Mississippi's Killer Clowns

A barber shop owner was fatally shot by four men wearing clown masks on November 25, 2018, in Jackson, Mississippi.

Police said the shooting was reported about 1 p.m. outside Cut City Barber Shop on the corner of Bullard Street and Industrial Drive.
Officers found 41-year-old Marcus Hamblin sitting inside a vehicle suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
***
According to a witness, four armed men in a dark sedan approached the victim and shots were fired. The suspects then fled the scene. Clarion Ledger.

The newspaper decided to use the Heath Ledger clown mask from The Dark Knight film.

Marcus is a masculine given name of Ancient Roman pre-Christian origin derived either from Etruscan Marce of unknown meaning(possibly from the Etruscan "mar" which means "to harvest"), or referring to the god Mars.

Hamblin is a name of ancient Norman origin. It arrived in England with the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Hamblin family lived in Gloucestershire. Their name, however, is local reference of Old French derivation. This surname, of English origin, is derived from the Anglo-Norman French given name "Ham(b)lin", a double diminutive of "Hammone", itself coming from the Norman personal name "Hamo(n)", which derives from the Germanic "Haimo", a short form of the various compound name with the first element "haim" meaning "home."

Creepy Clowns Check-In

The actual Whataburger in Albuquerque, New Mexico, terrorized by a "creepy clown."

It is time to do a little roundup of recent clown stories.

Albuquerque Police say they arrested a "creepy clown" that was terrorizing customers at a local Whataburger.

On Monday night, August 6, 2018, police arrested 32-year-old Stephen Ames, who was reported to be wearing a clown mask and waving a machete at customers in the parking lot of the Whataburger at the intersection of Carlisle and Claremont.

According to a criminal complaint, the manager of the Whataburger told Ames to leave after he reportedly spent 20 minutes in the restaurant’s restroom. Once outside, the manager said Ames took out the machete from its sheath and started banging it against his knee. Fearing an attack, police say the manager then locked the doors of the restaurant.

The original Whataburgers used a "W" in their roof design.

They evolved, by 1961, to some locations with the W-less look, while still retaining the A-frame look.

Police say Ames then approached cars that were stopped at a nearby traffic signal. While wearing the clown mask, police say Ames blew kisses at passengers, then approached a car to write the words “kill you” on a window. Before the car could leave, police say Ames shouted “I will f**k you up” at the occupants.

When police arrived at the scene, they say they encountered Ames with the clown mask on, thrusting his hips in a sexual manner toward the Whataburger restaurant. Ames was taken into custody without further incident. Police say they found a filled heroin needle in Ames’ possession, along with the machete.

h/t AWG

===

Other incidents...

On July 10, 2018, a gunman involved in a robbery reportedly wearing a golden "angry clown" mask shot a Waffle House patron in Atlanta, Georgia.

Sightings of a Phantom Clown described variously with a "clown mask," and/or with "red hair and red pants," near the Hudson Falls Primary School, occurred on May 29, 2018.  The Post-Star (Glens Falls, NY) 5-31-18, pg. 3, notes, "Police looking into 'clown' sighting near Kingsbury school."

At the Little Caesars pizza shop in Holly Hill, Florida, around 11:50 pm on May 26, 2018, a "clown" attacked an employee closing up the store. The "clown" used a wooden post. The employee pulled out his concealed weapon and shot the attacker dead.

Two men wearing clown masks held up a Queens, New York, Walgreen's at gunpoint on May 22, 2018.

On April 11, 2018, there was a Beverly Hills, California incident involving a clown, kids, and a machete. NBC Los Angeles, on April 11, 2018, at 10:19 pm PDT, updated their story:  "A man in a clown mask spooked a Beverly Hills neighborhood Wednesday when he reportedly wielded a machete at children."

On April 9, 2018, WPRI in Warwick, Rhode Island, reported, "Clown-masked robber targets local Dunkin' Donuts."

Also...

See "Phantom Clowns: Classified," for the definition and differences between Phantom Clowns, Killer Clowns, and Stalking Clowns.

See also "Creepy Clowns" and the NY Post's historical article from 2016.

Killer Clown Returns

On Tuesday, April 10, 2018, I pre-recorded a Conspirinormal program interview, first about my new Mothman book, and then doing a segment on Phantom Clowns.

Then on Wednesday, April 11, 2018, there was a Beverly Hills, California incident involving a clown, kids, and a machete!

NBC Los Angeles, on April 11, 2018, at 10:19 pm PDT, updated their story:

A man in a clown mask spooked a Beverly Hills neighborhood Wednesday when he reportedly wielded a machete at children.
Beverly Hills police have been patrolling the 1700 block of Carla Ridge in search of the man since at least 10:30 p.m.

Meanwhile, on Monday, April 9, 2018, WPRI in Warwick, Rhode Island, reported:

Clown-masked robber targets local Dunkin' Donuts

Warwick Police are searching for a masked suspect who they said robbed a Warwick Avenue Dunkin' Donuts Monday night.
Officers were called to the scene around 9:30 p.m.
Police said the suspect left with an undisclosed amount of cash, dropping his mask on the sidewalk as he fled the scene. It is not known if he was armed at the time of the robbery.
According to Warwick Police, the man was wearing a black leather jacket, dark pants, and gloves.

h/t Christopher Farnsworth, Adam Sayne, and others.

Killer Clowns: 2017 Half Year Report

A frequently heard question, after last year's massive number of sightings and reports of Phantom Clowns and other forms of creepy clowns, is: What happened to all the Clown encounters?

As I noted late in 2016, after Donald Trump's election shortly after Halloween, the media's attention shifted to Trump and that melodrama. That sucked the life out of the clown stories that had evolved from Phantoms, to Stalkers, to Killers. 

The year of 2016 ended with the Creepy Clown jumping the Atlantic Ocean, and being reported, in a more violent mode, as Killer Clowns in the U.K.

During the first half of 2017, the few and far between clown stories are again these more violent type, the actual, real Killer Clowns.

Specific authentic "Killer Clown" news came via three incidents in the USA, all clustering in May 2017.

(1) May 17, 2017 - Glendale, Arizona - Clown With Ax

A group of children walking home from school in Arizona were terrified when they were chased by a miscreant wielding an ax and clad in a creepy clown mask.
The bizarre incident occurred earlier this week in the city of Glendale when the group of youngsters were walking back to their neighborhood.Suddenly, the boys spotted a menacing individual wearing a clown mask and holding an ax coming towards them. According to one of the kids, the ne'er-do-well yelled at them, "you better run because we are coming after you." The frightened boys heeded the clown's advice and ran away from the scene until they got home. "I thought I was going to die today," one traumatized youngster told TV station ABC 15 in Arizona. Although the boys' tale may sound like something they could have conjured up on the way home in a fit of boredom, an investigation by authorities suggests that the encounter was all too real. Cops say that they found both the clown mask and the ax seemingly left behind by the person who harassed the children. With no suspects at this time, police hope that photos of the recovered items from the crime scene may catch someone's attention and lead to a break in the case.Much like warm weather seems to usher in crop circle season every year, one wonders if the same can be said of creepy clowns. Source.

 (2) May 23, 2017 - Denver, Colorado - Killer Clown Kills With Blades

A Killer Clown at Torchy's?

Man in clown makeup with bladed gloves accused of killing man near Torchy’s Tacos.
Suspect tells cops dead man may have fallen on one of the spiked bracelets he was wearing.
Man in clown makeup with bladed gloves accused of killing man near Torchy’s Tacos.
Denver police have arrested a man who was wearing clown makeup when he allegedly stabbed and slashed a 29-year-old man to death with a glove that had blades attached to the end of each finger.
Christian Lee Gulzow, 36, allegedly attacked the victim at 12:49 a.m. Tuesday following an argument near Torchy’s Tacos at West 11th Avenue and Broadway, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.
The Denver coroner’s office identified the victim as Brian Lucero, 29. The cause of death was a stab wound, according to a coroner’s office news release.
Witnesses told police that the suspect, wearing white clown makeup accented with black streaks on the face, suddenly began threatening the victim with a glove with blades that were 2- to 3-inches long. They were near the Corner Store at West 10th Avenue and Broadway.
Gulzow began pummeling the victim, who tried to dodge the blows, the police report says. The victim eventually punched the suspect, who then yelled at the victim and followed him to Torchy’s. The two were the only ones in the restaurant parking lot.
“The victim collapsed in the north east parking lot of the Torchy’s business,” the report says.
Gulzow allegedly fled on a scooter, the police report says.
Police spotted a man on a Denver Public School’s HALO camera riding a scooter matching the suspect’s appearance in the 900 block of Galapago Street.
They saw the man throw an object in the bushes. Police went to the building and found a knife in the bushes, the police report says.
Police found the man at West Alameda Avenue and Lipan Street. His clothes were covered in blood, the report says.
When interviewed at police headquarters Gulzow said a man threatened him and yelled at him “to get out of my alley.” He claimed the victim attacked him and stole his scooter, the court records say.
Gulzow said he may have hurt the victim when he tackled the victim while he was riding away on Gulzow’s scooter. The victim may have fallen on one of Gulzow’s spiked wrist bracelets, Gulzow told police. The suspect also acknowledged that he may have cut the victim while he jabbed him with his “clawed glove.”
Gulzow’s account was different from those offered by witnesses, the report says.
Gulzow’s jail nickname is Diablo. He has an extensive criminal history with multiple domestic violence, assault and weapons convictions. In 2012, he was convicted of felony menacing with a deadly weapon, according to Colorado Bureau of Investigation records. Source.

(3) May 23, 2017 - Miami, Florida - Clown With A Gun

A man with green hair and “Joker” tattoos on his face was arrested for pointing a loaded gun at drivers in the Miami area.
Miami-Dade police arrested 29-year-old Lawrence Sullivan on Tuesday, WSVN reported.
Sullivan has “Joker” written across half his forehead and “F*** Batman” on the other half.
According to the Miami Herald, Sullivan had a loaded Smith & Wesson handgun with six live rounds in his pocket when officers confronted him.
Sullivan lives with his mother and listed his occupation as “tattoo model,” the paper reported.
Sullivan was charged with carrying a concealed firearm. On Wednesday, his bond was set at $5,000. Source.

Part two of the year may have ripples from IT the movie being released into theaters on September 8, 2017.

++++

As a footnote for 2017, if should be mentioned that political clown, Trump advisor Robert J. Stone Jr., attempted to resurrect his career as The Joker in June.

New Creepy Clowns in PA

There has been a new sighting of armed "creepy clowns" by children and an adult in the Pittsburgh area, on March 4, 2017.

...

WEST MIFFLIN (KDKA) — Extra police are patrolling West Mifflin tonight after two men with weapons, dressed as clowns, frightened a group of children.

Police from West Mifflin and the City of Pittsburgh went searching for the men, as soon as the father of three of the children called 911. The search didn’t turn up any evidence.

It was a typical Saturday afternoon for the kids on Lauder Street, playing hide and go seek in the woods, until around 4:15 p.m.

That’s when the kids say two men dressed like scary clowns and carrying weapons seemed to come out of nowhere.

“They were chasing us,” said 8-year-old Dylan Milkowski, of West Mifflin.

“My kid came running in the house screaming that there were two guys chasing him,” said Michael Milkowski, of West Mifflin. 

More...Source: (h/t to Tim C.)

http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2017/03/04/armed-men-dressed-as-clowns-scare-children-in-west-mifflin/

Creepy Clowns in the Courts: 2017

As predicted, Phantom, Stalking, and Killer clown sightings did vanish, after Halloween and Election Day 2016. It appears that the media-driven phenomena of "creepy clowns" filled a void created by public and media boredom with the long campaign of 2016.

Once the surprising election results came in that Donald Trump had received enough Electoral College votes to be the 45th President, attention shifted to politics again. Clowns seemed to literally disappear.

The lingering criminal actions resulting from a few actual "clown incidents" are now showing up in the news, via official findings and jail time.

What lead to a limited number of people behind these "creepy clowns" being adjudicated in the courts?
Let's look at few of these cases.

In Linden, New Jersey, a 14-year-old boy was recently arrested in connection with posting a creepy clown post that threatened teachers and children last year. The boy was served with complaints for terroristic threats and creating a false public alarm. He has to make an appearance in juvenile court.
Around 6:41 p.m. October 3, 2016, Linden police were alerted to a suspicious Instagram posting that featured a photo of a clown sitting on a swing. The caption of the photo reads "I'm taking and killing teachers and kids just like I did this morning September 30 following that girl."
Following a three-month investigation by Juvenile Detective Keith Milos, the boy was arrested Thursday morning, police said. Source.

Two Hunterdon County residents were summonsed with disorderly conduct after they allegedly drove through a parking lot at Hunterdon Central Regional High School while wearing clown masks.
Jared Matonis, 27, and Tyler Gallo, 18, both with Lebanon addresses, were charged at about 3:38 p.m. Oct. 7 after School Resource Officer Timothy Nemeth received a report of a suspicious vehicle that had driven through the fieldhouse parking lot with the driver and passenger wearing clown masks.
Further investigation identified Matonis as the driver and Gallo as his passenger, police said.
Source.

The big news regarding British "Killer Clowns" this week received headlines loved by the UK tabloids. A teenager who chased a pregnant woman with an axe while dressed as a "killer clown," back in October, was jailed for six months. The woman, who was 22 weeks pregnant, threw a brick at the "clown" before he ran off.

Michael March told Newcastle Crown Court he accepted his actions were "foolish and reckless" and it must have been frightening for the couple. March (below, right) said it was a Halloween prank gone horribly wrong.

Prosecutors told the court that March claimed it was a prank saying he had himself been chased by killer clowns in Gateshead and he thought he would scare people as part of a prank.
...
A 10-year-old boy in Plymouth was threatened by a clown who jumped out of a bush carrying a hammer, while in Workington, Cumbria, a clown brandishing an axe chased an 11-year-old girl.
Kent Police saw 59 clown-related incidents between October 7 and 10, (2016) Thames Valley Police had 14 reports in 24 hours, and South Yorkshire Police said it had received 61 reports. Source.

Meanwhile in Arizona,

An 18-year-old Phoenix-area man was sentenced to three months of probation Monday (February 6, 2017), in connection with a creepy-clown threat made against his former high school.
Alonzo Vargas, 18, pleaded guilty in January (2017) to a felony charge of interfering or threatening an educational institution after posting threats on social media against Westview High School in Avondale. As part of the plea agreement, a misdemeanor charge of threatening and intimidating was dropped.
With his head bowed and his voice quivering, Vargas expressed remorse over the incident during his sentencing in Maricopa County Superior Court.
"I want to apologize for the mistakes I made," he said.
Citing the seriousness of the crime, Judge Warren Granville ordered Vargas to complete 40 hours of community service and drug counseling.
"We have to figure out if this was just a badly-timed goof or something more," Granville said.
Vargas was arrested Oct. 6 after police say he posted to Instagram a screenshot of a Facebook post indicating students and faculty at Westview would be shot.
Sgt. Mathew Hintz, an Avondale police spokesman, said in October (2016) that Vargas claimed the post was all in good fun and did not believe it would be taken seriously.
Source.

Illustration at top: R. A. Di Ieso from an article in September 2016 discussing the historical origins of the then-current "creepy clown sightings," via research from Loren Coleman and Ben Radford.

Phantom Clowns: Classified

In March of 1982, in Fate magazine, and then in 1983, in my book Mysterious America, I first used the term "Phantom Clowns" to talk of May 1981's Boston, Massachusetts accounts of individuals wearing multicolored clothes who reportedly were trying to entice school children into coming along with them. The eyewitness accounts of clowns in vans bothering children were discussed for the first time comprehensively in a work of Fortean wonders.

"The story of the phantom clowns went unnoticed on a national scale until I began getting a hint we were in the midst of a major flap of a new phenomenon. Slowly, after contacting fellow researchers by phone and mail, I discovered the phantom clown enigma went beyond Boston, Kansas City, and Omaha," I wrote in Mysterious America.

Fate found my piece such a popular article they featured it in Fate Editors’ The World’s Strangest Stories, “Phantom Clowns,” (Chicago: Clark Publishing, 1983).

While the chapter on "Phantom Clowns" appeared in the 1983 edition of Mysterious America from Faber and Faber, it was seen as too scary to include in their 1989 edition (Boston & London).  The "Phantom Clowns" chapter was actually left out.

But my examination of "Phantom Clowns" was back in Mysterious America, as a chapter in the 2001 revised edition from Paraview, and the new edition of 2007, from Simon and Schuster. In 2007's Mysterious America: The Ultimate Guide to the Nation's Weirdest Wonders, Strangest Spots, and Creepiest Creatures, Chapter 21's "Phantom Clowns" was massively updated with all the new cases that occurred through the release date.

I've continued writing about Phantom Clowns since then, most frequently in this blog, Twilight Language, of course, and on some radio programs.

What I have noticed, during this flap of 2016, is that the definition of what is a "Phantom Clown" is being diluted by the media.

I have always strictly defined a "Phantom Clown" episode as one involving a clown-costumed individual attempting to entice or lure a child into a van, the woods, or other isolated situations. But then when the police or parents get involved, no clown can be found or captured. The apparent "vanishings" of these clowns are the "phantom" part of the Phantom Clowns scenarios.

Most of the Carolinas incidents, therefore, are classic Phantom Clowns incidents.

In Benjamin Radford's new book, Bad Clowns (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2016), he reinforces this definition.

In Radford's Chapter 12, "Phantom Clowns," he writes:

Most evil clowns are fictional and as such reside only in our entertainment and imaginations, leaving only a handful of real flesh-and-blood monsters that stalk our streets. We know, for example, that Stephen King's Pennywise wasn't real, though John Wayne Gacy's Pogo was.
Yet there is another category of bad clowns, one that seems to exist somewhere in the twilight between the cold, clear reality of daylight and the slumbered stuff of nightmares. These bad clowns are reported to roam streets and parks in the United States, the United Kingdom, and elsewhere looking for innocent children to lure and abduct - yet seem to vanish just before police can apprehend them. Some say they are real, while others claim they are figments of imagination. They are known as phantom clowns.
Researcher Loren Coleman coined the term and described them in the pages of Fate magazine and in his book Mysterious America. ~ Benjamin Redford, Bad Clowns, page 151.

Radford is to be congratulated for clearly understanding there are different types of clown appearances. I propose a classification system so the media writing about this 2016 clown flap can begin to realize there are definitely two entirely separate variants in the clowns being reported. One kind, luckily, has not surfaced this year.

Phantom Clowns: These are the uncaught clowns who are "luring" children into the woods, vans, and cars in the reports. These are routinely unseen by parents and police. No photographs of them are presented for examination. (Coined by Loren Coleman, 1981; see Mysterious America: The Ultimate Guide to the Nation's Weirdest Wonders, Strangest Spots, and Creepiest Creatures, Chapter 21's "Phantom Clowns.")

Killer Clowns: These are the real pedophiles who end up killing children, and murderers who kill people who use clown outfits as disguises. As Benjamin Radford mentions in his new book, John Wayne Gacy (active from 1972-1978) is the clown who performed throughout Chicago, and is his prime example. Also within Radford's book (pages 111-126), there are other recent instances, including the West Palm Beach Killer Clown of 1990; Aurora's Joker, James Holmes of 2012; and Las Vegas Jokers Wild, Jerad and Amanda Miller of 2014.

Stalking Clowns: A new phenomenon in recent years has been clowns "appearing in public," without any apparent intent other than to be seen, to startle, to shock, or to surprise folks. As Radford begins his discussion about this group of clowns (pages 99-108), "there is no law against anyone dressed in a costume, jesters or otherwise, walking down the street or visiting a public public. Several of the most famous stalking clowns have appeared in Northampton, England; New York; California; and France," (Benjamin Redford, Bad Clowns, page 99).

What I have observed is that the media, during the late summer of 2016, are confusing the "clown types." They are mixing up their classifications of clowns. Some Stalking Clowns are being mislabeled as Phantom Clowns, or being mentioned in the same discussions of the strictly Phantom variety, to end a story.

Often, these stalking clowns carry balloons. It is almost part of their motif.

On August 2, 2016, a balloon-carrying clown stirred up people in Green Bay, Wisconsin. It was photographed but apparently left to go his merry way. It was a Stalking Clown.

During the current clown flap, there has been a Stalking Clown seen in Yuma, Arizona, on Monday, September 6, 2016. This is not a Phantom Clown, either. The clown-costumed individual was seen riding a bike and photographed.

There is even a nicely placed location sign in the photograph so the clown can be located correctly in time and space. The story is being run in the context of the Carolinas clown wave, of course. Source.

It is time for "Clown Classifications" to inform future analyses of this phenomenon. 

(I appreciate Ben Radford's book for reminding me to mention this in conjunction with this year's flap.)

Phantom & Killer Clowns: 1854 Record and 2016 Incident

Two very bizarre cases of alleged killer and phantom clowns, one from 1854, and the other, a modern report from 2016, have come my way. 

A young boy, 13 years, 6 months old, named William Snyder was allegedly killed on or before January 11, 1854, by "being swung around by the heels by a circus clown." This occurred in San Francisco, California.

Snyder was born in July 1840, in Cincinnati, Ohio.

The data on this killing are to be found at the Find A Grave site, and through Vital Records, reproduced here. 

Meanwhile, on May 4, 2016, the newspaper, A.D. Haagsche Courant, where the well-known Fortean journalist Theo Paijmans works as a reporter, published his first Phantom Clown report.

On Sunday, April 30, 2016, in Zoetermeer (Dutch for "Sweet Lake"), a city in the western Netherlands, the following occurred. (This is a direct translation of the above article.)

Terror Clown frightens woman on bicycle

Last Sunday afternoon at about 12:30 hours a person in a clown costume frightened a woman on a bicycle in the vicinity of the grafittitunnel at the Boerhavelaan. The clown suddenly emerged from the underbrush when the woman was entering the tunnel. The woman quickly sped away. The clown ran off in the opposite direction. Police state that it has received no other reports of a person in a clown costume.

Theo Paijmans writes:

Zoetermeer experienced a clown scare flap in 2014, because of posters of evil clowns that were distributed in connection with Halloween. Children became frightened and mothers and shopkeepers protested because the poster was too frightening.

At top, a 1850-55 daguerreotype of a clown is posted for illustrative purposes only.

For more on "Killer Clowns" at Twilight Language, click here.

My thanks to Tim Cridland for bringing this 1854 record to my attention. 
And to Theo Paijmans for his Netherlands reporting.

Top Ten Evil Clown Stories of 2015

WARNING: 

NOT FOR

COULROPHOBICS

Top Ten Evil Clowns of 2015
by Loren Coleman, author of The Copycat Effect (New York: Paraview Pocket-Simon and Schuster, 2004).

Following in the tradition of my list from 2008, my notes on evil clowns (and Joker clones) that turned up in 2009, my documenting of real killer clowns in 2010, my list of evil clowns of 2011, weirdness in 2012, another compilation for 2013, and the creepy clown reports in California, countrywide in the USA & in France, ending up back in Aurora for 2014, here is a "top ten" gathering of "evil clown" stories for 2015.

(1) January 31, 2015. Merseyside, UK



Crooks dressed as clowns carried out a string of crimes in Merseyside and police have dealt with 14 incidents - from armed robbery to bogus charity collections - involving people wearing face paint and circus costumes, they reported at the end of the first month of the year.

One of the crimes was caught on camera, when a robber strolled into a currency exchange shop in Walton wearing a yellow wig, white face paint and a pink prosthetic nose and forced a terrified worker to hand over bundles of notes.

Another victim had an egg thrown at his car by a yob wearing a clown mask, reports the Liverpool Echo.

(2) July 2015

Early in July 2015, a Chicagoan took a cellphone video of a person dressed in a clown suit, trespassing at the city's historic Rosehill Cemetery in the dead of night. Julia Graham says she was “freaked out” at the figure as it ran toward the main gate. She and her husband were driving by around 10 p.m.

“When we get closer, we realize it’s a clown, which is super weird,” Graham said.

The first picture her husband snapped was of the clown scaling the 7-foot-tall gate at the Ravenswood Avenue entrance. That feat is no easy task, especially for someone wearing a clown suit. The North Side cemetery was clearly closed and locked for the night. Officials don’t know what to make of it because other than the trespass there were no complaints of vandalism.

(3) July 2015

In July 2015, a 12-year-old Elkhart, Indiana girl fatally stabbed her stepmother, and said an online horror story clown named “Laughing Jack” (pictured) told her to do it, it was revealed in court documents in November. The girl set her family’s apartment on fire and stabbed Maria Torres “at the direction of a fictional character found on the CreepyPasta website known as 'Laughing Jack.’”

Laughing Jack is a clown who befriends children as their imaginary friend before slicing them open and replacing their organs with candy, according to Urban Dictionary. The unidentified Elkhart girl “heard voices and had an 'alter ego' months before the stabbing and begged her father for help,” the court documents said.

(4) August 7, 2015. Hickory, North Carolina.

On Friday, August 7, 2015, a woman living in the 1300 block of 20th Avenue NE in Hickory, North Carolina, reported to police that at 4:32 a.m. a clown with an ax knocked at her residence. The suspect then began swinging an ax and attempted to cut the victim. The clown was wearing a mask and a multicolored wig. She was able to remove his mask and recognized him as an acquaintance before he left, according to the Hickory Daily Record. An arrest warrant was issued. Jimmy Daniel Raybon (pictured above), 28, also known as Robert Gross, turned himself in without incident at 2:15 p.m.


(5) September 2015. Las Vegas, Nevada.

Some people thought it was funny, but it is amazing no one shot the "killer" clowns that were scaring folks around the Las Vegas Valley in September of this year.

Matteo Moroni, the famous prankster behind DM Pranks in Italy, teamed up with Fright Dome-owner Jason Egan to bring the "killer clowns" to Nevada. They set up "crime scenes" with creepy clowns nearby and waited for real people to walk into the situations.

In the video, the clowns hang out in a gas station, the long hallways of Circus Circus and in an ambulance behind the hotel-casino. Each time an unsuspecting person or group walks into the created scenario and are scared almost into having heart attacks. Not funny.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/crime/article30923304.html#storylink=cpy

(6) October 2015. Kent, UK

"Clowns in vans chasing terrified children spark warning 'go straight home after school today and not to loiter,'" reported the Daily Mirror. ""Police are investigating after numerous reports of kids being approached by people wearing clown masks driving a van."

Phantom Clowns stalked St. John's Road in Kent. The incidents started after several reports in Tonbridge. On October 5 in Hectorage Road, pupils reported they were scared by people in clown masks.On October 7 and 8 there were also reports of a woman in the High Street wearing a clown mask. The following week in Tunbridge Wells, on October 13 and 14 there are reports of people wearing clown masks in a van on St John's Road. Some witnesses said the clowns wore black clothing and white masks.

No one was ever caught. (These are the classic Phantom Clowns that I discussed in Mysterious America.)

(7) October 15, 2015. Springfield, Missouri.

Police say they arrested a 30-year-old man on October 15, after he dressed as clown, carried a toy gun onto Baptist Bible College in Springfield, Missouri, and claimed he had a bomb and was going to take a hostage. James D. Robertson (pictured) was charged with making terroristic threats. Police found Robertson in a parking lot at the college. He told them he was formerly a student at the college and wanted to return but school officials ignored him. Robertson told police he dressed like a clown and carried a toy gun in order to make school officials pay attention to him. They did. Robertson did not have a car bomb. In the trunk of his car, police found a bag of charcoal with a note that said: "This is my CAR bomb!"

(8) November 24, 2015. Waukesha, Wisconsin.

This turns out to be merely unsettling, not evil. Around Thanksgiving 2015, the media began noting there were sightings of a man dressed up as a clown walking around Carroll University campus, Waukesha, Wisconsin. Some people, who said it was "creepy," took photographs. Waukesha police say they know who it is. Waukesha police told the local media the teenage boy is "developmentally delayed and is just doing this to see people's reaction. Both he and his parents were advised several times it would really help us out if he wouldn't stand out there doing that."

Police say they aren't aware of any crimes the teen has committed.

(9) December 24, 2015. Lakewood, Colorado. 

The ultimate costumed clown around Christmas, of course, is Santa Claus. In 2015, an evil Santa emerged near Denver. A stabbing suspect was on the loose Christmas Eve in Lakewood, Colorado, after allegedly stabbing a bus passenger early Thursday morning, December 24, 2015. At around 1 a.m., two people were riding an RTD bus when they got into a fight that ended when one of the passengers -- who police say was wearing a Santa Claus jacket -- stabbed the other. The suspect remains on the run. (For an infamous recent Killer Santa case, see the 2013 Pardo-Corvina story.)

(10) The Joker resurfaces

American University Press published a book of some note on the subject of evil clowns. Appearing in 2015, The Joker: A Serious Study of the Clown Prince of Crime, edited by Robert Moses Peaslee and Robert G. Weiner, is the first academic work to provide a comprehensive study of this villain dressed like a clown, illustrating why the Joker appears so relevant to audiences today.

In a related vein, Suicide Squad is an upcoming American superhero film based on the DC Comics antihero team of the same name. It is scheduled to be released on August 5, 2016. One of the most significant characters in the forthcoming movie is the Joker, being played by Jared Leto. During 2015, photos of Leto as the new Joker caused quite a stir. 

Donate to support this blog. Thank you.

Top Ten Evil Clown Stories of 2015

© Loren Coleman, 2015