The Amityville Ghost Boy

If you read my previous post, I looked at the true story of the Amityville Horror. We also looked at the infamous picture of the supposed Ghost Boy taken in the house. It is known as one of the most famous paranormal photos of all time.

Taken in 1976 by Gene Campbell, a professional photographer who was part of the team who worked with paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, this photo has been subjected to much controversy.

The figure or ghost is the photo is said to be the spirit of John Defeo, one of the family members who was murdered in the home just years before.

The Lutz family, who occupied the house and whose story inspired a plethora of films and books, fled the home after a series of terrifying paranormal events within four weeks. Was this ghost boy a part of the hauntings?

The first time the picture was shown was on the Merv Griffin show back in 1979. Gene Campbell set up an automatic camera on the 2nd floor landing that shot off infrared with black and white film throughout the night. However, there were an abundance of rolls of film, with nothing on them. There is only one picture of the little boy.

George Lutz, the patriarch of the family, commented on the photo:

"In 1979, I was putting together a book that has yet to be published that included this photograph. The secretary I had at the time was about eight months pregnant. We had dozens of these pictures to choose from that didn't have the boy, and she asked me: "Which one should we put in the book?" I told her to just pick one. She came running back into my office about 5 minutes later saying that every time she picked up the photograph with the boy, the baby kicked her. We then asked my kids if they knew who this was. Missy said it was the little boy she used to play with in the house. I then called the Warrens and the photographer and let them know about the picture."

Theorists have placed together a picture of murder victim, 9-year-old John Defeo and the infamous photo and have claimed to see a likeliness.

The Warren's said no-one was home during the time of the photo, however critics have suggested that the boy is actually a member of the Warren's investigation team, Paul Bartz.

Here is the photo before the enhancements:

Whilst the photo bares a likeliness to the boy, it could have been a trick of the light. Could it be a publicist act? There have been speculations that the Warren's and their cases are all just scams, and have there been any hauntings and paranormal happenings since this picture? Was this boy haunting the Lutz family? It seems very convenient to be true but also, one may want it to be concrete evidence, a form of an answer to an impossible question.

A commenter, Dark Angel commented on the photo:

"This photo is one of the most incredible ghost photos that we've ever seen.  Not only is it obvious that the boy is standing there, but to match him to the youngest DeFeo family member who was murdered in the house, gives us one of the most supportive pieces of evidence that shows that ghosts not only exist, but that they can truly haunt the places where they died."

What do you guys think? Genuine or a Hoax?