Bigfoot researchers all over the world hope to one day find evidence that the legendary creature is real. A group of researchers called the Sasquatch Genome Project claim to have not only captured video proof of bigfoot, but DNA evidence as well. Dr. Melba Ketchum is the leader of this group and claims they have spent over $500,000 analyzing DNA samples from an unknown hominin species.

Their research allegedly proves that Sasquatch exists in North America and is a human relative that arose approximately 13,000 years ago. “They’re a type of people, they’re a human-hybrid, we believe. And all of the DNA evidence points to that. And they can elude us, so if you get [footage] at all, it can be fleeting,” Ketchum told ABC affiliate WFAA.

The evidence the group calls proof of bigfoot comes from Kentucky and shows a large, hairy creature walking through a wooded area. Ketchum claims that she was once a skeptic herself and that this led her to be very thorough with her research.

“We soon discovered that certain hair samples — which we would later identify as purported Sasquatch samples — had unique morphology distinguishing them from typical human and animal samples.” “Those hair samples that could not be identified as known animal or human were subsequently screened using DNA testing, beginning with sequencing of mitochondrial DNA followed by sequencing nuclear DNA to determine where these individuals fit in the ‘tree of life,’” she said.

While many people are excited to hear that this creature may be real, not everyone is onboard. Todd R. Disotell, a professor at the Department of Anthropology at New York University, told ABCNews.com that Ketchum’s research is nonsense.

“It’s just a joke,” he said. “She is a laughing stock of people that are of a community that are already kind of wacko.”

“This was not reported in any scientific way whatsoever. It’s complete junk science, and then she misinterprets it. She hasn’t published in peer-reviewed papers on this stuff. I don’t know how this got put together,” he said.

“You can’t prove something doesn’t exist,” he said. “You can prove that every sample you’re brought isn’t what they’re claiming, But you can’t disprove this. It will go on forever. We’ll always have it.”

Image from Wikimedia Commons.