Reports Of 2 Incidents Involving Clowns Threatening Women, Child In Separate Actions

STERLING HEIGHTS (WWJ) - Two women and one young child were assaulted Tuesday night by men dressed as clowns according to reports.

In the first incident a boy was attacked by a man wearing a clown outfit and wielding a knife in a trailer park in Sterling Heights -- the boy was escaped but was cut, according to WXYZ.

The second incident a couple hours later, involved two women who "were approached by three men dressed as clowns at Lowell and Boulder streets. Three men in clown masks with baseball bats jumped out and started swinging them at the women," according to the same report.

Earlier in the day, Troy police say a clown spotted on the campus of Athens High School scared students and worried parents. Police identified and spoke with that clown and determined there was no threat.

Sergeant Meghan Lehman says, in light of this incident and others, police aren't laughing.

"We just want them to know this isn't all necessarily fun and games," she told WWJ's Zahra Huber. "If you're at a school, causing a disturbance or on private property — you just can't do that. You've gotta obey the law."

A Facebook post on the official Troy Police Department page reads, "DEAR CLOWNS: Clowns that break the law, including trespassing and threatening people, are subject to arrest just like anybody else…We support having fun and getting in to the Halloween spirit, but please do so in a law abiding and safe way."

Police are taking all threats seriously.