"TERRIFIED locals in a South American town are running scared after a strange creature they describe as "Gollum" crawled out of a lake and charged schoolkids.
The beast - which has "sparked fear and confusion" in the small town of Cerro Azul, Panama - was spotted on Saturday when four 14 to 16-year-olds were playing by the waterfront.
According to their account, reported by Panamanian news service Telemetro, the youngsters "screamed" when the five-foot creature emerged from a cave and started clambouring over rocks towards them "as if to attack them".
In a "desperate bid to defend themselves" the four terrified boys said they hurled rocks at the strange creature to kill it, before throwing its corpse in the water and running away.
Their disbelieving parents returned to the lake the following day - and were stunned to discovered the beast's body washed up on the shore.
Experts have yet to examine the images - or make any statements regarding their discovery.
But locals told Panama news channels, who ran the story, that the water-monster was "Gollum from Lord of the Rings".
One said: "I have only seen that creature once before - and it was in the Tolkien film."
The fictional Gollum - originally known as Smeagol - was a hobbit whose later name was derived from the "disgusting gurgling, choking cough he made".
JRR Tolkien - who wrote the Middle Earth adventures - said of the character: "He had become deformed and twisted in both body and mind by the corruption of the Ring.
"His only desire was to possess the Ring which had enslaved him, and he pursued it for many years after he lost it.""
Heh, sweeeeeeeeeeeeet! 
There's only one phrase that comes to mind here:
Hell. That's some weird @%!%.
I want to know what that is very much. The closest thing I can come up with is an extremely mutated human.
I want to know what that is very much.
You and I both, bro. You and I both.
looks like an albino sloth. o.o; what's with these people and murdering odd things on sight?
Yeah I'm pretty sure it's a sloth
Where did it's fur go? XD
I showed this to my brother, the Super-Sceptic, and he reckons its a publicity stunt, like promotional/viral marketing for a movie that may be coming out. And I have to say, I'm with him. Think about it, all there is photos of a convieniantly dead creature, and the only ones to see it alive were four kids that killed it, if of course it was ever alive.
The slag is that thing?!
*hides behind Becca*
I'm claiming so not real... sorry
Biologists would be all over this, I know I would be.
EDIT:
Found this video while looking at local news. The lady is saying 4 minors found the body and people are calling it an alien.
Notice it's not big. It seems to be sloth-like in terms of body size and appendages with claws . Kinda ugly little critter actually.
I think Becca and HPA might be right, the creature in question could be a skinned sloth.
When I just got to the page and looked at the picture I thought Rishi tricked us into looking at a giant or zoomed in penis.
Watch the news and read it, guys. If we find out by the next two weeks that 4 little kids have just gotten deathly ill with lumps on their throat and a heart problem we'll be in some serious trouble.
When I just got to the page and looked at the picture I thought Rishi tricked us into looking at a giant or zoomed in penis.
Surprisingly, he's usually smart enough to avoid posting anything like that here because he knows it'd get him in trouble. It's a shame you're not smart enough to keep from following him around and taking jabs at him every opportunity you get. To be honest I'm sick of it, as are a number of other people.
So cut it out please. This is the only warning I'll give you about it.
On topic, I'd be fairly willing to bet it's a drowned sloth as some of the others have been saying. Depending on how long it had been drowned for, its hair could have been eaten away by detrivores before it got washed up somewhere.
And you'd be surprised how easy it is to confuse "clamored up toward us and attacked" with "floated downstream and was particularly hideous".
Surprisingly, he's usually smart enough to avoid posting anything like that here because he knows it'd get him in trouble. It's a shame you're not smart enough to keep from following him around and taking jabs at him every opportunity you get. To be honest I'm sick of it, as are a number of other people.
So cut it out please. This is the only warning I'll give you about it.
Thank you.
Silvershadow0 wrote:
On topic, I'd be fairly willing to bet it's a drowned sloth as some of the others have been saying. Depending on how long it had been drowned for, its hair could have been eaten away by detrivores before it got washed up somewhere.
I completely agree with you.
^ Yeah, that's what I read on /x/.
/thread
The slag is that thing?!
*hides behind Becca*
*protects from the poor murdered sloth* ^^;
ah good, i was correct about what it was~
It may be a sloth, but that thing is still ugly and creepy.
I have nothing but pure, unconditional love in my heart for that sloth. 
with these people and murdering odd things on sight?
Yeah, that's what I was thinking. Oh hey what's that? KILL IT!
The story about the kids killing it is probably fake though. They would probably know what a sloth is, and the story suggests it had no hair when they killed it. The throwing the corpse in the water line is the most unbelievable of any of it.
I am rather embarrassed that I did not think of a sloth, but in my defense, I've never actually seen one.
I motion that dead bald sloth should be made the next mascot of the mobius forum for this decade!
Also 
@ evony ads everywhere
I didn't mean it to offend Rishi, I was just kidding around. I wasn't stalking him either: I saw the name and went "lolwut?" and decided to check it out. And I also know very well he wouldn't do that- the point was at first glance it ACTUALLY looked like a penis to me.
Reaaaaaaally....
it ACTUALLY looked like a penis to me
Wow... I guess this makes a case for those who say 10 is too young to be on the internet. 😛
Seriously though, be careful where you go. It could screw you up psychologically because brain development is very environment dependent, and at 10 there is less of an established foundation of experience so every experience is more important.
