Wednesday, July 26, 1972

Huge, White, Hairy “Monster” Reported Sighted in Cairo

Cairo Evening Citizen

Has the Abominable Snowman lost his love for the isolated mountains in which he so often has been reported? Has he developed a craving for hot, humid climates, and perhaps even a suntan?

Or is there also an Abominable Riverman, which lives in the lowlands along the Mississippi River?

There have been several reports of a huge, orange-eyed monster roaming the hills near the small town of Louisiana, Mo., near the Mississippi River.

Tuesday evening, a huge monster was reported sighted in Cairo.

LeRoy Summers, whose address was listed as 411 27th St., told Cairo police Tuesday night that he had sighted a 10 foot tall, white hairy monster standing by a small brick building on the Ohio levee between 28th and 17th Streets.

Summers said he was jogging on the levee about 7:30 p.m. when he glanced up to see this two legged apparition standing by the building.

He didn’t stay around long enough to observe the monster’s facial features, but he did note that it had a large head.

Summers said the monster’s body was solid white with a bit of red around the middle. He told police he quickly turned and jogged possibly a bit faster than he had been jogging along the route he had just taken.

He did not see if the monster moved.

When patrolmen returned to the scene, they could find no trace of any such creature. The police radio dispatcher reported that just as the patrolmen were returning to the station, another report of a sighting was called into the station.

Near Louisiana, Mo., recently, there have been reports of strange growls at night, which would not have come from farm animals; strange footprints; and a rank smell in the air.

Monday, two families in the area told the sheriff’s office they saw a circle of flashing lights in the area Monday night.

The head of a private group called the International Unidentified Flying Objects Bureau camped out in the Louisiana area last weekend but said he neither heard, smelled nor saw the alleged monster.

He did say, “however, he believed there was something in the hills around the Louisiana area, and wouldn’t rule out the possibility that it came from outer space.