A knife-wielding clown?

Yeah…. I’m not a fan of this nightmare.

The Coffee County Sheriff’s Department says they have received a report about a clown attacking a juvenile in the Summitville area.

The victim told police that he swung at the clown and was cut with a knife. His attacker was wearing a red hoodie and clown mask.

Deputies searched the area but did not find the clown.

Coffee County Sheriff Steve Graves said anyone who is intentionally scaring or hurting someone can be arrested.

“People in Tennessee carry guns and somebody jumping out and scaring someone is subject to getting shot,” said Graves in a news release.

Graves is warning residents not to dress up as clowns for Halloween.

The department is working to verify the legitimacy of the reported attack.

I’m going to go ahead and suggest that this one just doesn’t pass the “sniff test” of legitimacy, which apparently is of concern the Sheriff Graves as well.

He also very legitimately points out, however, that “clown pranks” are a known thing. There are pranksters on the internet who enjoy dressing up in clown costumes and then pretend to be caught in the act of murdering a victim (typically a manikin) before chasing the victim of the joke.

https://youtu.be/8xSNiPx791A

These pranks are terrifying on a number of levels, not the least of which is the very real fact that one of the most viciously successful serial killers and rapists in American history, John Wayne Gacy, was a clown.

There have also been reputable accounts of people dressing as clowns attempting to lure children into the woods in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Ohio in recent weeks.

I would strongly advise against dressing up as a clown and attacking someone in a prank attack.

It’s a darn good way to get yourself shot.