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For centuries, stories of mythical creatures and beasts have haunted the imaginations of many. These legends have become so deeply embedded in our culture that some real-life tragedies are often linked to these fantastic entities. For example, the mysterious deaths of nine skiers on Dyatlov Pass were, for a long time, believed to be caused by yetis living in the northern Urals. Similarly, when two young girls attempted to murder their friend in a Wisconsin forest, they blamed the mythical figure of Slender Man, claiming they had to carry out the act to protect their families from him.
This list explores more tragic events that have, at least partially, been attributed to creatures from folklore.
10. Bigfoot Abduction
Since the famous 1967 Gimlin film captured the first notable footage, Bigfoot sightings have flooded the United States, even though experts continue to dismiss the creature as a hoax or a complete absurdity.
In 1987, tragedy struck when 16-year-old Theresa Ann Bier seemingly decided to skip school and embark on a Bigfoot hunt in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California on June 1. She was accompanied by 43-year-old Russell Welch, who returned alone from the trip. Theresa was reported missing, and when authorities questioned Russell, he claimed he last saw her on June 2, after they both encountered Bigfoot, with Theresa chasing after it. According to Russell, Bigfoot had taken Theresa. He later changed his story several times, continuously adding new details.
The authorities were skeptical of Russell's account, and on June 11, they arrested him. However, they had to release him due to lack of evidence. Despite an extensive search, which included the use of sniffer dogs in the area where Theresa was last seen, nothing significant was found, except what appeared to be her purse and bits of her clothing.
To this day, no one has been charged in connection with Theresa's disappearance, and her fate remains an unsolved mystery.
9. Mermaid Drowning
In December 2013, 12-year-old Siyabonga Masango left home to play soccer with his friends. Later, the intense heat led the group of boys to take a swim in a tributary of the Sabie River in Mpumalanga, South Africa.
A man washing his car nearby saw Siyabonga being dragged into the water and rushed to help. Unfortunately, they couldn’t see or find him beneath the surface. Police divers conducted a search for two weeks but were unable to locate the boy, concluding that he had drowned after being attacked by a crocodile.
However, Siyabonga’s family was not convinced by the official explanation. They believed that a mermaid had taken their son, and that he would be “returned” in time to attend school. The family performed rituals to ensure this would come to pass. Unfortunately, Siyabonga was never found, and his fate remains a mystery.
8. Ghostly Revenge
In June 2018, two men in the Thai village of Tambon Dong Yai, located in Nakhon Ratchasima’s Phimai district, passed away in their sleep. Alarmed villagers consulted a local medium to conduct a ritual and summon spirits for an explanation. The medium claimed that the ghost of a widow had communicated her desire to kill four men in the village, and since she had already taken the lives of two, the remaining two were soon to follow.
Upon hearing this, several villagers hung red shirts in front of their homes, hoping to ward off the ghost. Some even added notes stating that their homes had no men, only pets.
After the red shirts were put on display outside homes, no other men suffered the same fate as the first two.
7. Alien Kidnapping
The mysterious disappearance of Amelia Earhart sparked a variety of conspiracy theories, even after the Navy officially concluded that Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan had likely run out of fuel, causing them to crash into the Pacific Ocean and drown.
These theories ranged from Earhart and Noonan surviving on Nikumaroro as castaways until their deaths, being captured by the Japanese, or even being consumed by coconut crabs after crashing near Howland Island.
Naturally, there was also a much stranger theory among the crowd, with some speculating that Earhart was abducted by aliens on the day she was supposed to land on Howland Island, only to be sent into a wormhole where she remained in suspended animation.
A version of this idea was incorporated into the popular anthology horror series, American Horror Story, where a character claims to be Amelia Earhart and communicates with extraterrestrials.
6. Demonic Homicide
Demons and malevolent entities are central figures in folklore, mythology, fiction, occultism, and religious beliefs. Alongside these stories are those of possession and exorcism. In modern times, many crimes have been attributed to demonic forces and evil beings.
In 2016, Aljar Swartz confessed to the murder and decapitation of 15-year-old Lee Adams, hiding her severed head in his backyard in Cape Town, South Africa. It wasn’t until his trial, where psychiatrists and psychologists deemed him mentally stable, that Swartz’s defense lawyer suddenly claimed that his client was possessed by a demon and requested an exorcism to be performed in Swartz’s prison cell while he awaited sentencing.
The lawyer also insisted on having a retired Methodist minister conduct the exorcism after Swartz allegedly told him that a demon, in the form of a black lizard, appeared in his cell and tormented him. Swartz claimed that the lizard would crawl into his chest and “take control” of him. The lawyer argued that Swartz was a “vessel” and “tool of the devil” and thus should not be held accountable for Lee’s murder.
The court eventually ruled that Swartz killed Lee Adams with the intention of selling her head to a sangoma—a practitioner of herbal medicine, divination, and counseling in some traditional South African communities. He was sentenced to 22 years in prison.
5. By Decree of the Vampire Queen
In 2002, 22-year-old Allan Menzies murdered his 21-year-old friend, Thomas McKendrick. Menzies then consumed part of McKendrick’s head, drank his blood, and buried him in a shallow grave. During his trial, Menzies stated that Akasha, the “Vampire Queen” from the film The Queen of the Damned, had repeatedly instructed him to kill his friend. He also mentioned watching the film over 100 times and claimed that Akasha promised to turn him into an immortal if he murdered people.
Menzies further revealed that he decided to kill McKendrick after McKendrick insulted Akasha. He also believed that he had become a vampire after the murder and claimed he felt no emotion after McKendrick died.
Menzies was sentenced to life imprisonment for the crime in 2003 but was found dead in his prison cell in 2004. It is believed he took his own life.
4. The Monster Behind the Enigma
The Kraken, a creature from Norwegian folklore, is one of the most terrifying mythical beasts. According to legend, the monster was so massive that sailors would sometimes mistake it for an island and attempt to land on it, only to be pulled into the depths. The renowned zoologist Carl Von Linné included the Kraken in his Systema Naturae as a real creature. Many believe that a similar monster once existed, especially after the discovery of Ichthyosaur bones arranged in a pattern similar to how octopuses place bones after they finish eating.
Adding another layer to the mystery, the Kraken has been accused of causing the unexplained disappearances of ships and planes in the Bermuda Triangle. Some theorize that a super-intelligent Kraken resides in the Triangle’s depths and “feeds” on vessels and aircraft.
The Kraken has even been blamed for the disappearance of the Mary Celeste, though the legendary ship vanished far from the Bermuda Triangle.
3. The Hidden Leviathan
According to Caribbean folklore, the lusca is a sea monster that measures 75 feet and has the features of both a dragon and an octopus. It is said to dwell in the waters around Andros Island in the Bahamas. Some versions of the story describe the creature as having the head and torso of a shark and the lower body of an octopus.
One legend suggests that the lusca, or the Hidden Leviathan as it's sometimes called, is the restless spirit of a woman who drowned and was transformed into a creature. Another tale tells that the lusca is a mermaid or siren placed on Earth by nymphs to lure sailors to their doom.
The TV show River Monsters featured an episode dedicated to the lusca, investigating the possibility that this creature might be responsible for the disappearances of swimmers exploring the blue holes around Andros. Among the missing are 38-year-old Liu Guandong, Wesley Bell, and 72-year-old John William Batchelor. Although Batchelor’s boat was discovered, he has never been found.
2. Wendigo Madness
Spanning multiple pages in Algonquian lore, the Wendigo is depicted as a cannibalistic humanoid with antlers, driven by hunger for human flesh to survive the harsh, cold winters. According to the legend, the first Wendigo was a hunter who became lost in the wilderness during winter and resorted to cannibalism to stay alive. This act transformed him into a Wendigo, condemned to wander the forest in search of more prey.
In the 1800s, a Cree man named Swift Runner struggled with alcoholism, was dismissed from his job as a guide for the North West Mounted Police, and grew increasingly violent. In 1878, Swift Runner led his wife, six children, mother-in-law, and brother into the forest, where he killed and devoured them.
Investigating the scene, police found shattered, hollowed bones and a pot filled with human fat. Swift Runner confessed that he had been overtaken by the Wendigo spirit, which compelled him to commit the gruesome act.
His claims were dismissed as absurd, and Swift Runner was found guilty of the killings. He was sentenced to death and executed in December 1879.
1. The Price of Lives
The Higginson Highway in Chatsworth, Durban, South Africa, has a dark reputation for fatal crashes. Rocks are frequently thrown at vehicles from overhead bridges, with the injured drivers then being robbed. On other occasions, drivers lose control and plunge down the embankment. Some accidents occur from head-on collisions, resulting in tragic fatalities.
Many of the accidents on this highway are said to be the work of the ghostly Highway Sheila. This restless spirit is believed to have a 'quota of lives' she must claim each year. Sheila reportedly fulfills this grim duty by materializing in the middle of the road, causing drivers to swerve, leading to often deadly accidents.
In a recent incident, a young Metro police officer and his family were driving home late at night on the Higginson Highway when they nearly collided with a woman in white standing in the middle of the lane. The family was shaken by the encounter but believed they were spared from harm by divine intervention.
