories. 871 00:41:36,069 --> 00:41:37,902 NARRATOR: Is it possible 872 00:41:38,054 --> 00:41:40,238 that humankind shares the Earth 873 00:41:40,390 --> 00:41:41,739 with other intelligent beings 874 00:41:41,891 --> 00:41:45,502 that only a select few are able to perceive? 875 00:41:45,729 --> 00:41:49,154 Perhaps the next step in humankind's evolution 876 00:41:49,174 --> 00:41:53,568 will not involve the development of spacefaring technology 877 00:41:53,661 --> 00:41:56,846 but an expansion of consciousness, 878 00:41:57,073 --> 00:41:59,574 allowing us to see for the first time 879 00:41:59,592 --> 00:42:02,835 that we truly are not alone, 880 00:42:02,929 --> 00:42:06,189 even on our own planet. 881 00:42:06,416 --> 00:42:08,691 CAPTIONING PROVIDED BY A+E NETWORKS