Original subtitles

>> Has a new humanoid species been discovered

in the mountains near Nazca, Peru?

>> We are living in a very exciting moment.

This is pure history in the making.

>> Have scientists working around the world proven that

the Nazca mummies are genuine?

>> The results strongly supports that these beings are not

closely related to any known organism on Earth.

>> Is there a concerted effort to discredit and deny

the evidence?

>> The Ministry of Culture, until last Friday,

was interested in participating.

But for unknown reasons, they've backed down.

>> If it was really an ET mummy, they should be able to show CAT

scans and X-rays of the individual.

>> They have done X-rays on them.

Is that something the Ministry of Culture

would be interested in?

>> Never-before-seen footage of the location where the bodies

were found.

>> It's clear that this was some hidden place.

Maybe there are more subject.

>> New high-resolution CAT scans that contain startling

revelations.

>> Inside, he was able to detect the feathers of some creature.

It is clear by scientists that it's something different.

It is not human.

>> "Unearthing Nazca."

In 2016, a rare find was discovered

in the Palpa region, south of Peru,

very close to the mythical region of Nazca.

A huaquero, or tomb raider, found a group

of mummified bodies with surprising physical

characteristics--

hands with three fingers and elongated heads.

According to his account, he found them

in a secret tomb, of which only he knew the location.

The subsequent testing on these bodies

revealed extraordinary facts, such as their ancientness

and the fact that it was a biological organism.

At the same time, the tests opened more questions

of what these mummified beings could be.

The country's government officials and archaeologists

were very adamant about not being involved.

Yet, they let the testing continue privately.

What did this huaquero really find that day in 2016?

And why have the local authorities not taken part

in the research of what could be an unparalleled discovery

in Peru?

Is this a well-orchestrated fraud by a tomb raider?

Or are we facing a blatant attempt

to discredit such an astonishing finding?

And if so, for what purpose?

This is the story of a group of scientists and journalists

from different countries looking to gain access to the mummies

and discover the truth, no matter

what the barriers might be.

If you are questioning why a grave robber should be trusted

with such a find, we want to bring to your attention

that sometimes the most astonishing finds in history

can be uncovered in the most unorthodox ways.

We are not condoning the idea of robbing graves.

We are simply saying that throughout history, there

have been discoveries found by such a person that changed

the course of history and what we thought

we knew about ancient cultures, such as the case of the most

ancient biblical texts on record, the so-called Dead Sea

Scrolls, written in Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic.

The scrolls were found by Bedouin shepherds looking

for their goats in a cave of the Qumran region.

They gathered as much as they could carry

and sold some of the scrolls to the highest bidder

and used the rest for kindling for a fire.

This find not only became a source of income

for the shepherds, but it provided

a wealth of comparative material for New Testament scholars,

including many important parallels between Christianity

and Judaism.

On the other side of the world, a similar story

took place in Peru in 1987.

Authorities became aware of a magnificent

find after a disagreement between two grave robbers that

led to the discovery of the Lord of Sipan tomb.

This discovery was compared to the excavation

of King Tut in Egypt.

An almost completely intact ancient burial,

which is a rare and dazzling discovery.

It was quite rare for archaeologists

to have access to a tomb which is nearly complete,

like the one they found with Lord Sipan.

This allowed new discoveries by archaeologists

and historians' previous knowledge of the Mochi culture.

This story also begins with a tomb radar, or huaquero,

who we will call Mario.

When entering a secret tomb, he found something

that he had never seen before--

several mummies with very different characteristics

to humans, like very strange heads and hands covered

in a white powder.

Without specifying the exact site,

he said that it was in a desert between Palpa and Nazca

in the department of Ica, an archaeological area

in which several remnants have been found.

According to those who still conduct this illicit activity,

it still hides many more treasures.

Because of his expertise, Mario knew

that he had found pieces of great value.

To be absolutely certain, he contacted Thierry Jamin,

director of the Institute Inkari,

a nongovernmental organization located

in Cusco dedicated to the study of the historical Peruvian

heritage.

The purpose of showing Thierry the pieces he had found

was to know if they were authentic or fake.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> Locals from this region of Peru, from the countryside,

sometimes come to us with archaeological samples,

ceramics, and other artifacts, as well as their accounts about

such-and-such a site they've discovered.

In October 2016, we received one of those visits.

The group was in possession of several artifacts--

little bodies, heads, and hands.

They were looking for our professional opinion

and support.

They wanted our help in disclosing the findings.

Our first impression was that they were authentic,

given our expertise in analyzing mummified objects.

Immediately, we realized the significance of the findings

and thought it was a breakthrough.

We felt we did not have the right to keep it to ourselves.

>> The information was uploaded to the internet,

so it became public knowledge.

Immediately, people from all over the world

were interested in the findings and ready to conduct

a deeper investigation of the pieces shown on the internet.

>> In October and November 2016, I saw some videos through

internet and YouTube of this man in Peru presenting little

bodies that didn't look human.

He presented a huge hand.

It didn't look human.

He said that they were found in a tomb

the middle of the desert near Nazca.

Then I didn't pay attention, because I

thought they were fakes.

It's a hoax.

I don't like it.

I don't feel right when someone wants to be anonymous.

But in March 2017, a biologist called me and said, Jaime,

look at this.

This is very interesting.

Have you talked to Thierry Jamin?

He's a French archaeologist living in Cusco.

And I say, no.

He said, don't you want to interview him?

And then I interviewed him in my program in the internet,

and I thought this was very serious.

I thought this was very important.

I thought this man had my credibility, Thierry Jamin.

And I said, I have to go to Peru.

>> Jaime Maussan contacted Gaia to see if they wanted

to investigate the bodies with him and his team.

>> Our real mission on taking this lead and following Jaime

to see these bodies was just to see what it is.

We're just literally there because we're

curious of what it might be.

>> Several crews-- consisting of camera operators, translators,

journalists, and forensic experts--

headed to Cusco, Peru, to see the pieces for themselves.

Thierry believed the best thing to do

was to alert the authorities, as well, so they

could join in the discovery.

On January 11, 2017, Thierry Jamin

sent a letter to Dr. Jorge Nieto Montesinos, director

of the Ministry of Culture in Peru,

to inform him of the findings and to request

his participation in the investigations.

However, an official response was never received.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> I got in touch with the Peruvian Ministry of Culture

at the beginning of January in order to make them aware

of the case.

We were worried for the possibility

that this archaeological treasure trove would

be taken out of the country.

We acted promptly to try and make the government intervene

before the pieces disappeared.

I never received an official response.

An archaeologist named Alberto Jacinto,

head of the culture department at Nazca,

that got in touch with me via email

to let me know that the minister in Lima

had assigned him the case and ordered him to investigate.

But I never received a direct answer from the ministry

through a letter, as I expected, in reply to our letter.

>> The null answer from the Peruvian government left those

interested with no other alternative but to become

the investigators and researchers themselves,

to try getting to the bottom of the matter.

Little by little, an interdisciplinary group

of professionals took shape, with people

from five countries.

It included scientist Konstantin Korotkov from Russia;

journalists from Mexico and Peru,

as well as the journalistic team from Gaia in the US;

biologists and forensic doctors from Mexico, the US, and Peru;

as well as archaeologist Thierry Jamin from France.

With their combined efforts and individual abilities,

they would try to reach an objective explanation

to such a discovery.

The team knew that despite the excitement and optimism,

it would be necessary to compile evidence that could

prove the discovery to be real.

So they began the trip to Peru with hopes

to meet Mario and gain access to the bodies that had

caused such high expectations.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> We were in contact with all the players involved

in the finding.

We will start our research in order

to establish the authenticity of the pieces.

>> I've only seen the photographs and the X-rays,

and I'm very impressed with it.

And I think this could be one of the most important discoveries

ever in the history of the human race, actually.

>> Well, we are ready to start this important trip to Peru

to find out if these bodies are really not human or if they are

just an elaborate hoax.

The results that we are going to find

through forensic scientists, biologists, and investigators

are going to be very important.

>> But things in Peru would not be so simple for the team.

Gaining access to the bodies would

be much more complicated than they had anticipated initially.

The team had to negotiate in length

just to gain access to the bodies.

The first palpable evidence was given to the team in Cusco

at the Institute Inkari.

Its director, Thierry Jamin, showed several objects

that Mario agreed for the group to see.

Being face-to-face with the objects

created an atmosphere of excitement and expectation.

At the same time, it required them to capture as much data

from the pieces as possible without losing objectivity.

The first pieces of evidence were

two strange elongated heads.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> In this piece, there is a very small mandible--

very small.

In the second piece, we can see the atlas, or C1, the vertebrae

that sits just below the skull.

We can see some grooves.

There is also what could be considered

a mouth, nasal sinuses, a nose, and also orbital cavities,

very prominent.

Those cavities are crossed by grooves in both pieces.

Both pieces are very similar.

>> But were they real?

During the first trip, the team learned

that someone who had been associated with Mario

showed the Ministry of Culture a three-fingered hand.

The Ministry labeled it as a fraud.

They declared that the hands had been intentionally mutilated

by removing two fingers and that smeared plaster was giving them

a mummified appearance.

Additionally, the Ministry concluded

that the transformation was done in a workshop in Nazca.

These assertions would certainly complicate the investigation.

The Ministry would condition the Peruvian scientists

to be incredulous and ready to discredit any information

related to this finding.

Why would the Ministry of Culture

look at this piece of evidence and not

the other bodies Thierry wrote them about?

The team continues to investigate

all the findings to see if there was

evidence of something organic.

In this first visit, Thierry Jamin

showed the group a couple of bodies

about 60 centimeters in length, which

had an organic appearance.

Furthermore, one of the bodies had a strange bulge

in the belly, much like that of a gestating organism.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> In this being, we find the joints both in the elbows

and lower limbs.

Also, there are hip joints.

There is a small bulge in the stomach, near the hips.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> We need radiographs or, better yet,

CAT scans in order to determine what this protrusion is.

>> The group moved to a clinic to perform X-rays and CAT scans

on the bodies and find out if they actually had an internal

bone structure.

The group also wanted to learn more

about the bulge in the belly in one of the bodies.

While performing the X-rays and CAT scans,

they discovered some interesting structures inside the body.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> This is a very important image,

as it allows us to observe the bones--

the skull with its bone consistency, but also the metal

within its chest.

This piece of metal won't allow us to see the bone underneath.

This metal piece is embedded in the chest of the object.

It blocks the view from the bones behind.

However, when we reach the pelvic cavity or lower stomach,

we see three structures with an oval shape.

These structures do allow rays to penetrate and show

the bone structure behind.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> You can't see it in radiographs,

but upon physical examination of the specimen,

we noticed a structure between the legs that could be

identified as a birth canal.

We can't be sure, but it is consistent

with similar structures in species such as reptiles

that develop and lay eggs.

>> The team was definitely impressed,

and so Mario promised more bodies.

They continued with the investigation.

The team moved to the southern part of the country,

to the Nazca region.

This place is known worldwide because of the lines

and figures carved into the sandy, desert-like floor that

can only be observed from high altitude.

The structures date back some 1,700 years,

which coincides with a time the Nazca culture flourished

in the region.

The lines in the Nazca figures, the geometric shapes

and the diverse animals, such as birds, monkeys, spiders,

hummingbirds, and even a whale, are

scattered over an area which covers several kilometers.

Each figure varies in size.

They can measure just a few meters or hundreds.

According to some studies, the figures

could have served as an astronomical calendar,

because several of them are positioned

to indicate equinoxes or solstices,

as well as the movement of planets and the moon.

Thanks to the absence of rainfall in the area

and the mineral composition of the terrain,

the traces remain almost unchanged to this day.

Near this area, in the region of Palpa,

the team was taken to a secret place,

where Mario promised to have a big surprise for them.

From the beginning, Mario refused

to give the exact location of the tomb.

However, if an agreement was reached,

he would be willing to show them a larger, unique mummy, which

they had discussed.

He took the group to the top floor of his house,

where after more negotiations, he finally

agreed to bring the piece.

>> We have a very important mission here in Peru.

I came here together with a group

of scientists, professionals, journalists,

because we have more supposed to see

maybe one of the most important discovery of the 21st century.

>> Mario placed the box in front of the team.

Inside was the mummy--

life-sized and in the fetal position.

It looked almost human, except for

some remarkable differences.

The mummy had only three fingers with four phalanges

in its hands and feet.

The head had an elongated shape.

It was covered with a white powder.

Unlike the Egyptian mummies, this was a desiccated body,

apparently by natural methods.

It showed no signs of decay and was in excellent condition.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> We have before us a body of anthropomorphic structure.

It has a head, neck, thoracic cage, pelvis,

and upper and lower limbs.

Specifically, in the head, we notice a well-articulated jaw

bone.

No oracles, but auditory canals on both sides.

>> It can change the consciousness of humanity

as a whole.

And all our concepts about history, about development,

those are just concepts.

And this opens up absolutely a new page of history.

No doubts that it is tremendous discovery.

>> The piece was named Maria.

The team took samples of the body

to be tested in different laboratories in Russia,

the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

The X-rays and topographies that were performed on Maria

showed surprising results and confirmed

that it was an organic being with a bone structure.

Konstantin showed some of the scans

to the head of image analysis at a medical institute in Russia.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> We performed a CAT scan of a mature individual,

a mummy referred to as Maria.

It is the skeleton of a person with an anomaly.

It's three-fingered.

If we consider the traditional notion,

the mummification process involves

removal of internal organs.

So technically, this is not a mummy.

But if we consider that the body was mummified naturally,

meaning the organs were simply not removed,

this is a skeleton that is very well preserved.

And we were able to clearly see many details in our CAT scans.

All the structures and bones in the main body

are visible in the analyzed tomography.

>> If I understand correctly that some organs remained,

does this prove that it is a real body?

>> I would say yes, because on scans of the back of the skull,

we saw structures that are less dense than bone structures

and most likely are hydrated remnants of the brain.

>> Gaia also found a radiologist at a hospital in Denver,

Colorado, to take a look at the scans.

>> I am very curious to see what these images look like.

I think what I can offer, looking at the images,

looking at bones all day long and having expertise in bone,

the bones of any mammalian skeleton,

they are incredibly complex, which is a good thing for this.

Because they are going to be extremely hard to reproduce.

So I think we'll be able to tell if these are truly

authentic bones.

Looking at this skeleton, obviously we

have a fairly humanoid-looking bone.

We've got the eyes that are facing forward.

We've got the mandible with, you can see,

rows of teeth both above and below.

The shape of the skull is interesting.

It's very elongated, an atypical appearance of a human skull

like you and I know.

Looking at the rest of the skeleton,

we have a thoracic spine that's holding the ribs,

or your rib cage of the chest.

All of that looks very humanoid, as well.

Femurs-- we have the tibia and the fibula.

All of that is pretty typical.

And then even in the forearm here,

you have bones called the radius and the ulna.

Now, what's interesting here is we

see there is a collection of bones here.

This is called the carpus of the wrist.

That's a typical appearance, but as we move outward,

we're seeing really three distinct fingers,

which is fascinating.

The skull-- I don't see any suture lines.

There's no bones that are separate in the skull.

They all appear fused.

So this appears to be a solid structure.

In the hand, coming from the carpus,

not only do we see three, and only three, fingers,

but you have enlargement of the bones, as well.

So we're seeing the same thing happening in the feet.

The metacarpals and the phalanges-- metacarpals

are in the palm of the hand.

Phalanges are the fingers.

So if we look at where the metacarpals would lie,

these are very thick bones.

They're much thicker than bones that you would find in my hand

or in your hand.

Same thing with the phalanges, as well, or the finger bones

are very robust.

>> If the CAT scans and X-rays proved it was organic bone

and the bones didn't seem to be altered,

could this be evidence of a new species?

The team didn't want to jump to conclusions.

So they waited for the samples to give them more evidence.

The first tests done with the samples

was to determine what the white powder was.

The white powder that was coating

the bodies, said to be plaster, was actually a substance

called diatomaceous earth.

This diatomaceous earth is a fossilized microscopic algae

that formed on the Earth during the Pleistocene era.

This powder has desiccant and absorbent qualities

and can also function as a natural fungicide

and insecticide, which certainly helped preserve the body

and kept it free of external pathogens.

Another fact is that there are deposits of this substance

very close to the Nazca area.

And also, this substance naturally occurs in some caves.

But what does it mean that the bodies

are covered with this powder?

Could the bodies have been placed in these caves

with diatomaceous earth?

Or could this substance have been

placed on the body in an unknown ritual?

At this point in the investigation,

the team was informed of the discovery of two more bodies.

It was a headless body, about 60 centimeters in length,

and the body of a baby with the same characteristics as Maria.

Both were covered with a white powder.

According to Mario, these two bodies

were found in the same tomb where

the others were discovered.

The baby's body was named Wawita, which means

baby in the Quechua dialect.

The headless body in a seated position

was given the name Victoria.

The Wawita topography showed the mummy of a child

with a formed skeleton in the fetal position.

Both hands had three fingers each.

But there were signs of finger removal.

The right hand had four visible bones of the metacarpus.

The left had three bones of the metacarpus and signs

of bone removal.

Was this body tampered with by Mario and his team?

Or could the body have been modified hundreds of years ago?

And if this was the case, what was the reason?

The team decided to focus on the other bodies, of which they

could not find evidence of bone removal or tampering,

because test results were still coming in.

By now, the results of the carbon-14 dating study

conducted on Maria by the laboratory of the Universidad

Nacional Autonoma de Mexico were received.

The results dated the mummy to be 1,770 years old.

This placed it in the period of the Nazca culture

flourishing, thus proving that the mummy was not modern.

Gaia also did their own testing at a facility in the United

States called Beta.

And the numbers came out to be the same for Maria--

approximately 1,700 years old.

The smaller body, Victoria, was dated around 800 AD.

But there was still more testing to do

on the bodies that would prove or disprove what

these bodies might be made of.

Samples were taken again from the bodies for DNA testing.

The team was hoping to see if the DNA matched

any modern human species or any other known biological species

on the planet.

This result could help decide if there was a serious case

to keep investigating.

Meanwhile, the null answer given by the Ministry of Culture

and the constant attacks by Peruvian anthropologists

and archaeologists were discouraging for the team.

This adverse climate hindered investigations.

Members of the team reached out to archaeologists

to come look at the bodies and decide for themselves,

but they refused.

Instead, many attempts by these parties

were made to discredit any information surfacing

about the mummies.

In tests and research carried out by the team,

the participation of Ministry scientists still, to this day,

has been non-existent.

Journalist Jaime Maussan sent a letter

to the Peruvian Minister of Culture

to request a meeting in which he could talk about the findings

and results of the investigations carried out

thus far.

He hoped that the ministry would join

in the research of something that

could be a great archaeological discovery and to allow

them to revise the evidence firsthand.

But the result was not what he expected.

>> Very disappointed.

We expected to be treated by the Minister of Culture

here in Peru.

Unfortunately, they sent someone from second or third level

to tell us that we should send an email requesting

for something like this.

It's very unfortunate.

I think they don't have any interest

to cooperate and to do any kind of investigation

around this case.

It's very unfortunate to find the truth for everyone--

not just here in Peru, but around the world.

>> But the team carried on to find some kind of truth.

The samples that were taken by Konstantin

Korotkov on the last visit were tested in Russia.

The first DNA analysis performed in Russia

by the Institute of Analytical Chemistry

at the University of Saint Petersburg

took just over a month.

Dr. Mikhail Aseev oversaw the DNA extraction,

and the results showed that it was an organic specimen that

once had life, specifically of a female creature,

because the DNA included the X chromosome.

>> When our scientists in Saint Petersburg,

in one of the top laboratories, was able to make DNA testing

of this big body.

And this DNA have only X chromosomes.

It means that this is a lady.

This is a female.

Now, of course, they need to make next level

of, next stage of research.

They need to make sequencing of this DNA.

It means to define genome and define all genes

and compare those genes with existing libraries of genes.

>> From the first results of the DNA test practiced on Maria,

new questions arose.

Although it was an organic body more than 1,700 years old,

the three-fingered hands and feet

still needed to be tested to prove

that they were real, as well.

Besides, more samples needed to be taken off of the other three

bodies and from Wawita.

It would be necessary to remove tissues from the mummy's feet,

hands, and body again to check to see if they, indeed,

belonged to the same individual.

But convincing Mario to allow taking new samples

would not be so easy.

At first, the fear that the bodies

could be severely damaged made him profoundly refuse any more

sample extractions.

The team explained the need to take

those samples to verify that all parts of the body

belong to the same subject.

An arduous negotiation was necessary to convince him

of the new collection of samples,

but he finally agreed, only for the bodies of Maria, Wawita,

and Victoria.

Josephina and Alberto were off limits.

According to Mario, three more bodies

with similar characteristics to the previous ones

were discovered in a nearby cave.

These three bodies, close to 60 centimeters in length,

also had three-fingered hands and feet

with an elongated skulls.

The three bodies were given a nickname--

The Family.

They were covered with the same white powder

as the previous ones--

diatomaceous earth.

But where was this tomb?

The team wondered if they were ever going to see this cave

and how many bodies actually existed in what Mario

referred to as a large tomb.

They, just like the archaeological experts in Peru,

wanted to know that an actual tomb or location of the bodies

existed.

To summarize, with these additional three mummies,

six bodies thus far had been presented

that were approximately 60 centimeters in length.

Three of them had been given names.

They were Alberto, Josephina, and Victoria.

Two of the mummies had human characteristics--

a life size known as Maria and the baby they called Wawita.

Also discovered were three three-fingered hands

and two heads.

It is not certain that these are all the pieces that

exist because of Mario's inconsistent accounts.

He sometimes did mention that there could be many more.

Even Thierry Jamin suspects that some of those pieces

may be moved out of Peru.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> Mario got in touch with me in January,

and we met in Bolivia in the city of La Paz with a lot

of secrecy, because he is a very mistrusting person.

We sat down, and I tried to convince him not

to sell any of the artifacts, telling him

that his name would go down in history as the man who

made the great discovery.

But he would not listen.

He only cares about the money.

Mario is a huaquero, a professional tomb robber

for over 25 years with high-level contacts

from Brazilian politicians to Peruvian heads of state

and renowned archaeologists here in Peru.

>> Could Mario have been selling to the highest bidder?

And if this were true, how was this jeopardizing the case?

Could the stalling by the Peruvian government or negative

press provided by people convinced

it was a hoax actually have aided in a more sinister plan

to cover it up?

The team could only suspect these things without proof.

In the meantime, they need to continue gathering data.

Samples taken from the different areas of Maria's body,

especially the feet, hands, pelvis, and under the arm,

were analyzed by DNA tests at the University

of Saint Petersburg.

The tests connected the tissues from all these areas

to the same body.

It disproved the theory of some Peruvian archaeologists

that it was a body built with parts of different creatures.

The test also revealed something very interesting.

>> Please tell me, what progress have you made to analyze

our specimens?

>> We've carried out an elemental analysis of these

specimens.

And generally speaking, the data that we received

allows us to make a conclusion that it

is an ordinary set of elements, except for cadmium.

We have found cadmium chloride on the surface

of these specimens.

Actually, the specimens were obviously

covered with cadmium chloride and diatomaceous earth.

>> As far as I understand, cadmium chloride is not found

at all in nature.

>> It needs to be acidized, extracted,

then transformed into a soluble form, into cadmium chloride.

It also needs to be purified, for sure.

It is a complicated procedure.

>> So it is unobtainable or impossible for the primitive

civilizations?

Is this correct?

>> If they do not have concentrated acids and simple

chemical reactors, then it is really impossible.

>> It is clear that all the subjects,

they were processed with cadmium chloride.

And those elements may be created only

by highly developed civilization.

It's not simple people living in Nazca area, different tribes,

who was able to make this chemical process.

Our European civilization came to this process

only in the mid-19th century.

Now we use a lot of cadmium chloride

in our civilisation to preserve different subjects,

because this is the best preserver that

kills all bacteria, all contaminations and viruses.

So we use it in our modern life, but it doesn't exist in nature.

>> Unusual discovery, but what did it mean?

As the team waited for more specific DNA results,

Mario agreed to take some people to the cave.

He invited Peruvian journalists Jois Mantilla, Thierry Jamin,

his team, and Dr. Konstantin Korotkov to show them the site.

They departed from Palpa and entered

an area of arid mountains, where it would be easy to get lost.

After a few kilometers, they descended from Mario's old car

and began a hike along the rocky path.

Later, the trail disappeared, and the group

had to climb, making their way between the rocks.

An hour later, they arrived at the cave.

The entrance was covered by stones,

which helped it go unnoticed, except to Mario's expert eyes.

After visiting the cave, it was clear

that this cave was covered in diatomaceous earth.

But could this be the actual cave?

>> In those mountains, there are no grass, no vegetation,

nothing alive.

So they're totally dead.

And it's a big contrast.

You look there, you see beautiful place

with a lot of trees and everything.

You look here, you see only rocks.

When we came to the cave, the cave itself, it's not so big.

But it's not like a cave which had

been used by ancient people, where they can make fire,

where you can sit together.

No.

It's just a little cave.

All this cave was covered with this dust.

It was not only on the floor, but all around,

so it was, again, clear that it's natural material.

First of all, I don't believe in anything Mario tells.

It's clear for me, clear, that the cave we were taken,

it's not the only cave.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> There was a lot of controversy surrounding

the location of the site as different groups of tomb

raiders pointed to different locations,

none of which corresponded to what had been described.

Mario finally decided to contact us and show us the place.

Getting there was very difficult.

Only someone with local knowledge

would be able to find it, because to the untrained eye,

there was no way of telling the entrance to the cave,

as it was covered by small stones.

When we got to the place, we did not believe it,

because we had been told it was a citadel with walls

and a gate, many chambers with inscriptions,

and there was none of that.

We were disappointed, because it was not the story we had heard.

I was upset, confused, and disappointed all at once,

because Mario is the sole source of the story.

In journalists work, you cross-reference

several accounts to find the truth on a story.

But when you have only one source,

only one person to tell you that story,

you either believe them or you don't.

If the bodies are real, the story can be real.

But in this case, his original story did not match.

Having said that, several features did match.

The smell on the cave was similar to that of the mummies.

The space distribution also matched.

We saw the exact location where Wawita, Maria, and the family

of two-foot beings were found.

Those calculations make it likely

that this was the place where the mummies were found.

But there were definitely no ruins or ancient citadel.

>> This fact was a disappointment for the team.

The tomb, so frequently referred to, did not exist as such.

However, the cave shown coincided in many ways

with some of the characteristics found in the bodies.

Therefore, despite the disappointment,

it was plausible that the mummies could

have come from that place.

More genetic results came trickling in.

There were DNA results from Mexico and from Russia.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> The sequencing process itself is run on a device called

the genome sequencer.

In our case, we use two sequencers--

one for the primary analysis, MiSeq sequencer

and HiSeq sequencer-- for comparative analysis

of the genomic DNA.

A great amount of data is generated after sequencing.

This data is generated in the machine.

After this data has been generated,

they are transferred to a computer.

And then our colleague, Alexei, a bioinformatician,

used them to analyze the data.

He found out that there were actually ancient samples,

and we could yield the ancient DNA, and we have it.

The fact that this ancient DNA has

a lot of variations that are alternative to the standard

genome is quite interesting.

In other words, it tells us that we actually

have unique and new data.

>> The latest results from the DNA studies of the bodies have

shown surprising results from Maria and Wawita.

This means that according to the report from the DNA

samples taken from several areas of the bodies,

they were able to get approximately 23.8%

from Maria and 25.6% DNA from Wawita of human-like DNA.

But none of that matched to modern human DNA.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> The sample was analyzed to determine whether or not it

contained human DNA, which was one of the hypotheses that

could explain these strange bodies.

That possibility was explored, and the results

were around a 10% match in strict conditions.

And even relaxing some of the parameters,

we could not get a 100% match with human DNA.

The analysis included a vast array of species.

One of the software programs we used,

in particular, performs comparisons

with more than a million species,

which allows us to approximate as much as possible the sample

with the DNA of all currently known species.

Some species were a higher match,

some plants and bovine DNA, but still in very small portions.

I have to say that this sample contains DNA

that we currently don't know.

It could be from an organism that has not been studied.

Perhaps there was some microbiological contamination

of the samples.

But it could also be original DNA from these bodies.

That means that these bodies could belong to a previously

unknown species.

>> The genetic results were also showed to William Brown,

a biophysicist from Southern California,

and his take on the tests were very interesting.

>> Of the DNA that was isolated, only 25% of the total matched

any known human gene.

So that means that 75% of this DNA

is not matching any known human reference sequence.

And this is pretty rigorous, because there's, like,

the Thousand Human Genome Project, where

they have done whole genome sequencing of over 2,000

individuals from every continent on Earth

and compiled kind of like a average human reference genome.

And so you take these sequences isolated from the sample

with this being and you go going you compare them

to that human reference genome data.

And only 25% match up.

75% don't.

>> DNA sequencing can take months or even years,

depending on the questions asked.

Given the small samples the team had,

they wanted to ask the first question--

could this DNA match any known modern DNA?

And that answer came out as no from the lab

the Mexico team used in Canada and also the team in Russia.

Is it normal for all labs in different countries

to come up with the same results?

>> I'm Dr. Doug Taylor.

I'm a professor of biotechnology here at Harrisburg University.

My background is I have a PhD in biochemistry and molecular

biology.

When you think about any parameters that

are associated with or methodologies

for sequencing DNA, how is it different from one place

versus another?

>> I thought that there just was a set DNA sequencing process

across every country, across every lab.

But you're saying that's not the case.

If you could explain DNA sequencing differences

in other countries.

>> Start with DNA sequencing, it's evolving.

What is the question you're trying to ask?

That'll determine how do I go about isolating this.

And it can vary from lab to lab or country to country.

But also comes a next question, is what am I trying to answer?

And what specific population of DNA

am I trying to look at where I think is

going to give me that answer?

And that may determine, OK, well,

I need to put in this intermediate step, which

is going to enhance that population of DNA, which

is going to make it more likely that I'm

going to get an answer.

This is an incredibly interesting find.

And it really needs to be looked into.

And I think it's kind of an exciting time,

that different groups can apply different expertise.

We're no longer these little individual groups anymore.

You have a global community.

We can bring everyone together on the global scale

to look and provide different expertise in order to answer

some of these questions.

Is it human, yes or no?

But beyond that, what does it mean for humans as a race?

>> The DNA samples were also taken from Victoria,

one of the smaller bodies, and the results were also very

surprising.

>> Of course, it was very important for us to make DNA

test of little creatures.

And we didn't want to disturb big little ones,

because they are so tiny that, of course,

it should be done only in very special conditions, in very

sterile room, in special atmosphere.

So we didn't want to make it just in simple room.

That's why we had only access to headless one,

where it was possible to get samples from the neck.

First conclusions, both in Russia and in Mexico,

was it is not human.

So of all known to us DNA of organic life--

I mean human, animals, plants, bacterias, microbes--

there are no correlation with DNA of Victoria.

No match at all.

So that's why it is clear conclusion by scientists

that it's something different.

>> For the experts involved in this case,

it's clear that this is something amazing and never

before seen.

But there was still more data to gather,

data that would compare their DNA

sample to other human species on the planet,

such as Neanderthal or Denisovan.

To take more samples of the bodies

and to compare the DNA of these creatures

to other human species, the Gaia team traveled back to Peru.

This time, they were accompanied by scientist William Brown, who

had a special interest in getting

the samples into a specific lab in the United States.

>> And what are you possibly going to be doing with

the samples on your end?

>> So if we are successful in retrieving samples,

I have labs that I work with where we can do a very thorough

cleaning of the sample to reduce contamination.

And we can do the kind of DNA sequencing and analysis

that will definitively show the nature

or origins of the bodies.

>> Another scientist and PhD from Russia, Dmitry Galetsky,

accompanied Konstantin Korotkov to gather data

for their ongoing study they had going in their labs.

>> How do you feel that your expertise is going to forward

this case?

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> This is such an interesting moment in terms

of the anatomical analysis of the CT scans.

And of course, what I would like to see

are the tissues, the composition of the tissues.

>> Do you feel that the small bodies are more interesting

than Maria and Wawita?

>> The little ones are very interesting.

First of all, there's more of them.

There is Josephina, Alberto, and the rest.

And their skulls have variance that can be analyzed.

Their anatomy is absolutely amazing.

>> On the trip, Gaia journalist Melissa Tittl managed to get

Carla Vargas from the Physical Anthropology Cabinet

of the Ministry of Culture of Cusco to talk to her about

the strange bodies found in Nazca.

Melissa wanted to find out why they

were reluctant to join the investigation of this finding

and what their impressions of it were.

>> What do you think of the Nazca mummy that came out that

people are saying is a hoax?

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> Well, apparently, based on the information that we've seen

on the internet, in the news, and so on, it looks like

a mummy that has been altered to give the impression that it is

not of earthly origin, that it would be an extraterrestrial

mummy.

What we have been able to see, based on the photographs,

is that the hands of the mummy, it is a real mummy.

But it has been altered with those purposes.

Some phalanges have been removed, as well

as some other bone parts, and other parts

have been added to it.

>> So it's a real mummy, because it's positioned that way.

But you're saying that the phalanges, the fingers

and the toes, those have been altered?

>> They have been altered, yes.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

If it was really an ET mummy, they

should be able to show CAT scans and X-rays of the individual,

but they only showed a photograph.

There are no further studies that would give credence

to their claim.

It would be nice to be able to see

an X-ray from the individual to be able to determine

if it suffered from a certain pathology or disease

or if it had a condition that made it different.

>> They have done X-rays on them.

Would you be interested in seeing the body or the X-rays

or any of that kind of stuff?

Is that something the Ministry of Culture

would be interested in?

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> In principle, the Ministry of Culture,

as the official body in charge of protecting our cultural

heritage, the first question would be,

where did these mummies come from?

Why should we give a voice to someone

that is destroying our heritage, someone who is carrying out

clandestine excavations?

Then, if the individual is able to support his or her research

or work, I think the Ministry would be willing to study it,

but I don't think that will happen.

>> After the interview with the official of the Ministry

of Culture of Cusco, the team went to the Inkari Institute

to grab more samples, where Thierry Jamin informed them

that the bodies have disappeared,

and he doesn't know where they are.

>> So everyone knew we were coming,

but then they just took the bodies.

And now we're just sitting here.

>> Well, we don't know that they took no bodies.

>> But he's put them in a place.

>> A month ago.

>> A month ago?

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> They've changed places--

they've changed mummies from place more than three times

to guarantee the security of the mummies.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> Without more DNA tests, they could not ask more questions.

For everyone involved in this case,

they felt that they had interesting information,

but at every turn, there was a block

in completing the investigation, whether it

was from the government, Mario, or several members of the team.

But then, something interesting happened.

On August 18, 2013, the team, including Konstantin

and Dmitry, were able to get access to the bodies

to do one final tomography that was of the highest quality.

These CT tomographies used a special program

that allowed a more detailed examination

of each layer of the bodies in a precise way that

would be able to isolate certain areas for better examination.

>> After we received these high-resolution images,

Professor Galetsky was able to make very detailed analysis

of both Maria, big one, and very important, Josephina,

little creature.

If we talk about Maria, she's human-like.

First of all, details of her skull, anatomy of the skull.

Second, of course, fingers and toes.

So if we go step by step, then, of course, first the skull.

On the skull, we see that she has no ears.

And construction of her ear bone's different from us.

This is the first main conclusion.

Then, construction of skull itself

is a little bit different.

Of course, it is elongated skull.

Maybe not as elongated as we can see in Paracas,

but still, it is elongated.

It is more elongated compared with our rounded skull.

Second, different construction of bones of nose.

But all other topics of the skull are very similar.

We don't have a lower part of the body.

So neither organs of reproduction nor liver,

no kidneys.

It's strange, but this came to some conclusions

that maybe she was attacked by some animal.

And Professor Galetsky was able to find tracks

of claws, fangs on her body.

And all this lower part of the body is just taken away.

And then we see some parts of particle

that may be related to blood.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

The most interesting for all of us

was analysis of small bodies.

And we had CT scans of two bodies.

And now we know that there's a male and female.

And we had high-resolution analysis of one of them.

Their anatomy construction is totally different from ours.

No human beings, no animals have type of bones that they have.

All living creatures, we have joints.

For little creatures, it's not so.

It's some very strange construction,

like some balls of tissues inside.

This allowed them to have some movements,

but not like ourself.

So they were unable to make like this, but only like this.

And same as like this.

So it's clear that their movement was quite limited.

Then, construction of their ribs is, again, totally different

from any living creatures.

Because for all living creatures,

we have this central bone.

Their hips are rounded, and they have no this internal part.

Absolutely different construction of skull.

And of course, fingers and toes.

They don't have mouths, as we do.

So it's clear that they were unable to eat hard food.

Then, totally different construction of ears.

They had ears, but no ears like we do-- just holes.

And different type of bones inside the ear.

There are some bones.

It is-- they are the same, but different.

Then, they had some holes on their skull

that no living creatures have.

And of course, it's unclear why do

they have these type of holes.

So what was the reason for nature to have this hole?

And of course, detailed analysis in tomography

allowed to see that it's not construction,

that it's one subject.

Because when they make analysis on tomography,

they can make it slide by slide and see tiny details

on high resolution.

So it's clear that it's not composed of different parts.

It's one and the same subject.

From the very beginning, from the first X-ray,

we've seen some rounded subjects in the belly of Josephina.

But when we had this detailed CT scan,

Professor Galetsky he was able to make

like a slice on the image of those eggs.

And he demonstrated those are real eggs, because they

have some cover, like any egg.

They have some inside content.

And inside, he was able to detect

the fetus of some creature.

So from one side, it is Josephina fetus.

From outside, it is fetus of some living creature.

>> With all this evidence and detail,

could there be something in this that suggests,

at the very least, a new species on this planet?

Finally, on the morning of November 19, 2018,

Cusco congressman Armando Villanueva Mercado

presided over a hearing about the mummies.

Scientists whom had participated in the study

of the Peruvian mummies from different countries

were invited.

Every scientist had 15 minutes to present their data.

Several groups presented tomography analysis

describing their anatomical structure.

Three groups presented results of DNA studies

of different samples.

All of these groups worked independently.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Focusing on the analysis of the characteristics of the body

structure not noted by other researchers, in general,

all came to the conclusion that the anatomical structure

of all mummies is different from humans.

Mummies are so complex that any possibility of counterfeiting

is eliminated.

Biologist Ricardo Ringo of the Mexican company Abraxas

Biosystems presented the results of the DNA analysis

of the small mummy, Victoria.

CEN4GEN Labs from Canada performed a sample

processing and sequencing.

The fact that it was possible to extract DNA

clearly indicated that the sample

was from biological tissue.

The same conclusion was made in the Russian laboratory

of VS Boronov.

The Canadian laboratory had a greater amount of material,

so that they were able to do better sequencing.

The computerized analysis of the data

showed that this DNA does not coincide with any human being

or living organisms.

Comparisons were facilitated with microorganisms, bacteria,

and animals, such as primates, crocodiles, and turtles.

The conclusion was that the specimens

were an unknown species of living beings.

Therefore, the data from genetic studies,

the tomography analysis, and the elementary composition

of bodies clearly demonstrated that the mummies were genuine

and required more serious research.

All the groups worked independently,

using their own resources and finances.

The main objective of this presentations

was to attract the attention of the Peruvian scientific

community and to transfer the investigation

to the official level.

After the scientific presentations,

a Peruvian archaeologist was given the floor.

He stated that all the data presented

was absolutely unacceptable.

No one knows where these mummies were found

and how they were extracted.

No archaeologist was involved.

There was no official authorization.

And it is unclear on what basis all the studies presented

were made.

Who authorized it, and where were the samples obtained?

He didn't even want to consider the results

or that his own organization wanted nothing

to do with the find from the beginning.

Other official representatives of Peruvian science

were not so blatantly negative.

The Peruvian archaeologists' speeches were more neutral,

but none of them supported the continuation

of the investigation at any level.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

>> The Ministry of Culture, until last Friday,

was interested in participating.

I went there personally to talk to the Ministry of Culture

myself.

But for unknown reasons, they've backed down from participating.

>> After all the findings were presented,

the Peruvian government went dark.

There was no verdict by the government.

Was the evidence too convincing?

Was there not enough?

But then, something unexpected happened.

Despite all the backlash from the anthropologists

and archaeologists, a university took interest in the bodies.

About 190 miles south of Lima, in the Nazca region,

sits the Universidad San Luis Gonzaga, in the town of Ica.

This university is well known for

scientific and technological studies that will help forward

the world in changing times, specifically

in the country of Peru.

Is it possible that from the research

gathered thus far, that the university saw potential

to dive deeper?

The research facility has all the bodies

but Josephina, which is being held back by Mario.

Mario believes it has great value

and refuses to give it to the universe.

And so the investigation continues, but in their hands.

It seems that the evidence offered by scientists

around the world and the persistence of the crew

sparked an interest with some of the academic communities

in Peru that could not be denied.

Perhaps it is the discovery of a new species,

a parting of waters in the knowledge of what

we have of the human race.

Or maybe is it something completely different?

The only people that have tried to find answers

are a group of people committed, first and foremost, to finding

what might be the truth.

The journey started with a quest to give the truth

to the authorities, and it ended with the bodies being

transferred into a safe and reliable research facility

for a deeper investigation.

As the university unravels the truth using high-tech equipment

and more DNA studies, the world waits for an official answer.

What did Mario really find in the mountains of Nazca?

And how has this find sparked a debate that

still refuses to be buried?

[MUSIC PLAYING]