SerpApi.Org
It sounds like something from a horror film: a family purchases a stunning house at an unbelievable price, only to be haunted by disturbing, inexplicable occurrences as they sleep. However, for the Shea family from Lamar, Arkansas, this nightmare scenario was their reality.
The Sheas - Jaime and Ben, together with their three children - relocated to their new residence in October 2002. After enduring six years of intensifying paranormal activity, they ultimately abandoned the property.
Josh, from the Lights Out podcast, describes: "Unseen forces plagued the home, manifesting as anything from faint whispers to the malevolence of total possession.
"Months of endless supernatural torment came to a head when the demonic entity usurped the mind of their five-year-old son immediately after their daughter was in a tragic car accident that confined her to a wheelchair after just barely escaping with her life.
"The unrelenting evil forces in the house put immense pressure on the growing family, eventually forcing them to abandon the property altogether."
The red flags had been present from the start.
"One of the bedrooms had been turned into a cult ritual space," Josh stated. "Painted pentagrams and other occult symbols covered the walls and boarded-up fireplace, and burnt candles were scattered across the floor."
He continued: "Ben, always the realist, suggested that some bored teenagers probably just broke in and were messing around."
The property's attractive price point had persuaded Jaime and Ben to look past the considerable renovation work required, choosing to relocate their young family into the sprawling, historic home.
However, it didn't take long for the couple to realise they weren't the only occupants. In a letter addressed to a local paranormal research group, Jaime detailed the unsettling occurrences the family had encountered during their first few months in the property.
"For the past two-and-a-half months the following things have happened: we hear footsteps up and down the stairs at all hours of the night, a ball bouncing at 2am when everyone is asleep.
"We hear a baby crying in an unplugged baby monitor, the doorbell goes off at random times during the day, my good-natured dog barks ferociously at the air, my middle son has night terrors and reports hearing voices that keep him up at night.
"My husband and baby-sitter saw the tail-end of a Victorian-type dress float up the stairs," she added, "and a thin mist of smoke has been spotted in the kitchen by both my brother and me."
Josh notes that the property ranks among the oldest in the entire state: "A host of Confederate soldiers lie underground in the cemetery only a couple of hundred yards from the back door and remote fields sprawl for miles around it. The air surrounding the old house is heavy with the memories of the enslaved people who suffered and toiled on the land."
The property's original section dates back to the 1700s, with additions made during the 1800s. Throughout its history, the building has served as a stagecoach stop, a saloon and a jail.
Shortly after construction was completed, he explains, tragedy struck the residence: "Shortly after the house was built, a young, curious boy tragically fell to his death from the second-storey window... ever since, it has been said to be plagued by an evil, violent energy, which has since spread to the rest of the home."
Jaime told investigators that the unsettling occurrences appeared to escalate over time. She recounted turning around to discover kitchen cabinets inexplicably left open and catching sight of a shadowy figure's reflection on her computer screen.
Most disturbingly, she recalled the moment her son Bridger, who had repeatedly complained of voices "whispering in his ear" while trying to sleep, came downstairs in a trance-like state and laughed maniacally at her.
"When it started messing with my child is when I did something," she said.
Shortly after the incident involving Bridger, Jaime and Ben decided to relocate. However, even that proved nearly impossible, as one tenant after another declined to remain in the house.
"The third set of renters have officially moved out of our Lamar house," Jaime wrote in 2007. "The listing on our home expired with not even a good bite from a potential buyer."
Following a series of intense discussions, she and Ben decided to make another attempt.
"This time we will only put good vibes into this house," she said.
"We will rely on God for comfort and protection. We will make it work. Financially, we have no choice."
Having returned to their allegedly haunted home, the Shea family resolved to coexist alongside their supernatural "extended family."
Jaime said: "I feel a strange sense of peace with the house. I think we all do. We have come to accept our 'spirit friends' as extended family (that I don't have to feed)."
She went on to reveal that her children had grown so accustomed to the bizarre incidents that they had begun using them to their advantage.
"When the neighbour's pet gerbil ends up fully baked in our microwave, my favourite vase gets smashed by a Nerf football, or my husband's cell phone is found floating in the bath water - instead of blaming each other, they bat their lashes, grin and exclaim 'Maybe the ghosts did it!'"
