A Detroit-area Bigfoot hunter is drawing attention and skepticism after claiming he found the remains of what he believes is a real Bigfoot specimen in upstate New York, then sent genetic material to a laboratory that he says produced extraordinary results.
In an interview with Click On Detroit reporter Nick Monacelli, the man known as Snake Stuart, or “Snake the Bigfoot Hunter,” said he believes the body is not an ape or a hoax, but a previously unknown human-Neanderthal hybrid species.
Stuart claims the specimen was roughly 8 feet long, weighed about 300 pounds, and was discovered while he was camping in the Adirondack Park region of New York.
He also claims DNA testing connected to Cornell’s Veterinary DNA Lab showed the remains were 58.5% Neanderthal or Denisovan and 41.5% human.
Those claims have not been independently verified in the Local 4 report, and the interview itself made clear that the alleged discovery is facing strong skepticism. Still, Stuart said he plans to take the body and a book about his experience on tour later this year, including possible stops in Detroit, Chicago, and Indianapolis.
For believers, it is being framed as the discovery of a lifetime. For skeptics, it is another extraordinary claim requiring extraordinary evidence.
Snake Says He Found The Body While Camping
Stuart told Monacelli that he found the alleged remains while spending time deep in the Adirondacks.
He said he had been camping for about two weeks and trying to live with minimal supplies when he noticed what he believed were signs of Bigfoot activity.
Then, he said, he smelled something decaying.
“It was like stink on top of stink,” Stuart told Monacelli.
He said he followed the odor and found what he described as an 8-foot-long body weighing around 300 pounds.
Stuart said the discovery changed his life because of the effort required to remove the body from the woods, preserve it, have it taxidermied, and seek testing from different laboratories.
He said some labs would not work with the specimen, while other testing options were too expensive.
Eventually, Stuart said he was able to obtain DNA analysis through what he called Cornell’s Veterinary DNA Lab.
The report did not include laboratory documents, a named scientist, a peer-reviewed study, or an independent forensic review of the claimed results.
That absence is important.
A claim involving an unknown primate, extinct human relatives, and a new hybrid species would require detailed scientific documentation before it could be treated as established fact. At this point, the Local 4 segment presented Stuart’s account as his own claim, not as confirmed scientific evidence.
The Claimed DNA Results Raise Major Questions
According to Stuart, the alleged DNA test found that the specimen was 58.5% Neanderthal or Denisovan and 41.5% human.
He told Monacelli that he believes this means Bigfoot is a surviving hybrid species connected to ancient human relatives.
“What we have is a Neanderthal-human hybrid,” Stuart said.
He claimed the nonhuman portion of the DNA was related to ancient Neanderthal and Denisovan populations, while the human portion included what he described as Native American DNA.
Stuart suggested that the alleged species could have entered North America before the Bering land bridge closed, then survived in remote areas over thousands of years.
That is a remarkable theory, but it is also far beyond what has been publicly substantiated in the report.
Genetic claims are especially difficult to evaluate without raw data, laboratory methods, chain-of-custody records, independent testing, and expert review. DNA can be contaminated by humans, animals, soil, handling, storage conditions, or mistakes in sample collection.
Without those materials, there is no way for viewers to assess whether the specimen is genuine, misidentified, contaminated, fabricated, or something else entirely.
Monacelli pressed Stuart on the claims while keeping the interview open-ended, asking whether there was an actual lab that tested the specimen and whether the remains had been scientifically dated.
Stuart insisted the testing was real.
Stuart Says Bigfoot Is Rare, Intelligent And Dangerous
Stuart did not describe Bigfoot as a harmless woodland creature.
He claimed the animals are highly intelligent, rare, aggressive, and possibly endangered because only a small number remain.
According to Stuart, the creature he found was estimated to be between 18 and its early 20s based on the teeth.
He also said the specimen’s stomach contents suggested a scavenger-like diet and claimed the creatures may live near cave systems in remote regions.
“If you get face to face with one of these things, they are highly aggressive,” Stuart said.
He warned that a person’s odds of escaping alive would be low in such an encounter.
Those claims were presented as Stuart’s personal beliefs and field observations. The Local 4 report did not identify independently confirmed attacks, verified biological evidence, or scientific studies supporting the idea that a large undiscovered primate or human-relative species lives in North America.
Still, Stuart said he has spent years studying Bigfoot reports and believes people misunderstand what the creature actually is.
He rejected the idea that Bigfoot is simply a giant ape.
Instead, he said believers who rely on famous footage such as the Patterson-Gimlin film are focused on the wrong explanation.
A Tour Is Planned For Detroit This Fall
Stuart told Monacelli that he plans to bring the alleged body to Michigan later this year.
He said the proposed tour would include Detroit, Chicago, and Indianapolis in November, though he did not name a confirmed venue during the interview.
He described the exhibit as a way to let people see the specimen directly while also promoting his book.
The plan is likely to draw both Bigfoot believers and critics.
A public display can create interest, but it is not the same as scientific validation. A taxidermied body, even a detailed one, does not establish the origin of the remains without transparent testing and outside examination.
The most meaningful next step would be independent analysis by qualified forensic anthropologists, geneticists, zoologists, and museums willing to publicly review the evidence.
Until that happens, the touring body remains a claim, not proof.
Still, Stuart said he expects intense pushback from people who already believe Bigfoot sightings are hoaxes or misidentifications.
He also said he expects resistance from people whose religious views conflict with his proposed explanation of human evolution.
Michigan’s Bigfoot Reputation Adds To The Interest
Monacelli noted that Michigan has long been associated with Bigfoot stories.
The state ranks among the leading locations for reported sightings in the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization database, with more than 220 encounters listed, according to the Local 4 segment.
Many of those reports come from the Upper Peninsula and the northern Lower Peninsula, where dense forests, remote roads, and long stretches of undeveloped land can fuel stories about unusual sightings.
Click On Detroit also revisited earlier local reports involving people who claimed they had seen or interacted with a large unidentified creature.
One prior account involved a northern Michigan man who said he had been struck by sticks and rocks after approaching an area where he believed Bigfoot was living.
Another report involved a father and son who said they saw a large, dark, hairy creature while bow fishing near Interstate 75 and Leetsville Road.
Those stories are part of Michigan folklore, but none were presented as verified proof that Bigfoot exists.
That distinction matters.
Witness accounts can be sincere while still being mistaken. A person may see a bear standing upright, a person in dark clothing, an unusual shadow, a tree stump, or a distant animal moving through poor visibility.
At the same time, unexplained sightings are part of why the Bigfoot legend continues to fascinate people.
Extraordinary Claims Need Open Evidence
The appeal of Stuart’s story is obvious.
He is not claiming to have seen a footprint, heard a scream in the woods, or found a blurry shape in the distance. He says he found a body, preserved it, had it tested, and now has evidence that could rewrite human evolutionary history.
That is why the scrutiny has to be intense.
If the specimen truly contains a previously unknown mix of human and ancient hominin DNA, the finding would be one of the most important biological discoveries in modern history. It would likely involve universities, museums, genetic research teams, scientific journals, and international attention.
The fact that such a discovery has instead been shared through interviews, a book, and a traveling exhibit does not automatically prove it is false. But it does mean the public should be cautious.
Stuart is entitled to present his evidence and explain what he believes he found.
Scientists, journalists, and viewers are equally entitled to ask for records, methods, independent testing, and outside verification.
For now, Nick Monacelli’s interview leaves the story where it belongs: in the space between curiosity and proof.
Snake Stuart says he found Bigfoot’s remains.
What he has not yet shown publicly is the kind of independently reviewed evidence that would convince the scientific world that Bigfoot is real.
Ed spent his childhood in the backwoods of Maine, where harsh winters taught him the value of survival skills. With a background in bushcraft and off-grid living, Ed has honed his expertise in fire-making, hunting, and wild foraging. He writes from personal experience, sharing practical tips and hands-on techniques to thrive in any outdoor environment. Whether it’s primitive camping or full-scale survival, Ed’s advice is grounded in real-life challenges.
