By Tim Binnall
Police in the Netherlands issued a worrisome warning to residents about a taser-wielding clown spotted roaming the streets of a city. According to a local media report, the unsettling case began last week with a series of TikTok videos wherein the haunting harlequin can be seen frightening people in the community of Amersfoort. As one might imagine, the presence of the mysterious miscreant in the city caused quite a stir on social media, which prompted Dutch authorities to assure residents they were aware of the commotion as "we have seen the TikTok videos and received reports" about the creepy clown in their midst.
While police conceded that they cannot be certain if the scenes in the videos were staged, they stressed that they are taking the situation seriously and have instructed officers to "keep an eye on the situation." As if a clown prowling around the community were not unnerving enough, authorities also observed that "the sound of an object similar to an electroshock weapon" can be heard in the footage, which makes them suspect that the harlequin could be armed with some kind of taser. With that in mind, they urged residents to be alert when walking around the city and to call the police if they see something amiss.
Suggesting that the case is not a hoax orchestrated by a mischievous prankster, a concerned mother told a Dutch newspaper that her daughter actually encountered the ne'er-do-well and the youngster was most certainly not in on the joke. "Suddenly, out of nowhere came that clown with a taser," the unnamed woman recalled, "on the video, you can hear my daughter screaming with her friend. They called the police and they came right away. Those girls are really scared to death." Between the situation in Amersfoort and a somewhat similar case in Scotland, where a mischievous individual dressed as Pennywise has been 'haunting' a village, one can only hope that we are not on the cusp of another creepy clown outbreak this spooky season.