Creepy Clowns Spotted Everywhere: Who Are They And What Do They Want?

Reports of people dressed as clowns trying to lure children into the woods or away from caregivers is a problem that is increasing across the southeast and now spreading across the country. The sightings originally began in Alabama, causing some schools to be put on lockdown until officials could investigate further, according to the Crime Report.

America’s love/hate relationship with clowns was likely intensified when Stephen King wrote It, a novel about a sinister clown in a circus that was eventually made into a miniseries, delighting and terrifying people everywhere. Since clowns have been long used to entertain children, the prospect of an evil one instills fear in many peoples’ hearts. If children are naturally drawn to clowns, but clowns have less than benevolent intentions toward the children, this is a potentially disastrous situation. With reports of clowns near woods reportedly beckoning children to come with them into the trees, some communities have panicked.

In addition to Alabama, clowns were spotted in Brunswick, Maryland, near Auburn University. They were also seen as far as away from the original sightings as the West Coast, with reports of sightings in California. The question in many peoples’ minds no matter where they are sighted is the same: Who are the people dressed as clowns, and what are their intentions?

Many law enforcement officials have dubbed them nothing more than pranks designed to scare individuals, but the situation is causing a mass influx of calls into police headquarters and taking valuable police resources away from situations that truly need them. In Alabama, Calhoun county Chief Deputy Matthew Wade says that the people found to be causing this hysteria will be strictly disciplined to the fullest extent of the law.

“It’s really disturbing in today’s world that people are doing this to scare others. There are consequences when you make threats.”

CNN reports that there have been instances of clowns harassing kids near Pottsville, Pennsylvania, which has left children frightened and parents angered. Twelve-year-old Brianne Hawke of Pottsville reported a sighting that left people extremely shaken up.

“The little boy ran up that way, screaming there were clowns, yeah, eating, something in the woods…A clown started chasing us up here on the playground and turned around and went back to the woods. So we thought it was gone, turned around, he broke a stick and threw it at us and started calling us, cursing at us. It was scary.”

The Pottsville Police Chief confirmed that there were two men dressed as clowns going around scaring children, and when anyone got close, they would jump in a vehicle and drive away.

That’s a similar theme to what has been happening across the country. The eeriest reported sightings are when people say they’ve seen a clown in their headlights standing along a road in a desolate area at night, but these sightings have not been confirmed, and there have been no instances of children actually kidnapped by clowns that have been reported to police.

In a school district near Pottsville, activities were halted and school functions canceled due to the sightings of clowns, and many children believe the clowns are killing people, according to Gabe Saldek of Mahanoy City.

“We just figured they would cancel because on Facebook they said there were killer clowns around here that were killing people.”

While it is important to understand that no bodies have been discovered that would indicate clowns are killing people, and most of the sightings are nothing more than copy-cat thrill seekers that play on people’s worst nightmares, it is a possibility that a mentally disturbed individual may be prompted by the hype to commit a crime while dressed as a clown. According to law officials, the safest thing to do is to keep your distance from people dressed as clowns in odd areas and report them to police. There may be more sightings as Halloween approaches, so it is prudent for people to remain aware.

[Featured Image by iStock]