In the fall of 1903, the small town of Van Meter, Iowa, was gripped by fear as a winged creature with glowing light pouring from its forehead terrorized the community for five consecutive nights. Witnesses described a beast that defied nature as impervious to bullets, reeking of rot, and capable of vanishing into the sky. Over a century later, the Van Meter Visitor remains one of America’s most bizarre and chilling cryptid encounters.

Fearful is a podcast produced by Media Forge Studios, and releases a new episode here every Wednesday.

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