Corporal Valdés
The account
A Chilean army corporal vanished in front of his patrol and returned with several days' worth of beard.
What investigators found
There is no physical evidence, and investigators point to contradictions among the soldiers' accounts.
The story
In the early hours of April 25, 1977, a Chilean army patrol was camped at Pampa Lluscuma, near Putre, on the high plateau of northern Chile. According to the soldiers, intense lights came down nearby. Corporal Armando Valdés reportedly walked toward them and disappeared, reappearing minutes later in a state of shock.
According to the account that spread around the world, he came back with his beard grown out as if days had passed, and his watch showed a later date. The army never officially confirmed the story. Skeptical researchers highlight conflicting versions among those involved and the absence of any physical evidence. Decades later, the case still divides Chilean ufologists and military personnel.