When the foot turned up at the Spotsylvania County landfill, the first thought was that someone had committed a brutal crime. Deputies began sorting through mounds of trash in a somber search for body parts.

Now, the foot is a phenomenon.

Spotsylvania sheriff's officials have said the foot may have come from an "ape-like species," leaving Bigfoot believers across the country wondering if there may finally be proof of the creatures' existence. Others think it might not be from any primate, saying it resembles a bear's skinned hind paw.

"Discoveries like the foot in the landfill quickens the heartbeat of every Bigfoot researcher, but all of us realize it probably won't be that easy," read a message on the Virginia Bigfoot Research Organization blog. "Stay tuned!"

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