Original subtitles

When a woman's hobby turns obsessive.

Look, aren't they beautiful?

Kind of weird.

The masks definitely creep me out.

I didn't like them at all.

Bizarre things begin happening.

The eyes were missing.

Straw was sticking out of its belly and out of its eyes.

There is a spirit inside, waiting.

to come out voodoo kept coming up mom it's the mask and i thought

maybe there's something wrong with them i was terrified these masks they're

trying to kill me in america there is real

evil it lurks in the darkest shadows and in our most ordinary

towns

Between the worlds we see and the things we fear,

there are doors when they are opened.

Nightmares become reality.

In November 2007,

Bob Griffith brings home an important package for his wife.

What just happened?

Hello?

Oh, hey, babe.

I was just almost in an accident.

Shortly after he started driving, the gas pedal stuck on the car, and he could

not slow down. So he had to jam on the emergency brake to stop the vehicle.

No, I'm...

I'm okay.

No, I'll be fine.

Let me just see what's wrong with this.

Yeah, I got it.

I'll be home soon.

Love you, too.

We had the car checked out, and there was nothing wrong with it.

When we found out that the car was fine, we just brushed it off and forgot about

it. You know, we just thought it was one of those things.

In 2007, we moved into our dream home in Desert Hot Springs, just north

of Palm Springs.

And it was a very nice home.

I lived there with my husband, Bob, and my 12-year-old son, Greer.

Hello. Hey.

There it is.

I'm so excited.

I wish you were as excited to see me as you are to get this box.

Oh, I'm sorry. Are you okay?

How's the car?

I'm okay. The car's okay. Okay. As long as you have this, we're all okay.

I am just really excited. Do you want to see?

Come on. I'll show you.

My husband had a sense of humor.

I've been waiting for this. And he was a good father.

Mom. What did you buy now?

I will show you.

Greer is smart. He's so intelligent.

He is a great kid.

I collect antiques, and as a housewarming gift for myself, I bought

these two Haitian masks that I found on the Internet.

They were solid mahogany, and the craftsmanship was just amazing.

One of them...

had the appearance of a gazelle. The other one had human features.

Look. Aren't they beautiful?

They're kind of weird.

When I saw the masks, I sort of got a very eerie feeling, almost paranoid.

I remember when I told my mom that I didn't like them at all.

And she insisted that they're going to look great on the wall.

Oh, . Stop. I think they're amazing.

Hey, buddy, what do you say? Let's go get some takeout.

We'll use your mom's car.

All right. Give me something good.

We'll be back soon.

I was very excited when the masks got there, and I hung them on their own

special wall.

Over the next few weeks, Jeanette and Greer settle into their home while Bob

is away on business.

My husband was an RV salesman. Because of his job, he would be gone for two

weeks, maybe a month at a time for RV shows.

And he would go and sell at these shows.

So it was Greer and I alone in the house.

Hey, bud. Hey.

Brought you something to drink.

Thanks.

How's it going?

Not too well.

Why? I can't figure out this one question.

Okay, let's see here.

This one?

Yeah.

Okay, so you're just going to multiply, right? And then subtract.

So it's going to be x minus 2.

I still don't get it.

Nah, you will.

When's Dad going to be home?

I don't know, bud.

Tomorrow, maybe?

What was that?

Whoa! What is it?

Is that a bird?

Oh, man.

The bird that we saw, it was just a little black bird.

You know, it wasn't a raven. It was smaller.

Poor guy.

When we saw the dead bird, we thought it just hit the back door and died.

Oh, let's go inside the house.

It was a little weird, and it was sad, but birds fly into windows.

We just dismissed it.

You know, we cleaned it up and dismissed it.

One night, I was in my room. I had just started falling asleep and I heard

tapping on my window.

Who's there?

I

definitely

had a sense of paranoia, like somebody was watching me.

12 year old Greer Griffith has been getting an eerie feeling in his new

house.

When I was walking down the hall, I heard the creaking and that same noise

from outside.

I looked behind me and saw nothing.

After not seeing anything, I just...

I wanted to brush it off, so I just sort of let

go of it.

Greer and I were playing in the backyard, and we came in, and we shut.

The door.

You're just getting too fast.

I know.

I can't keep up with you anymore.

What's that?

Just glass.

And there was glass all over the dining room.

What the heck?

What broke the glass?

Be careful. Okay.

It made a trail 25 feet.

It just made no sense at all.

The trail of glass definitely seemed to be placed in this line.

And then I noticed that the glass went through the dining room, into the living

room, and around the corner.

I just knew something wasn't right.

What was it?

I don't know.

What?

What is it?

Oh, gosh.

When I got down close to it, I noticed that there was something really wrong

with this bird.

It's freaky. Look at its eyes.

It wasn't just the eyes were missing.

It was that there was actual very large holes.

It was stuffed with straw coming out of it.

It was very disturbing.

The straw was sticking out of its belly.

That actually was pretty frightening because something like that would have

to be put there somehow.

That's just not normal.

Is this your idea of some kind of sick joke?

No, I would never do anything like this.

What if someone's messing with us?

Who would do something like that? Who would?

One of the many thoughts I had was that somebody was messing with us.

I, at the time, didn't have a clue who that could be.

I don't know. It wasn't me.

I'll go get a bag or something to put it in.

I really didn't know what to think of the stuffed bird, other than it had to

have been put here.

But I couldn't figure out who would do that.

It just didn't make any sense.

Honestly, I didn't know what to think about it. But that was the first time

that I started feeling uncomfortable in the house.

Over the next few weeks, with Jeanette's husband on the road again for work,

Jeanette and Greer make sure to keep the house under lock and key.

Thank you.

Strange things are happening in Jeanette Osborne's dream home.

I had 10 or 15 crickets coming up out of my shower drain.

I was more than a little freaked out. I don't like bugs.

I was terrified.

Mom,

what's wrong?

There were all these crickets in my bathroom. They were coming out of the

drain. They were all over me.

Oh, my god.

What happened?

I haven't... I haven't... Did you do this?

No. Was it like this when you came through here?

I don't think so.

What in the world?

It's food!

I noticed that there was sort of like a trail of dry goods.

That went out of the kitchen into the dining room and stopped at the wall,

stopped right below the masks.

Mom.

It's the masks. The trail is leading to the masks.

Oh, honey, it's just a coincidence.

No, it's not.

What else could it be?

The path from the dry goods cabinet to the masks was about seven or eight feet.

And even if it had just fallen directly out of the cupboard, there's no possible

way that it could have made a trail.

I told you they were creepy from the day you got them.

You should get rid of them. They are not creepy. They're beautiful.

I would try and explain to her, like, you do understand that all of this is

probably because of those masks, right?

And of course, she would try to brush it off.

You're overreacting.

Why won't you listen to me?

They're beautiful.

They're mine, and I love them.

And they're going to stay right there on the mall.

Over the next few weeks, Jeanette often finds herself admiring the masks.

I know that they had a hold over me. I have other masks and other antiques.

And of course, like any collector, I love them. You know, they make me happy.

These were different.

I wasn't willing to take them down.

Jeanette's growing obsession takes a turn and she buys even more masks.

Honey?

Jeanette?

Don't you think you're spending a little too much time on this... hobby?

Too much time?

No, I like them.

You don't know what you're talking about.

Look, I've got to go.

I love you.

I'll be back soon.

I had an unnatural attachment to these things. There was no explanation for it.

And during this time, he was actually leaving for weeks or maybe a month at a

time. With that happening, he couldn't be sort of like a helping hand on my

part with persuading my mom to get rid of these masks.

When my mom wouldn't believe me about the masks, it made me feel alone.

Thank you.

Twelve-year-old Greer has just been attacked by an unseen entity.

It felt like somebody had hit me.

Mom!

What? Mom.

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Calm down. Calm down. What? What?

Greer came running into my room, and he said that something was in his room.

I was sleeping in my room, and something hit me in the forehead.

Let me see this.

He had fingerprints on his forehead like this. It was frightening.

Oh, my God.

Mom, it's a stupid mask.

The mask career that's ridiculous.

You aren't listening to me.

Look, I will figure this out.

Okay? Okay.

You want to stay in here tonight?

Mm.

I definitely think it made things a lot more real for both my mother and I.

Jeanette can no longer deny the connection between the haunting and the

masks.

I started trying to research the masks.

I knew nothing about them other than they came to me in a box from Port-au

-Prince in Haiti.

Voodoo kept coming up, and I thought, I honestly don't know.

Is it possible?

Part of me was saying, well, maybe there's something wrong with them. Maybe

they're causing this.

Jeanette invites a voodoo priest into her home.

So over here is where we found the trail of food, just lined

up through the kitchen.

I'm bloody nearing.

voodoo queen of New Orleans and a voodoo historian.

On many occasions, I'm called in as an occult expert when someone doesn't

understand what's going on in their house.

And here are the masks.

The voodoo priest that Jeanette called came over the house to assess the

situation.

These two have a strong spirit within them.

They do?

Many people consider voodoo to be the oldest religion that exists.

It's a nature-based religion.

So everything is about the spirit world. In fact the word voodoo translates to

mean spirit.

Trans dance possession is a part of a voodoo ceremony.

It would start with offerings to the spirits.

And eventually, to build energy, they're dancing.

You're wanting to become the spirits.

If you get possessed, you may go put on the clothing that is attractive to that

particular spirit. You may put on a wig. You may put on a mask.

These masks were used during ritual ceremonies in my faith.

The more and more those things are used, the more and more they're embedded with

the spirit itself.

What kind of rituals?

It's hard to tell, but they are looking for their guide.

What do you mean?

The spirits, the moths.

They are hungry.

So what do we do? I mean, I don't want to get rid of them, but I want them to

be at peace with my family.

You need to feed them.

Leave out gifts for them.

In Jeanette's case, there were crickets and there were birds as well as food

that were kind of brought to her.

That was a hint that they needed to be fed.

I can show you.

Are

we

in danger?

No.

I'll give you all the tools you need.

But first, let us perform a protection ceremony.

The spirits need to understand who is in control.

Okay.

After the protection ceremony, the house did feel better.

We started putting food offerings in a bowl under the masks.

I didn't know if it would work or not, but I was willing to try anything.

Jeanette Osborne is terrified for her life.

It was a nightmare.

But I knew what I was experiencing was very real.

But in spite of her fear, her obsession with the masks defies logic.

I didn't want to get rid of them. I was attached to them.

But I kind of knew that it had something to do with them. It absolutely had to.

That summer, Jeanette finds herself alone in the house.

Greer leaves to visit his older brother in Kansas.

You got everything.

We are gonna get this worked out, okay?

Everything's gonna be fine.

I love you. I love you, too.

Here's your stuff.

Okay, buddy. You ready to go? Yep.

Okay. Meet me in the car.

All right.

What's more, Jeanette's husband has no choice but to take a new job out of

state.

In 2008, finances were bad for everyone. A lot of the RV stores closed in

Southern California.

And my husband had to find, you know, work within his industry where he could.

It'll just be a few months, and I'll be back.

Okay?

Love you.

The lowest moment was definitely leaving my mom to deal with it on her own,

because my dad was still working.

I got to the point where I knew I had to do something, and I thought, I need to

reach out to somebody. I need to get some help.

Desperate. Jeanette contacts a haunted object specialist.

Hi, come in.

My name is John Safis. I've been a paranormal investigator for

43 years.

Would you like to have a seat?

Sure, that'd be fine. Would you like some sugar or anything?

Black is fine, thank you.

Well, you've seen the masks.

I've tried to get rid of them, but I... I want the activity to stop, but I don't

want them destroyed.

I just, um... I just can't let them go.

Well, I've been studying this, and there's definitely some negative energy

with these masks.

Jeanette didn't want to hear that. She didn't want to accept the fact that it

could have been something on a negative level. Jeanette, can we remove them?

No, I don't want to take them down.

Can we at least cover them up then?

I was still so attached to them, but he just felt, you know, that it had to be

them. And that if I wasn't going to take them down, I at least needed to cover

them.

So I did.

A lot of times when these items are covered, It can help to calm down a lot

of the energy.

These two right here. Okay. Well, these work?

They work just fine.

Just cover it up.

Jeanette, if the activity continues, you're going to have to remove these

masks. I understand.

Can you show me the rest of the house?

Jeanette and I walked through the entire house, and I was reciting several

different prayers. This helps to break negative energy.

I felt good about that. I was hopeful this is going to help.

Things are going to get better.

Over the next few weeks, while Jeanette doesn't experience any activity, she

becomes further and further withdrawn.

I was alone.

It was maddening. And there wasn't anything I could do about it.

I think it affected me psychologically.

It was just like my nightmare.

And I began hearing pops coming from under the

floor, but they were a deep tone.

In my mind, this was the foundation.

Popping. And I was absolutely terrified.

Jeanette is out of options.

She must get rid of the masks.

The activity was building.

It was chaos in the house, and I knew they had to go.

John,

he said I could send them to him because he could keep them safe and he could

study them, and he would keep them from destroying somebody else's lives and

wreaking havoc in them.

I took the masks, they were in the box, and I put them in the backseat of my

car.

And I got pinned against the steering wheel and my knees were all jammed up in

front and I was out in the intersection stuck against the steering wheel.

I was terrified.

I absolutely thought these masks are going to get me killed in my car.

They're trying to kill me.

Jeanette Osborne has been terrorized by what she believes to be masks possessed

by evil spirits.

The activity was escalating.

My dream house was absolutely becoming a nightmare.

I was afraid to be in it.

The masks had to go.

I was stuck against the steering wheel out in the intersection.

I really thought I could be killed. I was going to get hit.

And I almost got hit by another car who was doing 40 miles an hour on the big

cross street.

I got out, had to go out my passenger door to get out.

The box was gone.

It was just gone.

No, no,

no, no, no, no.

I was surprised.

I just couldn't believe it.

Fearing for her safety, Jeanette refuses to go back in the house.

That was our dream house.

It was the nicest place we've ever lived.

But we lost everything in that house.

And it almost tore our family apart.

When we moved, financially, it was a huge loss. But family, that's what was

important. to get our family back together.

We were able to return to a normal life.

The family eventually settles in Arizona.

My husband passed away last year.

And, you know, it's a horrible thing to lose your father, to lose your husband.

But in a way, it's brought us closer.

Things are getting better.

I'm living with my mom. We're just trying to do everything we can to keep

each other afloat. We're definitely closer because of it.

As for the masks... My son was right.

You know, what he felt about these masks from day one, from the minute he saw

them, he was right.

The masks definitely creep me out.

I really just didn't want them in the house at all. I definitely think it was

weird that they just went missing, as far as my beliefs. Voodoo is one of

those things that I always felt like you just shouldn't, uh...

unless you're experienced in that sort of religious practice.

I don't collect masks anymore.

In fact, I'm very careful what I bring into my house at all. I absolutely think

they're out there looking for another family, another person, and I think

whoever comes across these things... Mom.

Mom. ...is gonna feel that attraction to them, is gonna be drawn to them.

Jeanette, she called me hysterical, and she was saying, John, the box is gone.

They just totally disappeared.

That told me right then and there, whatever was attached with these two

particular masks was extremely powerful.

And they did not want Jeanette shipping them off to me.

It does bother me.

Am I concerned that they might show up in another thrift store or they might

show up in a tag sale someplace and wreak havoc for somebody else?

Absolutely.

What's even more interesting is where are they now?

And who will be calling next?