The ''Zanfretta UFO incident'' was an alleged alien encounter of Italian nightwatchman Pier Fortunato Zanfretta. He later claimed to have been abducted by the beings 11 times between 1978 and 1981.

Initial encounter

According to Zanfretta, on December 6, 1978, at approximately 23:30, he was examining the villa "Casa Nostra", and upon entering the back yard saw a red, oval object with a diameter of over . At this point, he called his supervisor, who recalled him screaming. On turning around, Zanfretta reported running into beings who were tall, with mottled skin as though they were fat or wearing a rumpled suit. The creatures had yellow triangular eyes, and clawed feet. When the supervisor asked if he was being attacked by men, Zanfretta was said to have responded ''"No, non sono uomini,'' ''non sono uomini..."'' ''(No, they are not men)'', at which point communication was lost. Zanfretta was later found unconscious and in "a state of shock" by his colleagues. Later, when under hypnosis, Zanfretta would claim that the beings had abducted him and taken him into a bright room in their craft. He also added to the description of the alien beings saying:

Aftermath

The incident became famous after Zanfretta was invited onto the show '' Portobello'' to tell his story. An investigation was launched by the

Carabinieri The Carabinieri (, also , ; formally ''Arma dei Carabinieri'', "Arm of Carabineers"; previously ''Corpo dei Carabinieri Reali'', "Royal Carabineers Corps") are the national gendarmerie of Italy who primarily carry out domestic and foreign poli ...

, who were able to find 52 witnesses who also claimed to have seen the UFO. According to one, the craft was visible at 19:30 on December 6, and hovered at a height of approximately . Where Zanfretta claims the craft had touched down, investigators noted there was a horseshoe-shaped impression approximately in diameter.

In popular culture

The case was the subject of the play ''"Loro– Storia vera del più famoso rapimento alieno in Italia" (The True Story of the Most Famous Alien Abduction in Italy)''.

References

{{UFOs 1978 in Italy Alien abduction reports UFO sightings in Italy