AVONDALE, La.–A woman claims she helped raise a Bigfoot between the years 1964 and 1972. L. Melacetti, 70, says she found the animal when he was a baby, abandoned in the swamps of Louisiana.

“He was so little, so cute. I had to do something about it. He was so defenseless, laying next to the mud and water, curled, crying like a baby, his parents were either dead or they had abandoned him,” the ex-farmer said.

The hominid, Melacetti explained, was 20 pounds and had a hairless face that “did not look like a human’s nor a monkey’s.”

“He accepted me as a friend right away. I took him home only for three nights to nurse him back to health.”

In the course of those three days, she fed the Bigfoot anything she had at hand, from lettuce and tomatoes, to eggs and goat milk. “And he liked tomatoes very much. He’d take them away from my hands and eat them whole. His favorite ones were brandywine, although he seemed to enjoy the cherry tomatoes too.”

Bigfoot in the Woods by JNL Artlibre License

After releasing the animal back into the wilderness, it kept coming back to Melacetti’s small house. “So, every time he came back, usually during evening, when most people weren’t around, I’d give him more food.”

She lived in that house as a single woman and had no children, which made it easy for her to keep a secret. “He was my friend. Even though he couldn’t speak well, sometimes he’d say words I taught him in English.”

Words like “tomato”, “food”, “love” and “hungry”. Eventually, she says, the beast grew up, and one night Melacetti received an unusual but pleasant surprise.

“He brought a friend with him! At first the other guy was shy, hiding behind the bushes, but little by little, he began to trust me too. So there we were, sitting on my porch, two Bigfoots and I, having dinner under the moon.”

“When people in town began using them CB radios, the Bigfoots didn’t visit as much. Then I had to move out because of my age, but I know they are still there, a big group of Bigfoots. I taught them about hunters and other people that might hurt them and not to trust any humans. I shouldn’t be telling you this, but…maybe my old age betrayed me.”

Melacetti did not want to give away the location where the alleged events occurred, but she promised that “Bigfoots are real and that they happen to be excellent creatures, docile and better than most people. And by the way, they don’t smell bad like some idiots say.”

“And he liked tomatoes very much. He’d take them away from my hands and eat them whole. His favorite ones were brandywine, although he seemed to enjoy the cherry tomatoes too.”

When asked about evidence such as pictures she replied that she has some she keeps in a secret spot. “Oh you rascal, the only reason I wanted to tell you my story is to show the world these animals are beautiful creatures. But I would never, ever, betray my best friends. I have given you a story. Tell it. That’s all. Only another person besides you knows my secret now, my friend Maggie who contacted you about it.”

She also spoke of not wanting to do any future interviews and asked to be left alone. She is planning to publish her secret journal someday, she said.