16 August 2005
By GEORGIA DOMINIK STONE
Seeing a strange man walking through her house in the middle of the night was the final straw for Mary, a Hamilton mother.
Previously she had seen her garage door handle turning on its own. Mary - who asked not to be identified by her real name - called a paranormal investigator.
"I don't really have a sixth sense, and I'm not psychic - but I can sense when something's there," said paranormal investigator Mike Woodcock.
Mr Woodcock is definitely not afraid of things that go bump in the night.
"Sometimes I do overnight vigils, which is when I spend the night at people's places," he said.
While his clients sleep, Mr Woodcock and his assistant take video and sound recordings in areas where paranormal activity has occurred and analyse their findings.
He then researches the area around the house, collates the information and presents the findings to his clients.
AdvertisementAdvertisementThis work does not necessarily provide a final solution for the "paranormal activity", but it does clarify whether the activity is in fact paranormal, he said.
"If the activity is paranormal, I usually suggest that people then seek the help of a priest," he said.
Since moving to the Waikato a year ago, Mr Woodcock has had several callouts to investigate strange activities.
Pastor Jack Gielen - who is contesting the Hamilton West seat for the Republican Party at the general election - called the paranormal investigator after hearing strange noises and seeing black shadows in his office building.
Mr Woodcock filmed the site, and together with Mr Gielen researched the area's history. They found the area had been involved in a series of events, including a tornado and UFO sighting.
Mary's night-time visitor also had links to the past. "Through his research, Mike found out that the land my house was on had been used for battles," she said.
Mr Woodcock describes his paranormal detective work as a hobby, but would eventually like it to become a business when he gets funding behind him.
:zombie:
By GEORGIA DOMINIK STONE
Seeing a strange man walking through her house in the middle of the night was the final straw for Mary, a Hamilton mother.
Previously she had seen her garage door handle turning on its own. Mary - who asked not to be identified by her real name - called a paranormal investigator.
"I don't really have a sixth sense, and I'm not psychic - but I can sense when something's there," said paranormal investigator Mike Woodcock.
Mr Woodcock is definitely not afraid of things that go bump in the night.
"Sometimes I do overnight vigils, which is when I spend the night at people's places," he said.
While his clients sleep, Mr Woodcock and his assistant take video and sound recordings in areas where paranormal activity has occurred and analyse their findings.
He then researches the area around the house, collates the information and presents the findings to his clients.
AdvertisementAdvertisementThis work does not necessarily provide a final solution for the "paranormal activity", but it does clarify whether the activity is in fact paranormal, he said.
"If the activity is paranormal, I usually suggest that people then seek the help of a priest," he said.
Since moving to the Waikato a year ago, Mr Woodcock has had several callouts to investigate strange activities.
Pastor Jack Gielen - who is contesting the Hamilton West seat for the Republican Party at the general election - called the paranormal investigator after hearing strange noises and seeing black shadows in his office building.
Mr Woodcock filmed the site, and together with Mr Gielen researched the area's history. They found the area had been involved in a series of events, including a tornado and UFO sighting.
Mary's night-time visitor also had links to the past. "Through his research, Mike found out that the land my house was on had been used for battles," she said.
Mr Woodcock describes his paranormal detective work as a hobby, but would eventually like it to become a business when he gets funding behind him.
:zombie:
