Declassified US Defence Files Reveal Chilling Encounters With Alleged Skinwalkers at a Utah Ranch

A declassified US government file released on 23 October 2026 details alleged encounters with mysterious dog-like creatures near a Utah ranch.

The 60-page document records a 2010 investigation around Fort Duchesne in the Uintah Basin, where residents described figures they believed were skinwalkers. Yet DNA evidence collected during the inquiry offered a far more ordinary finding.

The document, Utah Ranch Investigation, was prepared by Bigelow Aerospace Advanced Space Studies (BAASS), a private contractor associated with a US intelligence programme. Its team visited the area on 22–26 March and 19–23 April 2010.

Investigators sought accounts of unusual creatures, lights and other phenomena around a ranch whose name is redacted in the released file.

The report entered the public domain as part of a wider release of government records concerning unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP). It is evidence of what the contractor investigated, rather than official confirmation that any witness encountered a supernatural being.

Declassified Skinwalker Report Records Accounts of Dog-Like Creatures

By 7 May 2010, BAASS said it had interviewed more than 25 people, including police officers, ranchers and Native American residents. The document also refers to business owners, members of the Mormon Church and the director of a local Fish and Wildlife office.

Their stories were not identical, although several involved creatures described as walking upright. One witness recalled an encounter in January 2010 with a figure he estimated at approximately 1.83 metres tall.

He put its weight at around 113 kilograms and described short black fur mixed with grey. According to his account, the head resembled that of a German shepherd, except for a nose he considered more human-like.

Another account concerned a resident who said his dogs chased a shadowy figure towards a barbed-wire fence in March 2010. He remained inside his house, watching from the doorway and hearing repeated impacts against the wire.

The witness also reported a prolonged howl and claimed the figure moved 'like a track star'.

Investigators subsequently recovered hair caught on the fence at the location indicated by the resident. The report does not, however, establish that the material belonged to the animal he thought he had seen.

Other residents described strange lights, unidentified aerial objects and unfamiliar creatures. The contractor recorded these allegations together, but supplied no demonstrated connection between the sightings.

Eleven separate witnesses were listed as having reported dog-like figures and/or orbs of light.

In an attempt to obtain stronger evidence, BAASS installed seven wildlife cameras at the ranch and a neighbouring property. The released document describes the equipment but does not present conclusive camera footage of an unknown creature.

The report also includes drawings made by a witness in April 2010. One depicts a pale, hunched figure, while another shows a black-furred, dog-like animal. These are illustrations of reported experiences, not authenticated photographs.

The word 'skinwalker' is associated with traditional Navajo beliefs about witchcraft and transformation. Its appearance in the interviews records how some people interpreted their experiences. It is not a scientific identification of any animal.

Skinwalker Report's DNA Evidence Points To Familiar Animals

The investigation's most tangible evidence came from four hair samples submitted for laboratory analysis. Two had been recovered from the barbed-wire fence.

A third was collected from a dog at the property for comparison, while another came from a red-stained rock. A laboratory report dated 27 April 2010 found the two fence samples shared a canine DNA sequence with the comparison sample.

The sequence was commonly found in domestic dogs, the findings did not definitively identify an individual animal. BAASS researchers considered it likely the hairs came from the same dog.

The rock sample produced a different result. Its DNA matched that of a raccoon, according to the laboratory report included in the file.

The tests therefore did not establish the existence of an unknown species. They also could not determine what residents had seen during other alleged encounters, many of which were not accompanied by recoverable physical evidence.

The released file retains redactions, including details identifying the property and some witnesses. The document provides a record of what residents told the investigators, alongside the physical material they collected.

There is an important distinction concerning the government's role. In a 2024 historical review, the Pentagon's All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office examined paranormal research conducted at the Utah property.

It said the Defense Intelligence Agency had not specifically requested or authorised that work, despite managing the wider research contract.