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A resident of Cohoes, New York tackled a man wearing an evil-looking clown mask who was wielding a chainsaw last week. Following a brief scuffle, police arrived at the scene and arrested the masked individual on charges of menacing someone with a “dangerous instrument or deadly weapon.”
“We received a call on Thursday, May 1 at around 2:40 p.m. in the area of 120 Lancaster St. for a fight between two males,” Cohoes Chief of Police Todd Waldin told WTEN News.
The incident startled locals in the quiet neighborhood. Security footage shows the masked person walking down the street just before authorities were contacted about the altercation.
“I was walking my mom out to the car,” said resident Natalie Gwinn. “She was going to pick up my daughter from school, and I saw a dude in a blue sports jersey in a clown mask walking down the street. It was a little weird, but I kind of rolled my eyes and ignored it.”
The situation escalated quickly when the masked individual began acting suspiciously.
“He started to look into people’s vehicles. One of the neighbors came out to ask what he was doing,” another local resident told WNYT News.
That’s when things turned chaotic.
“I heard a man screaming ‘call the cops’ repeatedly,” Gwinn recalled. “It felt like a few seconds later there were cops coming down Lancaster.”
Security video captures the dramatic moment when a resident tackled the clown-masked individual to the ground and held him there until police arrived. Officers are then seen surrounding both men before arresting the masked person.
Chief Waldin elaborated on what officers discovered at the scene: “When they separated the two, they were able to determine that there was an individual who was wearing a clown mask and had possession of an electric chainsaw.”
The clown-masked individual faces three criminal charges – two related to weapons possession and one for threatening behavior. Waldin explained, “One being the chainsaw. Another one being a metal knuckle knife that he had on his person, and then the third one being the fact that he menaced someone with that chainsaw, which is a dangerous instrument or deadly weapon.”
Following the arrest, the suspect was transported to the Albany County Jail.
This incident isn’t isolated – it follows a disturbing pattern of clown-related disturbances emerging worldwide. The recent spate of arrests brings back memories of the 2016 “creepy clown” phenomenon that sparked widespread concern across numerous communities.
Other recent incidents include clown arrests in Northern Ireland, Palm Bay (Florida), and Uman, Mexico – suggesting a possible resurgence of the troubling trend.
In November 2024, a Georgia man reported a particularly frightening encounter while out walking. He claimed to have been chased by “a well-dressed man with a clown mask and a tricycle” who was also carrying a machete. The man managed to escape unharmed.
Authorities haven’t indicated whether these incidents might be connected or inspired by each other.
