French police arrested 14 teenagers on Saturday after they were spotted carrying pistols, knives and baseball bats while dressed up as clowns.

Creepy Clowns Plague France

The 14 teenagers in Agde are just one example of the frightening trend – people in France have begun dressing up as clowns and wreaking havoc on various cities. A man was arrested in Montpellier for dressing up as a clown and beating another man with an iron bar. In Bethune, a 19-year-old was arrested after reportedly threatening people he met on the street – while dressed as a clown.

According to French police, the string of arrests reflects a world-wide global trend, where people are dressing up as creepy clowns. Clowns recently created a commotion in Bakersfield, Calif., where residents were disturbed by The Wasco Clown.
“Since mid-October, there’s been a rumor inspired by videos shared on the internet, which is worrying people about the presence of threatening and aggressive clowns in France,” said police in a statement.

Most recently, a 14-year-old was arrested near Paris after dressing up as a clown and attempting to attack a woman. The teenager was one of two clown attackers, who reportedly came after their victim with a fake axe, but were scared off by a man with a baseball bat before they could cause any physical damage.

Anti-Clown Vigilantes

The freaky phenomenon has become so popular that ‘Clown Hunter’ groups on Facebook have also begun to gain traction. In Bordeaux, police apprehended a group of young teenagers armed with metal rods and sticks who said they were out hunting for clowns.

These so-called vigilantes have also received a stern warning from the National Police, who released a statement saying, “Any person, aggressive clowns or hunters of clowns, discovered in possession of a weapon on the highway will be arrested.”