High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! In the early morning hours of August 27, 1979, deputy sheriff Val Johnson was driving his patrol car, a 1977 Ford LTD, on a rural highway in Marshall County not far from the North Dakota border. At 1:40 am he saw a bright light to his south, along a group of trees some distance from his car. Since he had heard rumors that smugglers from Canada were using small airplanes to deliver illegal drugs to the area, Johnson initially thought the light might be from a downed airplane. To get a closer look he turned his patrol car onto Highway 220 and increased his speed to 65 MPH. (The UFO Book, p.357) Strangely, Johnson noticed that the light was not illuminating the surrounding area. Suddenly, the light started to move towards him and almost instantly covered an estimated mile and a half before resting above his car. Johnson later stated that "I heard glass breaking and saw the inside of the car light up real bright with white light...after thelight hit my vehicle, I don't remember a thing.