A POLICE officer from Scunthorpe has picked up a prestigious international award for his investigations into UFOs.

Gary Heseltine's fascination with the unexplained in the UK skies began at the age of 15, after spotting a mysterious bright light over Scunthorpe while walking home his first girlfriend.

The 49-year-old father-of-two picked up the 2010 Disclosures Award in Washington last week for his database of UFO sightings from UK police officers.

He said: "It was a tremendous honour and I got the opportunity to give a speech from the same podium as JFK, Gorbachev and Nelson Mandela which was an incredible moment in my life.

"Winning the award was a total surprise, I didn't know I was going to win until my name was read out.

"It's also a terrific boost for my database as it puts me on an international platform and I have already been offered chances to give lectures in Brazil and Denmark."

Since launching his website, prufospolicedatabase.co.uk in 2002, Gary has amassed a database including 330 cases and the witness statements of more than 750 police officers.

Despite investigating thousands of reports, Gary will always remember his first sighting over the skies of Scunthorpe in 1975.

He recalled: "I was with my first girlfriend heading down Grange Lane South towards the comprehensive school and suddenly became aware of a large bright light.

"Suddenly all the electricity on the housing estate we could see ahead cut out.

"We were terrified at the time but afterwards I decided to investigate and discovered that power cuts are extremely common during UFO sightings."

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