YEAR: 1980

SEASON: Fall

MONTH: October

DATE: 15

STATE: Louisiana

COUNTY: Rapides Parish

LOCATION DETAILS: The location is less than 1 mile from Kissatchie National Forest.

NEAREST TOWN: Tioga

NEAREST ROAD: hwy 71

OBSERVED: Late one night when I was around 11 or 12 years old. I was awaken by something at the window of my bedroom. As I woke up and looked around my room the light from the street light in the back yard cast a shadow on my window. This shadow filled the entire 8 foot window and had it was the shadow of something walking by. The outline line looked like a big person with its head leaning forward and messy hair. At that time I though who is in my yard (as we had 6 acres of woods that backed up to rogully swamp and flaggon was near by). So I got up and went to the back door and stepped out to see who was out there. What I saw was something big and black that stepped over the 4 1/2 chain link fence and walked into the woods. I did not know what I was looking at, but we lived rurally and our house set about an acre off the road. Being in the late 70's the area was not developed. So I could not imagine it being a person. When I told my dad about it, he told me it was nothing and not to worry about it. So for years I put it out of my mind. To this day I am not sure what I saw. All I know is it filled up the 8 foot window and stepped over a 4 1/2 foot chain link fence. In my mind today that has got to be pretty big to do that.

OTHER WITNESSES: Just me.

OTHER STORIES: Not until years later when I found the BFRO web sight. But my I remeber my Dad telling a story of deer hunting and seeing something large in a tree. He was telling my uncle at the time. Dad said it was standing on a good size limb. To the day he died he said it was not a bear and not a nutria.

TIME AND CONDITIONS: Sometime in the middle of the night.

ENVIRONMENT: Rural woods with creeks and Rogully and Flaggon Swamps near by. Hardwood trees mainly.

Logger has two encounters over three day period

Follow-up investigation report by BFRO Investigator Conor Ameigh:

I met with the witness in person near the incident.

The witness believes the creature crossed his backyard as if it was taking a shortcut through the neighborhood to the forest behind his house. The witness saw the shadow move by his window and raced through the house to get a good look at the creature through the back door. His back porch light illuminated the creature as it crossed his yard. It was 300-500 pounds, eight feet tall and built like a linebacker. Its conical shaped head sat on top of the shoulders and was tilted forward. The body was covered in black shaggy hair. The arms had a pronounced swing. He saw the creature for approximately 3-4 seconds.

The creature was spotted heading towards a wilderness area that extends into the Catahoula district of Kisatchie National Forest which is only three miles from the incident.

About BFRO Investigator Conor Ameigh:

- Veteran of the U.S. Air Force.
- Experienced backpacker, and outdoorsman
Attended the following BFRO expeditions:
-Oklahoma '08
-Missouri '08
-Florida '09
-Oklahoma '09 May
-Colorado '09
-Oklahoma '09 Sep.
-Missouri '09