Terrifying & True | Severed Feet on the Shore: The Bizarre Mystery Haunting British Columbia

Over 20 severed human feet have mysteriously washed ashore along the coastlines of British Columbia and Washington since 2007—each one inside a sneaker. With no matching bodies, and no clear foul play, the phenomenon captured global attention and ignited a firestorm of urban legends, hoaxes, and theories.

In this gripping true crime deep dive, we explore the eerie timeline of these chilling discoveries, uncover the forensic science that explains how feet can naturally disarticulate, and examine the media frenzy that turned a natural phenomenon into modern-day folklore.

Was it a serial killer? A string of tragic accidents? Or something even stranger?

We're telling that story tonight

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Imagine walking a peaceful beach and finding a sneaker in
the sand. You kick it over and realize there's a
human foot in sah Now imagine it keeps happening. This
is the true story of the severed feet of British Columbia,

(00:23):
one of the strangest mysteries in modern history.

Speaker 2 (00:26):
Elia, what you were about to beat is burd to
be you. Based on witness accounts, testimonies, and public record,
this is terrifying and truth truth.

Speaker 1 (00:54):
On the quiet shores of British Columbia, a young girl
made a disturbing discovery, one that would ignite headlines around
the world. A single sneaker tangled in seaweep and inside
a human foot. Over the next fifteen years, more would

(01:16):
follow foot after foot, each one washing ashore like a
message from the deep. No bodies, no suspects, just severed
feet and unanswered questions. Was it a natural phenomenon or
something far more sinister? Tonight we dive deep into a

(01:40):
mystery that's been haunting the Pacific Northwest right after this,
On a clear August afternoon in two thousand and seven,

(02:00):
a twelve year old girl wandered along the secluded shore
of Jebediah Island, a forested marine park off the coast
of British Columbia. The summer air smelled of salt and
seaweed as she clambered over driftwood and rocks. Then something

(02:21):
unusual caught her eye, a lone shoe lying tangled in
the kelp at the high tideline. It was a blue
and white Adida's sneaker, a men's size twelve, caked with
sand and barnacles. Curious and unsuspecting, the girl picked it

(02:46):
up and tugged at the sock protruding from the inside.
What she found made her scream. A decayed human foot
was still in the shoe's dank interior. In that surreal moment,

(03:06):
Jebediah Island's tranquil beauty was pierced by a grotesque discovery,
the first of many in a bizarre mystery that would
haunt the shores of the Salish Sea for years to come.
The authorities were alerted immediately, as waves lapped at the

(03:30):
isolated cove and seabirds cried overhead. Local police and coroners
arrived by boat to retrieve the sneaker and its morbid contents.
The foot was mail and right sided, cleanly detached at
the ankle, as if torn free by nature. No other

(03:55):
remains were found nearby. Investigators were baffled whose foot was
this and how had it ended up alone on this
remote beach. Little did they know, this chilling, cold open
scene was only the beginning of a macabre phenomenon. In

(04:21):
the months and years that followed, one severed foot after
another would mysteriously wash ashore around British Columbia and the
neighboring coasts of Washington State, capturing public imagination and spawning
countless theories. The puzzle of the Salish Sea severed feet

(04:46):
had just begun. In the wake of the Jebediah Island find.
What should have been an isolated oddity soon turned into
an eerie series of recurring desc discoveries. Five more human
feet washed up in the region over the next year alone,

(05:08):
each instance adding to the growing sense of alarm and intrigue.
Police started keeping a tally, and locals developed a morbid superstition.
Every time a shoe floated ashore, one dreaded what might
be inside. What follows is a chronological chronicle of the

(05:34):
key discoveries, including dates, locations, footwear, and identifying details. Painting
a grim map of the mystery spread across coastal British
Columbia and northwest Washington. August twentieth, two thousand and seven,

(05:55):
Jebediah Island, British Columbia, the case's inaugural find. A right
male foot in a size twelve Adida's running shoe, white
with blue mesh, was discovered by the visiting girl. Forensic
examination later identified the remains as belonging to a missing

(06:15):
man from the mainland who had been suffering from depression.
Authorities believe the foot disarticulated naturally while under water through decay,
separating at the ankle joint. This detail would prove common
to nearly all of the cases. August twenty sixth, two

(06:39):
thousand and seven, Gabriola Island, British Columbia. Just six days
after the first, a second right foot washed up, discovered
by a couple strolling a beach. It was wearing a
size twelve white reb box sneaker. This foot, also mail,

(07:04):
was water logged and appeared to have been carried ashore
by currents from the south. Investigators noted that an animal
might have dragged it above the tideline. The Reboch model
had been produced in two thousand and four and was
sold primarily in North America, Though unidentified at the time

(07:28):
its appearance. So soon after the Jebediah foot set the pattern,
another right foot mail in a floating sneaker British Columbia's
Gulf Islands or suddenly the epicenter of a mystery. February eighth,

(07:49):
two thousand and eight, Valdess Island, British Columbia. After a
quiet winter, the third foot emerged on a beach in
the Strait of Georgia. This one was yet another right
foot in a men's size eleven Nike running shoe. Through

(08:10):
DNA analysis, the British Columbia Coroner's Service later identified it
as belonging to a twenty one year old man from
the suburb of SyRI who had been missing since two
thousand and four. His death was deemed not suspicious, pointing

(08:31):
to an accident or suicide. Notably months later, the matching
left foot of this individual would also turn up. The
Nike model was sold in early two thousand and three,
offering a rough time frame for how long the remains

(08:52):
might have been in the water. We are nowhere near
the end of this list. A list of anomalies suddenly
all in a line, raising more questions than answers. May

(09:15):
twenty second, two thousand and eight. Kirkland Island on the
Fraser River Delta, British Columbia. The fourth discovery broke the
pattern in several ways. Found on a marshy island in
the Fraser River mouth closer to Vancouver. This was a

(09:38):
woman's foot, also right side. It was encased in a
blue and white new balanced sneaker with a sock. The
shoe had been manufactured in nineteen ninety nine. Because of
the river location, investigators suspected it floated down the Fraser

(10:01):
River rather than drifting among the islands. Years later, in
two thousand eleven, this foot was identified via DNA to
a woman who had jumped from the Pottulo Bridge, which
spans the Fraser in two thousand four, confirming a suicide origin.

(10:26):
This was a pivotal clue. It linked a severed foot
to a known victim of self harm, not foul play,
reinforcing a non homicidal explanation. June sixteen, two thousand eight.
West Ham Island, British Columbia, two hikers in Delta, BC

(10:51):
found a left foot floating in the estuary near west
Ham Island. DNA tests later matched it to the right
foot from Valdi's Island, found in February of two thousand eight,
confirming they were a pair from the same young Surrey man.

(11:12):
This pairing was a breakthrough for investigators. It showed that
feet could separate from the same body and wash up
months apart on entirely different islands, depending on where the
currents carried them. By now, with five human feet discovered

(11:34):
within a ten month span, the story had seized international
media attention. Newspapers around the world ran headlines about Canada's
mystery of the floating feet, and speculation ran rampant about
a possible serial killer or other dark scenarios. August one,

(12:00):
two thousand eight, near pist Washington, USA, the sixth find
marked the first outside of Canadian waters. On a beach
on the Olympic Peninsula just south of the British Columbia border,
a camper stumbled upon a black size eleven Nike sneaker

(12:25):
containing a right foot with bones and flesh still inside.
It was covered in seaweed and had apparently floated down
the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The Royal Canadian Mounted
Police and the Claylam County Sheriff noted that this foot

(12:46):
had drifted from Canadian waters given the proximity. Indeed, many
observers thought it likely given the cluster up north. This
foot remained unidentified for years, in a testament to advances
in forensics. Sixteen years later, in two than twenty five,

(13:09):
investigators used genetic genealogy to finally idea it as belonging
to a seventeen year old Canadian boy, Jeff Sirtel, who
went missing from Mission British Columbia in April of two
thousand and seven. Sir Tell's fate isn't fully detailed in

(13:31):
any public records, but his identification so long after discovery
underscored that these feet largely traced back to known missing persons.
November eleventh, two thousand eight, Richmond, Fraser River, British Columbia,

(13:55):
a left foot in a small, new balanced shoe was
found floating in the Fraser River near Richmond. Forensic DNA
later confirmed it was the mate to the Kirkland Island
foot the woman who jumped off the bridge. This gave
investigators their second confirmed pair. By the end of two

(14:22):
thousand and eight, seven human feet had been found in
the region's waterways. Of these, several were now matched into
pairs or identified as individuals with no evidence of foul play.
The pattern was becoming clear to officials even as public

(14:44):
theories grew wild. The discoveries continued sporadically over the next decade.
October twenty seven, two thousand nine, Richmond, British Columbia. A
right foot in a a white Nike sneaker men size
eight and a half washed up on a Richmond beach.

(15:07):
It was soon identified as a local Vancouver area man
who had been missing since January of two thousand and eight.
August twenty seventh, two thousand and ten, Whidbay Island, Washington.
A foot, likely a woman or child's right foot, without

(15:29):
a shoe or sock was found on Whidbay Island in
Puget Sound. It had been in the water and estimated
two months. DNA was extracted, but no matching profile was
found in any database, leaving this case unresolved to this day.

(15:53):
December fifth, two thousand and ten, Tacoma, Washington, a boy's
size six hiking boot containing a juvenile's right foot washed
up on tidal flats near Tacoma. This suggested not all
victims or adults, perhaps a younger person drowned or died

(16:19):
and their foot surfaced. Seattle area authorities, like spokesman Mark Fulgum,
noted the find was about two hundred and twenty five
kilometers or roughly one hundred and forty miles south of Vancouver,
proving the phenomenon was indeed not limited to Canada. August thirtieth,

(16:45):
two thousand eleven, False Creek, Vancouver, British Columbia, a men's
size nine running shoe with a foot inside was found
floating near a downtown marina. The sex could not be
determined from the remains, but notably the leg bones were

(17:05):
attached up to the knee. It had disarticulated at the
knee naturally in the water, a process forensic experts pointed
out occurs over time. This was foot number eleven, and
we're nowhere near done. November fourth, two thousand and eleven,

(17:35):
Sassamat Lake, British Columbia. In an inland twist, campers discovered
a right foot in a size twelve hiking boot floating
in sassamat Lake a freshwater lake near Port Moody. In
January of twenty twelve, the British Columbia Coroner's Service identified

(17:58):
it as belonging to Stephan von Zohoruko, a local fisherman
who had gone missing way back in nineteen eighty seven.
After twenty four years submerged, his remains finally surfaced. The
police concluded the foot separated naturally and that there was

(18:19):
no foul play. This was an outlier in time. Most
other feet were from more recent deaths, but it reinforced
that even decades old drownings could send a foot to
shore under the right circumstances. December tenth, two thousand eleven,

(18:42):
Lake Union, Seattle, Washington a somewhat different scenario. A human
leg bone with a foot attached was found in a
black plastic bag under a bridge in Lake Union. The
fact that it was bagged suggested a possible crime, but

(19:03):
as of early two thousand and twelve, Seattle authorities haven't
determined cause or identity. This case stands apart from the others,
which were all in open water and unbagged, and often
isn't counted in the Shoe Found series. January twenty sixth

(19:24):
two thousand and twelve, Vancouver, British Columbia. A passerby's dog
uncovered what appeared to be human bones inside a boot
along the sand at a beach in Vancouver's Kitsilano area.
Little information was ever released on identification. After two thousand

(19:47):
and twelve, the pace of discovery slowed, but did not halt.
May sixth two thousand and fourteen, Seattle, Washington. A left
foot in a new balanced white with blue trim men
size ten and a half washed up at Seattle's Centennial
Park on Elliott Bay. The shoe model was one first

(20:11):
sold in April of two thousand and eight, hinting that
the foot likely belonged to someone who died after that date.
Seattle police, however, did not immediately match it to a
missing person in any local files. February seventh, two thousand
and sixteen, Botanical Beach, Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Hikers on

(20:38):
the wild West Coast of Vancouver Island found a foot
in a sock and running shoe among the rocks. February twelfth,
two thousand and sixteen. Just five days later, another foot
washed up in the same area near Port Renfrew. The
British Columbia Coroner's Service confirmed these were a matching pair

(21:02):
left and right from one individual. They have not been
publicly identified as of this writing, remaining two of the
few unmatched feet in the mystery. December eighth, two thousand
and seventeen, Jordan River, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, the remains

(21:24):
of a leg with a shoe attached were found near
the tiny settlement of Jordan River. DNA testing linked it
to Stanley ka Okumoto, a seventy nine year old man
from Washington State who had gone missing a few months
earlier in September of twenty seventeen. How Okumoto died hasn't

(21:47):
been detailed in any press reports, but his age and
the location suggested a possible accidental fall or drowning. This
identification demon's strated international drift, a Washington man's remains ending
up in British Columbian waters. May sixth, two thoy eighteen,

(22:11):
Gabriola Island, British Columbia. A man walking along Gabriola Islands shore,
the same island where the second foot was found in
two thousand and seven, discovered a hiking boot with a
human foot wedged in a log jam along the High Tideline.

(22:31):
This became the fifteenth foot found in British Columbia since
two thousand and seven. It was later identified and linked
to a male missing person, though details were scarce in
public reports. September two thousand eighteen, West Vancouver, British Columbia,

(22:55):
a light gray Nike free RN shoe with a foot
inside washed up near the thirtieth Street beach access in
West Vancouver. This shoe, men size nine and a half,
had been manufactured in early two thousand and seventeen. Forensic
examiners determined the foot likely belonged to a male under fifty.

(23:21):
Despite DNA analysis, it wasn't matched to any known person
at the time. The British Columbia Coroner's Service made a
public appeal for help in identifying this foot, showing a
photo of the sneaker and noting the blue sock it contained.
January one, two thousand and nineteen, Everett, Washington. On New

(23:48):
Year's Day, beachgoers on Jetty Island in Puget Sound came
upon a boot with a human foot inside. US authorities
used DNA to identify it as belonging to Antonio O'Neill,
a young man who had been missing from Everett since
December of two thousand and sixteen. Neil's death is believed

(24:13):
to have been an accident or misadventure. With the recovery
of his foot, at least his family gained a sliver
of closure. Late two thousand and twenty one Washington State,
two more feet surfaced in Washington. In November of two

(24:33):
thousand and twenty one, a work boot containing a right
foot mail via bone analysis, washed up on Locust Beach
in Bellingham. The next month, in December of twenty twenty one,
a size eight new balanced sneaker with human remains was
found at the mouth of the Elwa River near Port Angelis.

(24:57):
Using advanced DNA techniques in collect aberration with forensic genealogy,
investigators identified that foot as belonging to Jerrelyn L. Smith,
a woman from Sequim, Washington, who had been missing since
January of two thy eighteen. Only one more foot has

(25:19):
been found, at least as of the recording of this show,
but the story goes much deeper from there. July twenty third,
two thousand and twenty three, Victoria, British Columbia. Most recently,

(25:44):
a foot washed up on Gonzales Beach in Victoria. This
occurred after a relative lull of a couple of years.
As of the time of this recording, few details have
been released, and the British Columbia corpsar Inner's Service investigation
is ongoing. This case shows that even over fifteen years later,

(26:08):
the Salish Sea's strange trend continues to sporadically appear, reminding
locals that the mystery isn't over. In total, at least
twenty one discrete feet have been found on beaches around
the Salish Sea since that fateful day in two thousand

(26:30):
and seven. The exact count varies slightly by source as
definitions differ, but over twenty is most certain. They turned
up on rocky islands and quiet coves in major cities
and remote inlets from Vancouver Island's outer coast to inner

(26:53):
Puget Sound. The majority were in British Columbia's waters, especially
around the Strait of Georgia east of Vancouver Island, but
a significant few were in Washington's Puget Sound as well. Crucially,
many came in matching pairs left and right from the

(27:15):
same person, and by the late twenty tens, a large
number had been identified via DNA as missing persons. Through
it all, no signs of tool marks or deliberate severing
were found, only the handiwork of Mother Nature in disarticulating

(27:35):
these limbs. But back in the early years of the saga,
the public and press didn't have the benefit of hindsight
or forensic clarity. The severed feet sparked rampant speculation and
urban legends of the most chilling kind. From the start,

(27:56):
forensic experts and oceanographers or into the case to answer
two pressing questions, how do feet come off a body
on their own? And why were so many washing ashore
in this particular region. The answers, it turns out, lie

(28:18):
in the grisly realities of decomposition, the construction of modern sneakers,
and the vagaries of ocean currents. Over years of investigation,
scientists methodically pieced together in explanation that while morbid is

(28:39):
thoroughly rooted in natural processes, one that officials say fully
demystifies the severed feet mystery, even if public fascination persists.
One key early observation came from the British Columbia Coroner's Service,
which by two thousand, AXIS seventeen had a growing database

(29:03):
of these cases. They reported that in none of the
documented cases was foul play suspected. Eight of the first
twelve feet had been identified, correlating to six individuals, some
with both feet found, and all appeared to have died

(29:25):
via accidents or suicide, not homicide. Quote. In none of
the cases was any foul play involved. The Coroner's service
emphasized this official stance was based on multiple forensic indicators
no cut marks on bones, no trauma on the feet

(29:47):
themselves apart from natural wear and tear, and known histories
of depression or accidents for identified persons. Former British Columbia
core Barb McLintock explained in twenty sixteen, quote, we pretty
well think we know what happened in every case. It's

(30:11):
not strange serial killers or funny little aliens. Instead, she said,
there's none that have any suggestion of homicide. In every
case there is an alternative, very reasonable explanation. Those reasonable
explanations largely boiled down to people who went missing either

(30:34):
by misadventure such as boating accidents or falls into the water,
or by suicide whose bodies ended up in the sea.
But how exactly do feat detach from those bodies? The
idea of feet severing naturally can seem bizarre without understanding

(30:56):
the science of decomposition In water, Pathologists and forensic anthropologists
clarify that a submerged corpse will eventually come apart at
the joints due to normal decay and scavenging. Gail Anderson,
a criminal professor and co director of the SFU's Center

(31:19):
for Forensic Research, put it succinctly. Quote feet easily disarticulate,
and when they are attached to a flotation device such
as a running shoe, they are easily washed ashore. In
other words, the ankle is a relatively weak link. As
soft tissues decay, the foot can separate from the leg

(31:43):
without any tool. Marine creatures accelerate this quote. Anthropods will
skeletonize and disarticulate a body quite quickly, depending on oceanic conditions.
Andersen noted her research in included a telling two thousand
and sixteen experiment in which she submerged pig carcasses in

(32:08):
the Salash Sea to study decomposition. The results were ghoulish
but informative. In the oxygen rich coastal waters, scavengers like crabs,
fish and other invertebrates can strip a body to bones
in less than four days. Extremities like hands and feet

(32:29):
are often the first to detach, as ligaments and tendons
rot away. Crucially, modern sneakers played an unexpected but critical role.
Around the nineteen nineties and two thousands, athletic shoe design

(32:53):
had shifted toward lighter, more buoyant materials lots of foam padding,
air pockets and soles, and buoyant rubber. This means a
foot encased in such a sneaker has its own personal
life jacket. It floats to the surface instead of sinking

(33:13):
to the seabed. Quote, You'll notice nobody's washing up with
a stiletto or a flip flop. Andersen pointed out Riley.
The footwear in all the cases was sturdy and floatable
running shoes, hiking boots, never high heels or flimsy sandals.

(33:34):
In fact, the British Columbia Coroner's Service credited the shoes
with both preserving the feet and carrying them ashore. The
tough shoe soles and fabric shielded the flesh from being
completely eaten or degraded. Leaving the foot nicely packaged inside,

(33:55):
while the air filled components provided enough lift for ocean
currents to carry them great distances. One veteran investigator mused
that if the same drownings had happened a few decades earlier,
when shoes were heavier, the feet might have stayed sunk
and none of this would have made the news. In fact, McLintock,

(34:19):
the coroner, noted that sneaker technology improvements around the two
thousands likely explain why feet suddenly began appearing after two
thousand and seven and not before. Quote. Now they float,
whereas before they just kind of stayed down there at
the bottom of the ocean, she said, referring to the

(34:43):
proliferation of ultra buoyant souls in the twenty first century.
Oceanographic patterns further explain why the Salish Sea in particular,
became the stage for this drama. The Salish Sea, which
includes the Strait of Georgia, Puget Sound and Strait of

(35:03):
Wandi Fuka, is a complex, semi enclosed network of waterways
with strong tidal currents and winds that tend to funnel
floating debris into certain areas. Surface currents can carry a
floating object like a sneaker bound foot for miles and

(35:24):
often converge on shorelines of islands and narrow inlets. Once
a floating foot hits the shore, it stays waiting to
be discovered. The cluster of finds around the Gulf Islands
and Fraser River Delta suggests the outflow of the Fraser,
the region's largest river, and the tidal geyers in the

(35:47):
straits help deposit objects in those areas. Indeed, as investigators
later noted, body parts routinely wash up in other parts
of the world too, wherever the gaology causes floating flotsam
to accumulate. The Pacific Northwest's population and cold sea mean

(36:08):
many drownings and also good preservation for remains. Kathy Taylor,
a forensic anthropologist in Washington, pointed out that the Salish
Sea is bounded by a metro region of over eight
million people, so statistically there are many cases of people

(36:30):
going missing in the water. Combine that with the coastal dynamics,
and it's not so implausible that occasionally a sneaker clad
foot will drift to a beach. Forensic teams work to
identify the feat whenever possible. DNA was the primary tool,

(36:52):
though it was often degraded by saltwater. In cases where
DNA was too damaged or had no match on file,
they used footwear information and anthropology. Shoe size, brand, and
manufacturing date helped narrow possibilities. For instance, knowing a shoe

(37:15):
model year told investigators the person likely went missing after
that year. They cross referenced missing persons reports by including
shoe descriptions in those reports, something tailor advocates as standard
practice assisting in matches being made when a foot surfaced.

(37:36):
By late twenty twenty one, the British Columbia Coroner's Service
announced that fifteen feet found in British Columbia between two
thousand and seven and twenty eighteen had been positively identified,
all belonging to individuals who went missing prior. Most were men,

(37:56):
some were women. Many were known or prison zoomed to
have died by suicide, off of bridges or shorelines or
in accidents. In the US cases, too, several identifications were
made a missing fisherman, a depressed man feared to have jumped, etc.

(38:17):
With each id police quietly closed another chapter, satisfied that
no murderer was on the loose. One veteran Canadian officer
noted somewhat poignantly that behind each foot was a personal tragedy,
a life lost in sad circumstances, rather than a crime scene.

(38:40):
Quote it's very sad, but it's not a big mystery,
said Gail Anderson in a recent interview, underscoring the consensus
view among experts. However, in the early years before DNA
results came in, the public had no such clarity. The

(39:01):
bizarre nature of these discoveries disembodied feet appearing out of
nowhere led to a flurry of urban legends, wild theories,
and even hoaxes, all of which the scientists and police
had to contend with. The factual answer may have been
scientifically innocent, but that did not stop imaginations from running rampant.

(39:29):
In two thousand and eight, as one foot after another
kept turning up, the who done it aspect of the
mystery captivated people worldwide. If no one was certain yet
that these were accidents, anything seemed possible. The atmosphere was
ripe for conspiracy theories. Tipster's flooded police lines with outlandish suggestions. Quote,

(39:57):
we get some very interesting ti serial killers or containers
full of migrants sitting at the bottom of the ocean.
Aliens had that one as well, said Laura Yazigen, a
human identification specialist with the British Columbia Coroner's Service. Every

(40:18):
time a new foot was found, she added, quote pretty
much every single time, a psychic will call an offer
to help. Some of the more prominent theories and legends
that swirled around the severed feet mystery were far more
sensational and deadly. Starting off the theories and legends a

(40:49):
serial killer with a foot fetish, The notion of a
deranged murderer chopping off victim's feet and tossing them into
the ocean gained quick traction in the popular imagination. It
has all the lurid appeal of a crime thriller, a
sloppy serial killer at work. As one media outlet equipped

(41:14):
online forums and YouTube videos, posited that some unknown psychopath
might be roaming the Pacific Northwest, disposing of bodies, but
oddly keeping only the feet to be found. However, as
forensic evidence accumulated, this theory lost credibility. No signs of

(41:38):
knife or saw marks were found on any bones. In fact,
pathologists explicitly ruled out cutting quote, these were not severed
feet andersen stressed meaning not manually severed. They were quote
disarticulated or separated by natural forces. Moreover, the identified feet

(42:04):
corresponded to unrelated missing persons over a span of years,
not a single common thread one would expect if a
single serial killer were responsible. By now, officials have thoroughly
debunked the serial killer idea as almost certainly not the cause.

(42:28):
Another theory is victims of human trafficking or organized crime.
Some speculated the feat could belong to victims of gang violence,
perhaps bodies dumped at sea by drug cartels or human traffickers.
There were whispers of the mafia's handiwork e g. Executing

(42:52):
people and waiting their bodies under water, only to have
feet break loose. One imaginative version had local gangs cutting
off feet to avoid identification of corpses, but this runs
into the same problem no tool marks, no evidence of

(43:14):
deliberate dismemberment. Law enforcement also found no pattern of crime
victims among the identifications. No ties to trafficking rings emerged.
It appears this theory was fueled more by general anxieties
than any factual basis. The Royal Canadian Mounted police stated

(43:38):
flatly that none of the Canadian cases were linked to
any criminal act. Another concept passed around was the idea
of a missing plane or boating accident that was unreported
early on before identifications. A more plausible but ultimately coincidental

(44:00):
theory emerged. Perhaps all these feet came from a single
catastrophic event in the water. Attention turned to a two
thousand and five plane crash near Quadra Island, not far
north of where some of the feet were found. In

(44:21):
that incident, a small twin Otter seaplane carrying five men
went down. Four of the men's bodies were never recovered.
Families of those victims, desperate for closure, wondered if the
sea was finally giving up their loved ones remains. In

(44:42):
June of two thousand and eight, Kirsten Stephens, sister of
one of the plane crash victims, rushed to the scene
when afoot was found at Campbell River, thinking it could
be her brothers. Quote. We are so frustrated. It's a
constant reminder of the lack of closure, she told reporters.

(45:07):
For a time, investigators did consider this possibility, However, as
DNA identifications came in, none of the feat matched the
profiles of the crash victims nor the timing of their disappearance,
except perhaps one older one from nineteen eighty seven unrelated

(45:30):
to the crash. Similarly, theories that a single large faery
sinking or boating accident had cast multiple victims adrift did
not pan out. The feet were determined to come from
different individuals, not one event. Nonetheless, this theory speaks to

(45:53):
a truth bodies lost at sea, whether from a crash
or a shipwreck, in surface years later, peace by peace,
just not in one neat cluster as imagined. Some hypothesized
that the feet might not even be local, could they

(46:15):
have drifted across the Pacific from far off tragedies. One
idea was that they were victims of the two thousand
and four Asian tsunami, carried over oceans by currents. Another
suggested an earthquake driven mass drowning somewhere. These were quickly

(46:37):
deemed unlikely. Oceanographers pointed out that human remains would not
stay intact over such vast distances and time. Plus, the
shoe brands and types were mostly North American. Indeed, analysis
of the shoes showed they were sold in local markets

(46:59):
in Canada. And the US within the last couple of decades,
not old enough or geographically appropriate for tsunami victims from Asia. Thus,
while flotsam like fishing debris can cross the Pacific, human
feet and recent model sneakers were far more likely to

(47:20):
originate from regional incidents. Inevitably, an eerie mystery will attract
supernatural stories. Jokes about sea monsters or lake creatures biding
off feet circulated, though humorously. Some invoked legends of vengeful

(47:40):
spirits of the sea taking body parts. A few creative
minds posited quote, maybe it's a sasquatch who doesn't like feet.
These were never taken seriously, but they became part of
the cultural chatter, reflecting how uncommeftable the public was with

(48:02):
the mundane truth. Even officials like McLintock humorously referenced aliens
in dismissing absurd theories. In short, the paranormal had no
real foothold beyond adding color to an already unusually strange tale.

(48:33):
Amid all this speculation, hoaxes and pranks unfortunately made an
appearance as well, further muddying the waters. In June two
thousand and eight, at the height of the media frenzy.
When a sixth foot had just been reported, Police were

(48:54):
embarrassed and locals horrified to discover that one supposed foot
was actually a hoax. On June eighteenth, two thousand eight,
someone planted a skeletonized animal paw, likely from a dog
or bear, inside a sock and shoe on a Vancouver

(49:16):
Island beach. It had been stuffed with dried seaweed to
appear convincing. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police launched an investigation
to find the prankster, and Inspector Brendan Fitzpatrick vented his
anger publicly quote whoever is responsible for this took the

(49:39):
time to ensure the remains were set up to closely
resemble human remains. The insensitivity shown to the families and
the victims involved is unbelievable. Indeed, many families with missing
loved ones were following the news anxiously wondering if one

(50:00):
of the found feet might be their relative. This hoax
cruelly toyed with those emotions. Another prank occurred after the
eleventh foot was found in August of two thousand and eleven.
Someone left several running shoes filled with raw meat on

(50:22):
a beach in British Columbia mimicking the discoveries. Police quickly
determined those were not human and likely a sick joke.
Such incidents, while isolated, ad confusion and showed how the
mystery had captured the dark side of public fascination. Throughout

(50:46):
two thousand eight and two thousand and nine, the media
sensationalism around the severed feet was running at full tilt,
which only encouraged more wild theories and occasional copycats. It
took consistent messaging from scientists and law enforcement over the

(51:07):
years to finally quell the conspiracies, but for a time,
the Salish Sea foot mystery felt like a real life
crime thriller, unfolding in slow motion on the nightly news.
From local newscasts to international headlines, the media played a

(51:30):
pivotal role in shaping the severed feet saga. In the
initial months, reporting was straightforward, a strange find on a beach,
an investigation under way, But as the count of feet climbed,
journalists and their audiences leaned into the macabre curiosity of

(51:53):
the story. Sensational monikers like the mystery of the Floating
Feet and British Columbia's six foot of separation blared from
newspaper front pages. Each new discovery was greeted with a
mix of alarm, morbid humor, and ghoulish excitement. In the press,

(52:18):
Canadian outlets wrestled with how to cover such a grisly
topic without veering into tastelessness. The Vancouver's Sun treated it
as a serious mystery, their headline being Mystery of the feet,
whereas the more tabloid Province newspaper ran the optimistic, if

(52:39):
bizarre headline sixth foot Raises Hope, implying that finding a
matching foot might solve the case. The breathless coverage fed
public intrigue. As one scientist observed, there is a morbid
fascination with such subjects, and the media knows it. The

(53:04):
story soon leapt across borders. The Guardian in the UK
ran an incredulous piece about the baffling feet on Canada's coast,
joking that even on a sunny day, a place named
Savage Road yielded a severed foot. Newspapers in Australia and

(53:24):
South Africa picked it up too. The alliterations and wordplay
were often irresistible. One headline asked, why is it always feet?
Late Night TV took notice as well. David Letterman quizzed
Canadian audience members about the phenomenon in a tongue in

(53:45):
cheek segment, bringing the mystery into popular culture. This intense
media spotlight had a feedback effect on the public, as
forensic anthropologist Kathy Taylor noted, quote the reason it's becoming
a phenomenon is it's gotten a lot of press. Now

(54:07):
people are checking. Beach combers started paying extra attention to
any shoe on the shore where previously they might not
have been bothered. Indeed, after so many news stories, an
unattached sneaker now prompted a call to police, resulting in

(54:28):
more reports, including false alarms. In this way, media coverage
may have actually increased the number of feet found, simply
because citizens were on high alert. Taylor dryly remarked that
the feat showing up had partly become a self fulfilling

(54:49):
prophecy of awareness. Quote, now people are checking inside every shoe.
The media also, at times sensation and even mischaracterized the discoveries.
The term severed feet itself, while catchy, is somewhat misleading.

(55:11):
It implies cutting or a violent act. Authorities repeatedly clarified
that the feet were not severed by tools, but detached naturally,
and some outlets eventually adjusted language to disarticulated feat or

(55:31):
simply mysterious feet instead. Still, severed feet remained the popular
phrase that stuck in public discourse. Even we are using
it as the commonly known description. Documentaries and podcasts later
delved into the story. When it comes to documentaries, and

(55:55):
of course podcasts that have delved into the story, they
often use spooky narration and eerie music, playing up the
creepiness before delivering the by comparison, mundane truth. In twoenty
twenty three, the Netflix docuseries Files of the Unexplained featured

(56:20):
the case, with the episode title surely designed to hook
viewers on the weirdness before explaining it away, calling it
the floating Feet of Salish Sea. One can argue the

(56:42):
media initially inflamed fears some locals truly worried at killer
might be at large, or that something fundamentally sinister was happening.
Only after police and coroners held press conferences with clear
findings no foul play, likely accident victims, etc. Did the

(57:05):
coverage shift toward explaining the science. By December twenty seventeen,
for example, when yet another foot was found on Gonzales Beach,
news stories were quick to include the official line that quote,
there is nothing sinister and all cases so far were accidents.

(57:29):
Outlets like vaux and National Geographic published detailed explainers to
educate the public that this was more of an oceanographic
oddity than an unsolved crime. In a way, the media
had helped solve the public mystery by disseminating the scientific

(57:50):
evidence as it emerged. At the same time, the severed
feet acquired a cultural residence thanks to the media attention.
They showed up in trivia lists where the subject of
late night jokes and inspired crime fiction. One crime novel
in Norway was reportedly influenced by the story. The phrase

(58:14):
severed feet in Vancouver became a byword for a creepy,
unsolved mystery, even long after it had been largely solved
by science. The media's role was thus double edged. They
amplified the intrigue with puns, speculation, and global attention, but

(58:36):
also eventually amplified the resolution by broadcasting the expert's conclusions.
It's a textbook case of how modern mysteries can go
viral and take on a life of their own in
the press, sometimes outpacing the facts on the ground. By
the late twenty tens, the official conclusion from lawlaw enforcement,

(59:00):
and scientists was unified and firm no crime occurred. The
Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the British Columbia Coroner's Service, and
Washington State authorities all concurred that the severed feet were
the results of suicide's accidents and natural decomposition. Foul play

(59:23):
was ruled out in every case examined. As Sergeant Pierre
Chopra of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police summarized in one
briefing quote, it's simply a matter of unfortunate coincidences compounded
by ocean currents. We have no evidence pointing to any homicide.

(59:43):
This encapsulates numerous statements made by officials over the years.
The scientific rationale backing them up included all the elements discussed,
the tendency of feet to disarticulate, the buoyancy of modern shoes,
the identification of the individuals and their likely causes of death,

(01:00:05):
and the lack of any forensic evidence of cutting or bondage.
In essence, the authorities came to view the severed Feet
Mystery as not a mystery at all, but a collection
of unrelated personal tragedies that only appeared mysterious because of

(01:00:26):
the quirky way the remains surfaced. Many independent journalists and
investigators who studied the case have accepted this conclusion. The
Vice newspiece tellingly titled Floating Feet Mystery is more boring
than you think. Put it bluntly, ten out of the

(01:00:47):
first fifteen feet were linked to people who died accidentally
or by suicide, and the remaining ones were paired up
to just a couple of other individuals. Former coroner mclintox
quote to Canadian Press, in every case there is an alternative.
Very reasonable explanation has been borne out by the evidence.

(01:01:11):
No cover up or nefarious cover story seems to be
at play. The transparency of releasing identifications and causes when
known has bolstered public confidence that this really was a
freak natural phenomenon. That said, are all questions fully settled?

(01:01:34):
Not entirely. Some independent observers point to a few lingering
mysteries that keep the story intriguing. For one, a handful
of the found feet remain unidentified to this day, including
as of this recording the second Botanical beach foot of

(01:01:57):
twenty sixteen and the Gunza tell Us beachfoot of twenty
twenty three, among possibly one or two others without identities.
We don't know those individuals stories. It's presumed they too
were lost at sea in accidents or suicides, but families

(01:02:18):
haven't come forward, or perhaps the persons were never reported missing.
This leaves small gaps where conspiracy minded folks can still wonder,
what if could one of them have been foul play
after all, just cleverly disguised by the ocean. Investigators say

(01:02:44):
there's no evidence of that, but absence of evidence can't
entirely quash speculation. Another subtle point. While science answered the
how feet detach and float and who many identified as
missing persons, it doesn't always answer the why those people

(01:03:09):
ended up in the water in the first place. For
confirmed suicides, we have an answer. For some it's an accident,
like a fisherman who fell overboard in a storm, or

(01:03:30):
the elderly Stanley Akumoto who may have slipped, but a
few cases might forever lack context. Only a foot was found,
nothing of the rest, leaving cause of death technically undetermined.
This uncertainty However, Slim leaves room for narratives beyond the

(01:03:54):
official line, though none with any hard proof. Perhaps that's
the biggest reason the story remains so unsettling and captivating.
Is psychological and visceral. Even with a perfectly logical explanation,
The imagery of random human feet washing up on idyllic

(01:04:18):
beaches is deeply disturbing. It confronts us with mortality in
a dismembered form, literally parts of people appearing without warning.
That's not something easily forgotten or rationalized away. The cultural
resonance of the Severed Feet comes from this jarring contrast,

(01:04:43):
the natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest versus the horror
of human remains. The ordinary, everyday object of a shoe
versus the extraordinary sight of a foot inside it strikes
a cord of morbid fascination, a reminder of the ocean's

(01:05:06):
power both to conceal and reveal. As one read its
summary neatly put it, the Severed Feet serve as a
haunting reminder of how the sea can erase whole persons
yet return a piece to shore, Hinting at many untold

(01:05:26):
stories in British Columbia and Washington, The saga of the
floating feet has even entered local folklore in a modern sense.
Beach goers swapping stories might recall where they were when
they heard about the fifth foot, or joke darkly when

(01:05:48):
they see an old shoe washed up, better check if
it's occupied. It's the kind of communal ghost story that
lingers because it actually happened even now. Every few years,
when another lonely foot bobbles ashore, the headlines briefly return,

(01:06:11):
and so do the shivers. Officials will patiently reiterate the
likely truth, and the public will nod. But then we'll
share the news article with a friend, marveling that it's
happened again. The severed feet mystery, solved or not, has

(01:06:31):
cemented itself as a piece of Pacific Northwest lore. In
the end, what began as a gruesome puzzle turned into
a testament to the power of science to illuminate the unknown. Oceanography,
forensic pathology, and DNA analysis collectively unraveled the enigma that

(01:06:54):
had spooked so many. The severed feet washing up in
British Columbia were not the work of a hidden serial
killer or supernatural curse, but rather the coincidental outcome of
tragic deaths and natural forces. This official explanation is thorough

(01:07:15):
and satisfying to experts, and yet to the public, the
sense of mystery endures, perhaps because it speaks to our
deeper fears of disappearing without a trace of nature's indifference,
of loved ones lost to the deep. Each foot that

(01:07:36):
washed ashore carried a tale of life ended, but also
offered a chance for closure, a paradox that is both
sad and strangely compelling. As of today, most of those
once anonymous feet have a name attached and a story known.

(01:08:01):
But should you ever find yourself walking a misty beach
in the Gulf Islands and spot a lone sneaker in
the racked line, you'll likely feel a hesitation, a flutter
of morbid curiosity, and recall the legend of the severed feet.

(01:08:25):
You might poke it with a stick, just to be sure,
your mind racing with possibilities in that unsettled moment, science
and legend meet, and the chilling mystery of the Salish
Sea lives on, lapping at the shoreline, with each incoming tied,

(01:08:53):
terrifying and true. Is narrated by Enrique Kuto. It's executive
produced by Rob Fields and Bobotopia dot com and produced
by Dan Wilder with original theme music by Ray Mattis.
If you have a story you think we should cover
on Terrifying and True, send us an email at Weekly
Spooky at gmail dot com, and if you want to
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(01:09:15):
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(01:09:35):
Karen Wee, Met Jack Ker, and Craig Cohen. Thank you
all so much and thank you for listening. We'll see
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