Update: The Hand of Unknown Origin
Posted by: Craig Woolheater on July 4th, 2006
There are several different stories floating around regarding the source of Biscardi’s Bigfoot hand.
The first is the one told here on Cryptomundo. In this story, Tom Biscardi was given the hand by Don Monroe, who had been given the hand by the Butte or Billings, MT sheriff’s department, after it was found at a dump.
Another story was that Biscardi and company were out in the woods and were attacked by an aggressive Bigfoot and Biscardi himself chopped off the hand of the attacking Bigfoot in self-defense.
The last, we can only hope, story is that it was found in an Illinois woods where a mother and infant Bigfoot lived.
As I mentioned yesterday, I had contacted the lab, DNA Diagnostics Center, where Biscardi is claiming some DNA tests were conducted on The Hand of Unknown Origin. I received several emails from their Marketing Program Leader, Felicity Tao, regarding my requests for information regarding said test(s).
Following are the emails in their entirety:
Email #1:
Dear Mr. Woolheater:
Our laboratory did provide DNA testing services to Tom Biscardi. However, the statement used in the press release you quoted is not in our report. We will stand by whatever results we issued in the report to the client. Due to the confidentiality policy between our client and our laboratory, we are not able to provide the original report without the consent of our client.
Hope this helps to answer some of your questions.
Thank you.
Felicity
Felicity Tao
Marketing Program Leader
Forensic Services
DNA Diagnostics Center
Email #2
Dear Mr. Woolheater:
Our laboratory did provide a standard DNA test to Mr. Tom Biscardi. However, the statements Mr. Biscardi used in his press release dated June 9, 2006 on the website: searchingforbigfoot.com are not consistent with our report, and we found the statements grossly misinterpreted and very misleading.
Due to the confidential nature of DNA testing for identification, we won’t be able to publicize the original report without the consent of our client. Since Mr. Biscardi directly quoted us in the press release, we found we have no choice but clarify our findings.
We hope this helps to answer some of your questions.
Thanks.
Felicity
Email #3
Mr. Woolheater:
In addition to the statement we sent you just now, we would also like to clarify that Mr. Tom Biscardi didn’t send us a hand to test with. We received some tissue samples from him, which we couldn’t verify if they came from a hand or not.
Thank you.
Felicity
So it looks like the following statements made by Biscardi on his website are "grossly misinterpreted and very misleading."
The following is a summary of the results of these initial DNA tests… The DNA tests confirm that the hand is…
- 1) Not Human
- 2) Not any known primate
- 3) Not in even “in the system”
Boy, who saw that one coming? I also wrote to Dr. W. Henner Fahrenbach regarding The Hand of Unknown Origin, as a commenter here at Cryptomundo said "…ran it by several Doctors in the Seattle area as well as Dr. W. H. Fahrenbach who conveniently kept screwing up samples for DNA testing so he could quote “need the whole hand itself to conduct proper DNA analysis.” Yeah right."
The following is Dr. Fahrenbach’s email reply, edited for content:
Dear Craig,
I have never had anything to do with this hand. Several years ago, I got this excited communication that a group had found a partly skeletonized hand and were all over the top excited. I told them to send me some hair from it and search systematically in increasing circles about the find. By the time I found it was bear hair, they had found the dead bear with its paw or arm shot off.
It sounds suspicious that the fingertips are gone. I would not bother with chiropractors and the like but, if in doubt, send it to the National Zoo for identification, probably registered would work.
My best, Henner
Co-founder of Cryptomundo in 2005.
I have appeared in or contributed to the following TV programs, documentaries and films:
OLN's Mysterious Encounters: "Caddo Critter", Southern Fried Bigfoot, Travel Channel's Weird Travels: "Bigfoot", History Channel's MonsterQuest: "Swamp Stalker", The Wild Man of the Navidad, Destination America's Monsters and Mysteries in America: Texas Terror - Lake Worth Monster, Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot: Return to Boggy Creek and Beast of the Bayou.
boy, this one keeps getting more and more interesting as the days go by. Mr. Biscardi had better do something that proves one way or the other. I think taking the “hand” physically into one of these places with a camera crew in tow so that we can all see the dna person taking the sample off of it and then publicizing the results no matter what they are. anything else will just give the crypto world a black eye.
so now the truth comes out. Boy this guy something.
I guess this is another example of why one should remain skeptical until everything has been checked out.
Has anyone contacted Biscardi to see if he will consent to have the DNA report released to the public?
I’m betting he not going to answer any phone calls.
Craig, great job of digging up the facts on this story! Thank goodness we have you guys at Cryptomundo keeping us well informed on all things Cryptozoological and also keeping the record straight, especially with regard to scam artists like Biscardi.
This made me laugh so much I spilt coffee on my laptop..is there is a fzzt and a puff of smoke and I disappear you know why.
This man is just a showman and nothing else. The problem is it gives genuine researchers a bad name. If he ever does come up with real evidence no one will believe him. Still I suppose we can’t blame people for trying to make a living…I just wish he’d do it some other way.
Craig, I’ve spoken to Don Monroe. According to Don, and if I heard him correctly, a forensic DNA test came back from the Butte officials when they were in possession of the hand as “inconclusive” because the item had been stored in Denatured Alcohol.
The hand has been sandblasted or skillfully skinned so that there are no dermal ridges to verify. A digit and fingertips have been removed.
Mr. Biscardi was informed of the DNA findings of the police forensic lab before he was given the hand by Don who had tried to get others interested in the relic to no avail. It was given to Biscardi only because he was available and interested.
From what I understand from the Butte Sheriff’s office, they still have ownership of the hand and can legally call it back at any time. Apparently they are planning to do so in the face of the false claims about it.
Are you saying that Tom Biscardi misleads, exaggerates, and is all round so full of it his eyes are brown? Screw the whole Johor Hominid thing; this has to be the biggest cryptozoological breakthrough of the year!
/sarcasm
Just goes to show those who dig deep into the ‘evidence’ and follow through are Cryptozoology’s hope for respect.
*Gasp* Biscardi not telling the truth about this hand? Say it isn’t so! Why, this makes me lose all faith in the Searching For Bigfoot team, an organization known for truth-telling and integrity! (sarcasm off) Well, what else can you expect from this charlatan and fraud? This guy has never told the truth about anything. Tom Biscardi is a boil on the butt of humanity.
Not a huge surprise, of course, but good job on the digging, Craig. Thanks for keeping us all abreast of the latest.
I hope it does not come down to needing a whole body of a BF to get a dna sample that can be documented as real. I also think that since T.B. did not tell the truth about the dna test then the lab should release the results to set the record straight.
if the dna from this possible hand turns out to be some sort primate like a chimp or orang wouldn’t that mean that zoo officials would really want to talk to tom biscardi not in a crimimal way but to really get to the bottom of where he got the hand. my opinion.
Good work, Craig!
Now, why am I not surprised in the least about the lab’s statements? 😉
Nice legwork Craig. Or in this case, I guess it was handwork.
Way to go Craig!
Well, I think we all knew it was a gimmick. Can’t wait to see what Biscardi says next. Actually, I can wait, because I really don’t care what he says. Thanks for keeping us posted.
Excellent investigative work there Craig. If I ever get my own newspaper going, I might be interested in hiring you.
What about getting a DNA test on Mr. Biscardi. Maybe he is an alien trying to muddy up the real evidence about Bigfoot.
Great Job Craig!!! No surprise to many that Biscardi is up to his old tricks again.