'Sonny' DesVergers, Florida 1952

[BS3]

Talk of the Michalak case reminds me of the 1952 'Florida Scoutmaster' sighting featured prominently by Edward Ruppelt. This is one of those reports which is generally filed as irredeemable due to the dubious character of the main witness. But nevertheless there is, for once, an unusually large amount of corroborating evidence, including additional witnesses and a range of physical traces.

There is a long, exhaustive article on this case and its many quirks at Saturday Night Uforia:

https://www.saturdaynightuforia.com/html/articles/articlehtml/thescoutmasterstale.html

Amongst the many interesting points of this piece is a reminder of how much the DesVergers incident closely matched later 'abduction' reports, including the Hills, as well as a reproduction of an article and interview from American Weekly in 1953, which takes a rare sympathetic approach to the witness.

 

[Kondoru]

Close encounter with an Earthlight?

 

[BS3]

Seems like one possibility, or even an encounter with some kind of flares or other pyrotechnics.

The case however has been so coloured by the issue of DesVergers' character it's difficult to be objective about it. The funny thing is that Ruppelt's dramatic presentation of how the dishonourable discharge and prison time came out - DesVergers appeared totally credible until someone later took Ruppelt aside and told him - is itself a tall story. Ruppelt in fact knew about DesVergers' record from the very start - because DesVergers had actually volunteered the information to him!

Plus it took place 70 years ago. Amazing to think of that really.

I was also pleased to see that a 1997 newspaper article actually managed to get in touch with two of the scouts who the scoutmaster was supposed to have hoaxed;

When contacted 45 years later, Rowan, an engineer, and Stevens, a draftsman, agreed on this much:

Something very strange happened in those woods southeast of the intersection of Lantana Road and Military Trail, and they don't think the scoutmaster faked it.

 

[BS3]

Another longer piece on the case, by the late Karl Pflock, via NICAP.