What The Cryptid? — Witness File WITNESS INTERVIEW — FILE #0516 INTERNAL — NOT FOR RELEASE Location: Harlan’s Creek First Baptist Church, Fellowship Hall, Harlan’s Creek, WVWitness: Reverend Gerald Oakes, 71 — Pastor, Harlan’s Creek First Baptist ChurchInterviewer: Mara VaneDCA Case Reference: DCA-HC-2024-0516 INTERVIEWER: Reverend Oakes. Thank you for agreeing to speak with me. I know you haven’t formally filed a report. WITNESS: No, I haven’t. I don’t know that what I saw requires a report. I’m not sure what it requires, honestly. That’s partly why I called. [DCA NOTE: Witness initiated contact. First instance of direct outreach to WTC. All prior correspondence delivered via field office mail slot.] INTERVIEWER: Can you describe the incident? WITNESS: It began about three weeks ago. Maybe four. I’ve been opening the church at six-fifteen in the morning for thirty-one years. That hasn’t changed. What’s changed is what I find when I get there. INTERVIEWER: What do you find? WITNESS: Flowers. Wildflowers, mostly. Trillium, wood violet, a few things I haven’t been able to name. Left in a pile at the base of the front steps. Neatly. Not scattered — arranged. Not in a vase or anything like that, just laid out on the concrete. Stems aligned. INTERVIEWER: Every morning? WITNESS: Every morning without exception. Including this morning. I left them where they were. I always leave them where they are. [DCA NOTE: Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum) is not currently in season in Harlan’s Creek. Peak bloom is late April to May. Date of first reported deposit: approximately late September.] INTERVIEWER: Have you seen who...