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URECAT - UFO Related Entities Catalog

URECAT is a formal catalog of UFO related entities sightings reports with the goal of providing quality information for accurate studies of the topic. Additional information, corrections and reviews are welcome at patrick.gross@inbox.com, please state if you wish to be credited for your contribution or not. The main page of the URECAT catalog is here.

AUGUST 20, 1962, DUAS PONTES, MINAS GERAIS, BRAZIL, RAIMUNDO MAFRA DA SILVA:

Brief summary of the event and follow-up:

The story entered the ufology literature when the well-known Brazilian ufologist Olavo T. Fontes, APRO correspondent in Brazil, informed APRO heads Jima and Coral Lorenzen about events that appeared in the local Press. The events were then more and more distorted and embellished or deprived of important information in UFO books and the Internet.

When referring to the apparently most primary source, the story goes as this:

A kid, Raimundo Marfa da Silva, aged 12, went to the police to report on a series of very strange events he said occurred to his family. It all took place in Duas Pontes, district of Diamantina, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil.

It started in the evening of August 19, 1962, when he, his younger brothers Fatimo and Dirceu, and their father Rivalino Mafra da Silva, a poor diamond prospector, went to bed. The family, he said, woke up hearing noises of voices and other unusual noises around their shack. All the four remain with the bed, terrified. The noises stopped, but they were so afraid that they could not sleep for the rest of the night and spent the time praying.

Some versions report that the noises were outside the house, but that some creepy indistinct shadow, or several shadows, were inside the shack, and that a voice outside was heard saying something like "this one looks like Rivalino" and something about murdering Rivalino.

The next morning, the boy, Raimundo, is said to have stepped out of the shack to get the horse, and at this time he saw two large shell-shaped objects hovering side by side in the air two meters above the ground at most, and close to the door of their house. Some other versions seem to describe two ball-shaped object on the ground two meters from the boy. Generally, the objects are described as bearing a protuberance similar to an antenna and a small "tail", translated "rudder" in late version. One of the objects was black and the other black and white. The two objects emit some sort of shushing sound, and at their back part, a flame spouted out intermittently.

In one source, the boy is quoted as having said:

"In the morning, still afraid, I had the courage to go out outside to get my father's horse... But then I sighted two balls floating in mid-air side-by-side about three feet from the ground, one foot from each other... They were big... One of them was all black, had a kind of irregular antenna-like protuberance and a small tail. The other was black and white with the same outlines... Both emitted a humming sound and appeared to give off fire through an opening that flickered like a firefly..."

"I called my father... out of the house. He walked toward the objects... stopped at a distance of 2 meters. At that moment, the two big balls merged into each other. There was only one now, bigger in size, raising dust from the ground and discharging a yellow smoke which darkened the sky. With strange noises, that big ball crept slowly toward my father."

"I saw him enveloped by the yellow smoke and he disappeared inside it. I ran after him into the yellow cloud, which had an acrid smell. I saw nothing, only that yellow mist around me. I yelled for my father but there was no answer. Everything was silent again."

"Then the yellow smoke dissolved. The balls were gone. My father was gone. I want my father back..."

Other sources added that the father was quickly completely hypnotized by the two machines, and ordered his sons not to approach, before advances towards the objects. Some sources indicate that the boy run to his father. Most sources seem to agree about the melting of the two object into one, the yellow smoke, and the disappearance of the father when the smoke was gone.

Apparently, that is the story that the boy told the police, as it was published in the local Press. The rest of the story is that as a person seemed to have been missing, there was a police investigation conducted by one Lieutenant Wilson Lisboa, chief of the Diamantina police station. The police is said to have found drops of blood on the ground around the house in some versions, and to have found "no clue" in others. It seems that the police initially studied whether Raimundo was truthful or not, suspecting he might have invented the story to hide a murder which he would have committed. Apparently, despite attempts to trick the boy, he maintained the story and there was no evidence that he lied. The police is said to have searched for enemies his father might have had, knowing that he was a diamond prospector, but they found nothing.

One psychiatrist, Joao Antunes of Oliveira, apparently examined the boy and told that he was sane and told the Press: "I do not wish to discuss the case further. The facts are beyond my competence. But I can tell you that the boy is normal, and he is telling what he thinks is the truth."

The boy was also interrogated by one Father Jose Avila Garcia, priest of the church of Diamantina, who doubted the account.

During the police investigation, other people came forward and told a number of stories of their own:

Father Jose Avila Garcia, informed Lieutenant Lisboa that his friend Antonio Rocha, apparently a mail service employee, said he saw at approximately 04:00 p.m. on the 19th of August, two objects in the shape of spheres near Rivalino da Silva's house, while fishing in the Manso river close from there.

Two diamonds prospectors, colleagues of Rivalino da Silva, told Lisboa that they had seen two weird one meter tall beings who were digging holes in the ground close to Rivalino's shack, three days before the disappearance. They advanced towards the beings, who run to hide between bushes, and the prospectors thereafter saw a weird craft, red or emitting red light, the shape of a hat, come out of the brushes and fly away at high speed. Other ufological versions claim that it was Rivalino da Silva who saw these beings and hat-shaped UFO and told about it to these two prospectors.

Town physician Dr. Giovani Pereira is said to have reported a brilliant UFO in the shape of a disc in the vicinity, two months earlier. And four days later, the story goes, 50 persons saw a similar object cross the sky.

Basic information table:

Case number: URECAT-000037
Date of event: August 19-20, 1962
Earliest report of event: September 1962.
Delay of report: Days or weeks.
Witness reported via: Police.
First alleged record by: Local newspaper "Diario De Minas".
First certain record by: APRO Bulletin.
First alleged record type: Local newspaper.
First certain record type: Ufology bulletin.
This file created on: September 29, 2006
This file last updated on: December 26, 2007
Country of event: Brazil
State/Department: Minas Gerais
Type of location: Shack and in front of shack.
Lighting conditions: Night and/or sunrise.
UFO observed: Yes
UFO arrival observed: No
UFO departure observed: Uncertain
UFO/Entity Relation: Uncertain
Witnesses numbers: 1 or more
Witnesses ages: 12 and less.
Witnesses types: One children or more children.
Photograph(s): No.
Witnesses drawing: No.
Witnesses-approved drawing: No.
Number of entities: 2, then undetermined.
Type of entities: Undetermined, then shadows
Entities height: Small
Entities outfit type: One piece tight fitting
Entities outfit color: Not reported.
Entities skin color: Not reported.
Entities body: Normal.
Entities head: Large.
Entities eyes: Two, large, black.
Entities mouth: Not known.
Entities nose: Not known.
Entities feet: Boots.
Entities arms: Normal.
Entities fingers: Not known.
Entities fingers number: Not known.
Entities hair: None.
Entities voice: (Voices heard threatening man of murder, source not seen).
Entities actions: Uncertain relation to UFO, uncertain, fled.
Entities/witness interactions: Confused, fled, threatened, abducted man.
Witness(es) reactions: Wanted to help father lost in UFO mist.
Witness(es) feelings: Frightened.
Witness(es) interpretation: Not reported.
Explanation category: Extraterrestrial beings or hoax.
Explanation certainty: None.

Narratives:

[Ref. ap1:] APRO BULLETIN:

The first ufological source is the APRO bulletin in which Coral Lorenzen, co-founder of this organization, reports the case from information provided by Dr. Olavo Fontes, a well-known ufologist in Brazil and APRO correspondent, as "one of the most terrifying reports ever checked." She indicates that the witnesses are three children, Raimundo, 12 years, Fatimo, years and Dirceu, age not specified.

In Duas Pontes, district of Diamantina, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, in the evening of August 20, 1962, these children and their father Rivalino Mafra de Silva went to bed, but are awaked by noises of voices and other unusual noises around their house. All the four remain with the bed, terrified. The noises stop, but they were so afraid that they could not sleep for the rest of the night and spent the time praying.

At one time, the 12 year old boy, Raimundo, leaves the house to get their horse, and he then sees two large shell-shaped objects hovering side by side in the air two meters above the ground at most, and close to the door of their house.

One of the objects is black with a protuberance similar to an antenna and a small "tail", the other is same appearance but of black and white color. The two objects emit some sort of shushing sound, and at their back part, a flame spouted out intermittently.

Raimundo calls his father, who arrives and seems to be quickly completely hypnotized by the two apparatuses. He orders his sons not to approach, and he advances towards the objects.

At this time the objects melt into one object while raising dust and spitting out a yellow smoke, which quickly wraps all the sector including the boys and their father, whom the boys can't see anymore.

Raimundo tries to run towards his father, but the smoke dissipates and there is no more trace either of his father nor of the objects.

As a person seemed to have been missing, there was a police investigation that would be reported in the local press, along with Raimundo's story. The police is said to have found drops of blood on the ground around the house. It seems that the police initially studied if Raimundo could have invented the history to hide a murder which he would have committed, but could not prove that, although they tried to trick the boy. They also sought to find about enemies his father might have had, knowing that he was a diamond prospector, but they found nothing.

With the police force, Joao Antunes of Oliveira, who certified that the boy was mentally sane, showed him a body covered of a cloth, saying that it is his dead father's corpse, and accusing the boy of having lied. The only result of the attempt was that the boy cried and maintained his history just as he told it previously. He just added that perhaps the two apparatuses had brought back his father's body.

During the investigation of the police force, other people told they saw the UFO. The priest of the church of Diamantina, Jose Avila Garcia, informed police officer Lieutenant Lisboa who was in charge of the case, that his friend, Antonio Rocha said he saw at approximately 04:00 p.m. on the 19th of August, two objects in the shape of spheres near Rivalino da Silva's house, while fishing in the Manso river close from there.

Two diamonds prospectors, colleagues of Rivalino da Silva, stated to have seen two weird small beings who were digging close to its house, three days before the disappearance. They advanced towards the beings, who run to hide between bushes, and the prospectors thereafter saw a weird red craft, in the shape of a hat, moving away at high speed in the sky.

Lieutenant Lisboa, in charge of the investigation, remained perplexed, and the case was left unresolved.

All that precedes comes from Coral Lorenzen, who obtained it from an account in one of the newspapers of the area, the "Diario De Minas" of Belo Horizonte, and a second article published a little after in the national newspaper "Correio Da Manha", forwarded to her by Dr. Olavo Fontes.

[Ref. lo1:] CORAL LORENZEN:

The editors noted on the inner first page of Mrs. Lorenzen's book that in Dual Pontes, Brazil, 1962, before the eyes of his three sons, a father walked towards a ball-like object stationed six feet above the ground, and was enveloped in smoke. The craft disappeared and no trace of the man has ever been found.

Mrs Lorenzen indicates that one of the most terrifying reports she ever examined came to her attention in late 1962, with three young boys, Raimundo, 12, Fatimo, 6, and Dirceu da Silva, 2, as only remaining witnesses. Their home is located near Duas Pontes, district of Diamantina, Minas Gerais state, Brazil. The initial report was in the Diario De Minas, of Belo Horizonte, and was later printed in the Correio Da Manha, of Rio de Janeiro.

On the night of August 20, 1962, the three boys and their father Rivalino Mafra da Silva went to bed as usual, and in the middle of the night, they awakened and were frightened into a cold sweat by the presence of strange noises like voices and shadowy figures moving about the house in a "gliding" manner. They all prayed and soon the figures apparently left. The four did not sleep and were still badly frightened when morning came.

Raimundo went out to the field to get the horse, and saw two large ball-shaped objects floating in midair side by side, about 6 feet above the ground and only a few feet from the door, separated from each other by about one yard.

One of the objects was black with an antenna-like protuberance and a small "tail", the other was black and white with the same configuration. They both emitted a humming sound and gave off a fire from the bottom which flickered like the light of a firefly.

Raimundo called his father, who came out of the house, and seemed to become hypnotized by the objects, unable to look away. He warned the boys to stay away and then began walking toward the globes.

At a distance of about seven feet from the objects da Silva stopped, whereupon the two balls seemed to merge with one another, raising dust and discharging a yellow smoke which soon enveloped the whole area. Making strange noises, the object approached da Silva, and the three horrified boys saw their father enveloped in the yellow smoke.

Raimundo ran toward his father into the smoke which had an acrid smell, but found nothing, and when the dust and smoke cleared, his father and the globes were gone.

There was considerable investigation and all was duly reported in the newspapers. A careful and extensive investigation into the background of da Silva was made but nothing was found to indicate enemies or any apparent motive for the disappearance. The authorities suspected that perhaps Raimundo may have been concealing something more mundane than the globes and had made up the story to protect himself or someone else.

When police investigators searched the area, they found nothing but a few drops of human blood about 200 feet from the house. The area around the house was smooth as if swept clean by a broom, there were no tracks except those of the boys. A careful search of the house and area with the help of police dogs was made but nothing was found.

The police made a last desperate attempt to get information from the boy, taking him to a room at headquarters where a body was lying on a table covered with a sheet. Dr. Joao Antunes de Oliveira, who had already established Raimundo's sanity to his own satisfaction, told the boy that his father's body had been found, indicating the body on the table, then accused the boy of telling a lie.

The boy began to cry, but stuck to his story, and said that perhaps the globes had brought his father back. When Dr. Oliveira was interviewed by the press, he simply said: "I don't wish to discuss the facts in the case; they are beyond my competence. But I can tell you that the boy is normal and he is telling what he thinks to be the truth."

Lt. Lisboa, the policeman in charge of the case, was also puzzled and the case was never resolved beyond the fact that da Silva had completely and inexplicably disappeared.

The investigation alloew to learn that Jose Avila Garcia, vicar at the Diamantina cathedral, informed Lisboa him that his friend Antonio Rocha had been fishing at the Manso river close to Duas Pontes at 4 p.m. on the 19th and saw two ball-shaped objects hovering over Rivalino's house. Rocha confirmed his observation and said the two globes were flying in a circular pattern low over the da Silva's home.

As da Silva was a diamond prospector, two other miners from the district were interviewed by Lisboa and said that Rivalino had told them of his discovery of two strange-looking small men of about three feet in height who were digging near his house. When he approached them they ran into the bushes and shortly a strange red, glowing hat-shaped object took off from the bushes at high speed. This had purportedly taken place on the 17th, three days prior to da Silva's disappearance.

[Ref. dc1:] DOMENICA DEL CORRIERE:

Scan  

The case was rather quickly mentioned in an article of the Italian weekly magazine "Domenica del Corriere" for September 30, 1962, as a quite whimsical drawing captioned:

"Abducted by flying discs. Raimundo Aleluia Mafra [sic], a 9 years old [sic] child, told that his father, Rivalino Mafra, was abducted by a flying disc in Duas Pontes, near Belo Horizonte. The disc, said young Raimundo, was posed in front of our house, while we took some fresh air [sic] and absorbed my father in his interior. Then it left. The boy is under observation. Victim of an hallucination? It is sure in any case that his father really disappeared."

[Ref. bs1:] BRAD STEIGER:

The author indicates that Raimunda da Silva, age 12, of Diamantina, Brazil, who never heard of flying saucers and aliens and never read any Flash Gordon comic book, being illiterate, nor watched any science-fiction on the television because there was no radio and TV and not even electricity at the place, ran into police headquarters on August 20, 1962 and told the incredulous officers that his father bad been taken away by two giant balls that sparked fire and puffed out yellow smoke.

He indicates that shortly, Raimundo first saw a weird shadow of a being that his father Rivalino de Silva, and his two brothers, Fatimo, 6, and Dirceu, 2, had already seen. Raimundo described it to the authorities as "not shaped like a human being", and seeming to float rather than walk.

The boy swore that When the creature had glided out of the bedroom Raimundo shared with his father, it said "Rivalino is in here. He must be destroyed."

Rivalino de Silva had begun to move as if he were entranced, he opened the front door and Raimundo saw him begin to walk toward two large globes that floated about six or seven feet above the ground, making a humming sound and flickering a strange kind of fire.

Raimundo called his father, but the latter continued to move towards the hovering discs; which emitted a heavy yellow smoke that completely enveloped the father. When the smoke cleared, the globes and Rivalino da Silva had disappeared.

Police began an immediate investigation, as if they were dealing with a murder case, and the officers found a strange, cleanly swept area in the dust that was about 16 feet in diameter at the da Silva hut. They found no footprints or tracks of any kind in the area, but found a few drops of blood a little over 160 feet from the da Silva home.

Laboratory analysis later revealed the blood to be human blood, but it could not be established whether it was Rivalino da Silva's, as there was no record of his blood type.

The police began to suspect the now orphaned boys whose mother had died about a year before, of having killed their father and disposed of his body, the notion although seemingly ludicrous, nor being without precedent. The officers tried a number of psychological ploys carefully crafted to trick Raimundo into a confession, but he stuck resolutely to his story.

The police started to consider that he might have been telling the truth, and soon they found a fisherman who testified that he had seen two weird ball-shaped aircraft circling over the da Silva home on the evening of August 19th. Then, two miner friends of Rivalino da Silva were found, who had initially laughed at him on August 17th when he had told them about coming upon "two strange persons, about three feet tall, digging a hole in the earth."

Police officer Lieutenant Wilson Lisboa's investigation report was published in two Brazilian newspapers, Belo Horizonte's Diario de Minas and the Rio de Janeiro Correio da Manha.

In this report, a Dr. Giovani Pereia, in Diamantina, was quoted as saying that he had seen an object similar to the one that had allegedly flown Rivalino da Silva above his own house two months earlier. This doctor said nothing about this earlier, because he knew that no one would believe him.

Four days after the abduction, more than fifty people, including the Chief of Police, witnessed the flight of a "large round ball-shaped object" over the nearby town of Gouveia, and on August 28 the residents of Brasila de Minas were thrown into near-panic when a "big, glowing soccer ball" hovered over the town's church steeple for several minutes. The residents of the tiny communities were all talking of the mysterious "kidnapping" of Rivalino da Silva, and the continued appearances of the UFOs had them fear other abductions.

Lieutenant Lisboa had ordered a psychiatric examination of Raimundo, and the psychiatrist, Dr. Joao Antunes de Oliveiera, told reporters: "I don't wish to discuss the facts in this case. They are beyond my competence. But I can tell you that the boy is normal and is telling what he thinks to be the truth."

The case was closed as unresolved a month later by the police, as no body, no clues, and no evidence allowed to explain what happened. Police officer Clemente told reporters: "No one expects to find a satisfactory explanation with regard to Mr. da Silva's disappearance."

[Ref. gc1:] GORDON CREIGHTON:

In its chapter for Charles Bowen's book, Creighton had noted that in Duas Pontes, close to Diamantina in the state of Minais Gerais, in Brazil, little before sunrise on August 20, 1962, Rivolino Mafra de Silva, a poor diamond prospector, was abducted or disintegrated by what seems to be the action of a UFO."

Creighton indicates that according to later investigations, this prospector had stumbled on small beings which seemed to bury something a few days earlier. In the evening of August 19, two brilliant spheres of the size of a soccer ball had been observed by a neighbor, flying above the prospector's hut. During the night, strange non-human forms of approximately 40 centimeters in height entered its hut and contemplated his family which was in bed, and voices coming from outside the hut and saying that one was going to kill Rivalino, were heard. Little after daybreak, the 12 years-old son of the prospector opened the door and found "two strange balls on the ground," one black and other black and white, each one with a tail and a kind of pointed part. His father came outside to look at the balls, the balls joined and jumped on him, wrapping him in a yellow cloud of smoke, and the prospector then disappeared.

Gordon Creighton indicates that the sources are the Diario de Minas, Brazil 1962, Ultima Hora, of Belo Horizonte, on August 28, 1962, Tribuna da Impresa, of Rio de Janeiro, August 29, 1962, the Flying Saucer Review, November/December 1962.

[Ref. jv1:] JACQUES VALLEE:

The Magonia UFO landing case database by Jacques Vallée has three entries about that case:

541. Aug. 17, 1962, evening.

Duas Pontes (Brazil). Rivalino da Silva, a diamond prospector, told his associates that he had seen two strange dwarfs digging a hole near his house. They ran away as he came near them, and moments later an object took off from behind the bushes. It was shaped like a hat and surrounded with a red glow. (APRO Sep.,62)

542. Aug. 19, 1962, night.

Duas Pontes (Brazil). Raimundo, the son of Rivalino da Silva (see previous case), was awakened by the sound of steps and saw "a weird shadow" in the room. It was small and not human in shape. Voices were heard saying, "This one looks like Rivalino," and later that they would kill him. The family stayed on the alert all night. (APRO Sep., 62)

543. Aug. 20, 1962.

Duas Pontes (Brazil). Raimundo da Silva (see previous cases) testified before the police that while working in a field, he saw two spherical objects hovering 2 m above ground, a few meters from the house. One was black with an antenna-like protrusion and a small tail; the other was black and white. Both emitted a humming sound and a flickering fire through an opening. The boy's father warned him to stay away as Rivalino walked toward the objects, praying. When he was 2 m away, the two spheres merged into one, raising dust from the ground and spreading a yellow mist that enveloped the man. The boy ran after his father, noting that the cloud had "an acrid smell." As it dissolved, everything had vanished. Police investigation, headed by Lieutenant Lisboa, failed to reveal any clue. Many terrified people left the area. (APRO Sep., 62)

[Ref. pf1:] PARIS FLAMMONDE:

The author describes the case of August 19, 1962, in Brazil, as it was reported to the Aerial Phenomena Research Organization by the South American ufologist Dr. Olavo T. Fontes.

The narrator and alleged participant was 12 years old Raimundo do Aleuia Mafra, of Duas Pontes, Diamantina, in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. The boy said that on the night of August 19, 1962, as himself, his father and his two younger brothers were sleeping, eerie footsteps noises were heard and inconsistent shadows floated above the floor. Shouting by the family resulted in no response from these shadows, but they heard strange threatening voices as well as a warning that Rivalino was going to be murdered. The family could not sleep for the rest of the night.

Paris Flammonde then reproduces the words of Raimundo, about the events of the following morning, noting that these words have been obviously well-edited:

"In the morning, still afraid, I had the courage to go out outside to get my father's horse... But then I sighted two balls floating in mid-air side-by-side about three feet from the ground, one foot from each other... They were big... One of them was all black, had a kind of irregular antenna-like protuberance and a small tail. The other was black and white with the same outlines... Both emitted a humming sound and appeared to give off fire through an opening that flickered like a firefly..."

"I called my father... out of the house. He walked toward the objects... stopped at a distance of 2 meters. At that moment, the two big balls merged into each other. There was only one now, bigger in size, raising dust from the ground and discharging a yellow smoke which darkened the sky. With strange noises, that big ball crept slowly toward my father."

"I saw him enveloped by the yellow smoke and he disappeared inside it. I ran after him into the yellow cloud, which had an acrid smell. I saw nothing, only that yellow mist around me. I yelled for my father but there was no answer. Everything was silent again."

"Then the yellow smoke dissolved. The balls were gone. My father was gone. I want my father back..."

Flammonde indicates that Raimundo was thoroughly interrogated by Lt. Wilson Lisboa, police chief of Diamantina, also by Father Jose Avila Garcia who doubted the account; and by psychiatrist Dr. Joan Antumes de Oliveria who told the Press: "I do not wish to discuss the case further. The facts are beyond my competence. But I can tell you that the boy is normal, and he is telling what he thinks is the truth."

Other persons offered testimonies:

Antonio Rocha, a minor postal official and a friend of the priest, said he had seen two ball-shaped objects near the Rivalino house.

Town physician Dr. Giovani Pereira reported to have seen a brilliant UFO in the shape of a disc in the vicinity.

Four days later, 50 persons saw a similar object pass across the sky.

Finally, Lieutenant Lisboa found local prospectors who swore that Rivalino told them that he had seen little one meter tall strangers digging holes in the area a short time earlier.

[Ref. gf1:] GEORGE FAWCETT:

This ufologist indicates that on August 20, 1962 IN Brazil IN Two-Bridges, a man met two flying objects early the morning. The son, Raimondo de Alelma Mafra, "saw his father disappearing in clouds OF dust and a yellow smoke, TAKEN by a UFO AT approximately 4 feet from the ground."

"The Ufos produced a terrible roar" and an acid odor and when the dust fell down, his father, Rivalino Mafra da Silva, had left. There remained only a "certain space of dust of approximately 5 meter in diameter and bloodstains."

[Ref. cc1:] JEROME CLARK AND LOREN COLEMAN:

The authors indicate that on August 20, 1962, at Duas Pontes, Minas Gerais, Brazil, Rivalino Mafra da Silva dwarfish beings near his house. Hours later, he started praying after apparently invisible entities threatened to kidnap him, and the entities responded by saying that his prayers would do no good because they were going to take him anyway.

[Ref. jv2:] JACQUES VALLEE:

Jacques Vallée tells the story in his book "Confrontations", with first of all a difference on the name of the father, who becomes Rivalino da Aleuia Mafra, a date which becomes August 19 instead of the 20, and the noises of voice weird noises that become "strong noises of footstep." In addition, Vallée tells that they had seen "shades of human form floating inside the house" and heard "threatening voices."

Instead of friends of Rivalino da Silva who are said to have seen small beings digging three days before, Vallée tells that Rivalino da Silva himself, two days before, had observed those two beings, "digging a hole" in the garden before fleeing, not in a red object, but in an object emitting "a red light." The shushing sound of the two objects becomes a buzzing sound, and Vallée does not mention the intermittently flaming coming out to the back of the objects.

Valley adds that the police force recorded the testimony of a medical examiner, Giovanni Perreira, who is said to have seen a disc-shaped object the very same day of the disappearance of Rivalino, and who according to Harry Helms (a ufologist who writes mainly on the topic of the US UFO cover-up) the police Lieutenant's name was Wilson Lisboa.

[Ref. bh1:] ROBERT E. BARTHOLOMEW AND GEORGE S. HOWARD:

The authors indicate that in the early 1960s, several newspapers carried the fantastic story of twelve-year-old Raimundo Aleluia Mafra, who, after his father Rivalino Mafra da Silva was reported missing, claimed that he was abducted by a UFO. in Duas Pontes, near Diamantina, state of Minas Gerais, Brazil.

The boy says on the night of August 19, 1962, he was in bed as well as his father, and two brothers, Fatimo, 6, Dirceu, 2, when he heard a noise and saw a strange silhouette floating in the house. "It was a weird shadow, not looking like a human being" and it looked at him and his two brothers "for a long time" before leaving the room. Soon he heard a voice say "This one looks like Rivalino" and then heard the entities talking outside the house, saying they were going to kill his father.

The next morning, two floating spheres were seen hovering near the ground by the house, one black, the other was black and white. Both had antenna-like protuberances, and gave off fire through an opening. They merged and slowly moved toward his father, enveloping him in yellow smoke. "Then the yellow smoke dissolved. The balls were gone. My father was gone."

The authors indicate that the sources are the Aerial Phenomena Research Organization Bulletin, September 1962, pages 1,3,4,5; Gordon Creighton, "The Humanoids in Latin America," in Charles Bowen, ed., The Humanoids, Great Britain, Futura, 1977), pp 103-104, citing Diario de Minas, Belo Horizonte, for August 26, 1962; Ultima Hora, Belo Horizonte, for August 28, 1962; Tribuna da Imprensa, Rio de Janeiro, for August 29, 1962; and the Flying Saucer Review, November/December 1962.

[Ref. in1:] ON THE INTERNET:

The story spread on numerous web sites in various versions, sometimes very adulterated, generally based on Vallée's Magonia listing, with sources removed:

  • Brazil, Duas Pontes: Rivalino da Silva, a diamond prospector, told his associates that he had seen two strange dwarfs digging a hole near his house. They ran away as he came near them, and moments late ran object took off from behind the bushes. It was shaped like a hat and surrounded with a red glow.
  • Brazil, Duas Pontes: Raimundo, the son of Rivalino da Silva(see previous case), was awakened by the sound of steps and saw "a weird shadow" in the room. It was small and not human in shape. Voices were heard saying, "This one looks like Rivalino, " and later that they would kill him. The family stayed on the alert all night.
  • Brazil, Duas Pontes: Raimundo da Silva (see previous cases) testified before the police that while working in a field, he saw two spherical objects hovering 2 m above ground, a few meters from the house. One was black with an antenna-like protrusion and a small tail; the other was black and white. Both emitted a humming sound and a flickering fire through an opening. The boy's father warned him to stay away as Rivalino walked toward the objects, praying. When he was 2 m away, the two spheres merged into one, raising dust from the ground and spreading a yellow mist that enveloped the man. The boy ran after his father, noting that the cloud had "an acrid smell. " As it dissolved, everything had vanished. Police investigation, headed by Lieutenant Lisboa, failed to reveal any clue. Many terrified people left the area.

[Ref. jb1:] JEROME BEAU:

The webmaster indicates in his chronology for the year 1962 and in an article supposed to demonstrate that UFOs are not extraterrestrial since the extraterrestrial occupants are absurd, that in August 1962, in Brazil, Rivalino da Silva, diamond prospector, sees two dwarves digging a hole close to his house and the dwarves run back to a UFO and fly away. Two nights later, the son of the witness hears small inhuman forms in the house saying "That one resembles Rivalino" and they get ready to kill him. The source is indicated as "Vallée 1969."

A later version of this web page about year 1962 indicates that on August 17, 1962, in Duas Pontes, Brazil, the diamond prospector Rivalino da Silva told his associates that he saw two strange dwarves digging a hole close to his house, who fled running when he approached, and a moment later, an object in the shape of hat with a red gleam took off from behind the bushes. 17 chickens, 6 pigs and two cows are stolen by the team of a supposedly extraterrestrial aircraft. The indicated source is "Vallée 1969." On the 19th of August, Raimundo da Silva testified in front of the police force that while he was working in a field, he saw two spherical objects hovering 2 meters above ground-level and within a few meters of the house, one was black with a protrusion resembling an antenna and a small rudder and the other was black and white. Both emitted a whirring sound and a flashing light through an opening. The father informed the boy to stay away whereas Rivalino advanced towards the objects while praying. When he was two meters away both spheres merged while raising dust from the ground, and while spreading a yellow fog which wrapped the man. The boy run after his father while noting that the cloud has a bitter odor, and when the cloud dissolved, all had disappeared. An investigation of police force directed by lieutenant Lisboa yielded no clue, and many terrorized people left the area. No source is indicated.

The page further indicates that on August 24, 1962 at seven o'clock, in an isolated farm of Duas Pantas [sic] in Brazil, a nine year old child left his house when he discovers two balls of a diameter of 40 centimeters posed on the ground in front of the door he just used. He immediately called his father who also sees the balls and approaches very close, and at this time a violent one swirl of air starts and raises a cloud of dust. The child cannot see his father anymore in this storm, then the swirl calms and his father disappeared forever. The investigators do not manage to find him and the authorities were so puzzled that the child was immediately put under psychiatric observation because it was wished that the reasons why he invented this story were found. No source is indicated.

[Ref. dj1:] DONALD JOHNSON:

Donald Johnson indicates that on August 17, 1962, in the evening two little men, three feet tall, were seen digging a hole near Sr. Mafra Da Silva's house in Duas Pontes, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. When he approached them they ran into the bushes. A few moments later a hat-shaped UFO surrounded by a red glow took off at high speed.

The source is indicated as Coral E. Lorenzen, Flying Saucers: The Startling Evidence of the Invasion from Outer Space, p. 231.

Points to consider:

Following one or a series of events reported in the local press without the Press article being reproduced or quoted, there appeared many versions of the story later, with more and more distortions, omissions, additions, in an increasingly whimsical manner. The two objects in the shape of shells become sometimes a disc, or balls posed on the ground, sometimes it occurs whereas the boy takes some fresh air on the doorstep, sometimes when the father works in a field, sometimes after a weird haunted night. The ages, the names, the dates, all is confused, and there is little hope to restore the original story.

If anyone needs an example of how a case can be embellished and distorted to the highest degrees by authors and ufologists, this is it.

What is apparent here in a strict ufological perspective is that there is no ufological investigation. There is apparently a case involving UFOs and weird beings, with a criminal investigation, and if the boy told the truth, his father was abducted by weird technological devices, but that is all primarily some lost newspaper article, taken as granted by some ufologists.

List of issues:

Id: Topic: Severity: Date noted: Raised by: Noted by: Description: Proposal: Status:
1 Data Severe September 28, 2006 Patrick Gross Patrick Gross Lack of primary source, newspaper article in "Diario de Minas", unknown date. Help needed. Opened.
2 Data Severe September 28, 2006 Patrick Gross Patrick Gross Lack of source, newspaper article in "Correio da Manha", unknown date. Help needed. Opened.

Evaluation:

Lack of the primary sources and contradictions in later sources do not allow for an evaluation for now.

Sources references:

* = Source I checked.
? = Source I am told about but could not check yet. Help appreciated.

Document history:

Authoring

Main Author: Patrick Gross
Contributors: None
Reviewers: None
Editor: Patrick Gross

Changes history

Version: Created/Changed By: Date: Change Description:
0.1 Patrick Gross September 29, 2006 Creation, [ap1], [gc1], [jv1], [pf1], [cc1], [jv2], [jb1], [in1].
0.2 Patrick Gross September 29, 2006 First published.
0.2b Patrick Gross October 21, 2006 Addition, [gf1].
0.2c Patrick Gross December 10, 2006 Addition, [bs1].
1.0 Patrick Gross December 10, 2006 Conversion from HTML4 to XHTML Strict; addition, [lo1], [bh1].

Valid XHTML 1.0 Strict



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This page was last updated on December 26, 2007