Haitian Zombification

In this episode we discuss some of the most convincing, interesting and disturbing reports of real-life zombies. The first story is about a Haitian man named Clairvius Narcisse. At the age of 40, Narcisse died under mysterious circumstances and was buried. 18 years later and much to his sister’s horror, he reappeared and greeted her in a marketplace. Most people believe he was cursed by a witch doctor who used tetrodotoxin to make him appear dead. Once buried, the witch doctor (known as a “bokor”) revived and enslaved Narcisse on his plantation. While far-fetched, this story is likely plausible as there exists a strong cultural belief in zombies in the Haitian culture. This in conjunction with the toxins he was exposed to could possible have created a placebo effect convincing Narcisse that he was a real-life zombie.

Rudy Eugene, also known as the Miami Cannibal is known for pouncing on an innocent, homeless man and gnawing 75% of his face off. Initially thought to be under the influence of some recreational hallucinogens, Eugene was shot and died at the scene of the crime. Later toxicology reports showed only trace amounts of marijuana in his body. This has gone down as one of the most disturbing and violent scenes in Miami as many witnesses report. But if not drugs, what could have caused Eugene to commit this horrific crime?

The Keddie Cabin Murders

The Keddie Cabin Murders is a disturbing quadruple homicide that took place in Keddie, California.  This infamous unsolved crime involves the murder of several family members in a cabin in the late night of April 11, 1981.  This brutal murder case is notorious not just for its dark and gruesome nature, but also for the fact that many believe the investigation was a failure and the main suspects were allowed to be let go despite the large amount of evidence against them.

Sue Sharp and her five children had recently moved from the east coast to California following a troubled marriage.  Sue would rent a cabin in the sparsely populate Keddie area, a run down town in a county that had a rampant drug problem.  On the morning of April 12, Sheila,  the oldest daughter, returned to the family cabin.  Sheila never could have imagined that when the door opened she would find three bloody corpses laying in the main room.  Even more disturbing, her younger sister Tina was no where to be found.

The police investigation has been noted as being quite poor and incompetent, law enforcement missing physical evidence and ignoring other pieces that should have been looked at further.  The following interrogations of the primary suspects was handled in a confusingly half hearted way, the men who were thought to have been the culprits were allowed to simply leave without any follow up actions to their shady statements made about the crime.  To this day the mystery of the Keddie Murders is still unsolved, but the continued work into the case has many hopeful that someday we will finally get the full story on what happened in that cabin on that fateful night.

Montauk – Part 2 – Camp Hero

The follow up episode in the series discussing the mysterious Montauk Project!  This episode covers the amazing and wild experiments that took place in the project’s main base of operation, Camp Hero.  The Montauk Project remains one of the most daring and comprehensive secret military programs in history: experimenting in time travel, teleportation, time travel, psychic abilities, and even contact with Aliens.

The Montauk Project is a rumored series of experiments that took place in Montauk, NY in the 1970s and 80s.  A follow up to the previous Philadelphia Experiment, researchers hoped to achieve even greater feats.  Stationed at Camp Hero, the Montauk Project operated in secret to push the boundaries of human knowledge, experimenting in psychological warfare, manipulation of time and space, and dealings with extraterrestrial lifeforms.  Despite the wondrous claims of the project, very few sources of information and witness accounts exist as evidence.

Did the military secretly experiment with time travel and mind control, even using alien technology? Or is the entire project simply a hoax or myth?  Listen to the story of the Montauk Project and come to your own conclusion!

Part I – The Philadelphia Experiment

Check out other great podcast over at Dark Myths!

Featured Dark Myths podcast of the month: Bohemican Podcast

Montauk – Part 1 – The Philadelphia Experiment

This episode of Strange Matters is the first part of a series discussing the legendary Montauk Project, a rumored series of top-secret military projects carried out by the United States government.  The Montauk Project includes experiments in psychological warfare, teleportation, and even time travel.   However, years before the Montauk Project would supposedly be created, another secret military operation took place that acted as a predecessor: The Philadelphia Experiment.  

The Philadelphia Experiment was an alleged top secret military operation that took place in 1943 at the Naval shipyards in Philadelphia, PA.  Seeking an advantage over the Germans, the US Navy used newly developed scientific equipment in an attempt to create a ship that would be undetectable to enemy radar.  The events that would actually occur during the experiment would instead baffle the observing scientists, even going so far as defying the laws of physics as we understand them.

As extraordinary and fantastic as the story of the Philadelphia Experiment is, many believe the whole thing is simply fiction.  Only a few witnesses exist who claim to know about the experiment, and there is no evidence or records that the secret project ever took place.   Is the Philadelphia Experiment a hoax? Or is it one of the greatest secret military projects in history?

Part II discussing the Montauk Project coming soon!