A truly incredible story has emerged from Geneva as scientists at CERN were caught on tape performing a mock human sacrifice!
The bizarre footage, posted to YouTube, shows a group of cloaked individuals gathering around a statue of the Hindu god Shiva and 'stabbing' a woman to death.
Little is known about the origins of the video, but there is no doubt as to its authenticity thanks to a jaw-dropping response from CERN.
In a statement to the AFP, a spokesperson for the organization confirmed that the scene was filmed at their facility in Geneva which is home to the Large Hadron Collider.
CERN stressed that the faux sacrifice was performed without the group's foreknowledge or permission and promised an investigation into the strange affair.
Ultimately, the organization dismissed the incident as a prank and attributed it to visiting scientists making creative use of their down time.
"CERN welcomes every year thousands of scientific users from all over the world and sometimes some of them let their humor go too far," an email to the AFP said, "This is what happened on this occasion."
Of course, esoteric enthusiasts may not be as quick to see the 'sacrifice' as simply a fun way some scientists decided to spend an evening in Geneva.
The footage is eerily reminiscent of the notorious tales of Bohemian Grove and occult legend has a history of science and 'magic' mixing including the infamous rituals of revered rocket engineer Jack Parsons.
The suspicious source of the video, however, suggests that perhaps those memories are exactly what the scene was designed to evoke and that there is a secondary hoax, of sorts, at work here in that this was not really a 'found footage' scenario.
Imaginative observers may also consider the idea that the ritual, although a mock sacrifice, actually was performed with the desire to stir something in the ether at the cutting edge scientific facility.
We may never know exactly what was happening in the courtyard that evening, but it is certain that the footage and admission from CERN that it was real ensures the weird events will forever has a place in conspiracy lore.
Coast Insiders looking to learn more about the similarly-creepy Bohemian Grove can check out our 7/13/2015 edition of the program with author Mark Dice.
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Source: The Guardian