Purge-style prank sweeping America sees several teens put in cuffs
A recent video of the purge-style prank, similar to the dystopian movie series about an America where all crime is legal for one night of the year, shows a group of five Florida teens making their way toward a home in Riverview - about 20 minutes from Tampa - on Friday at around 10.40pm.
Shocking Ring doorbell footage captured the moment one of the unidentified teens walked toward the house with a ski mask covering their face while holding an airsoft gun before kicking the front door, firing a plastic pellet, and running away, Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said.
In the clip, the teen can be seen pointing the gun at the front door and firing it as several shots rang out. He then darts out onto the street with the rest of the group, laughing as they run.
Chronister, who called the new trend the 'door kick challenge,' said the prank is making waves across TikTok and needs to stop immediately.
Alongside a clip of the prank on X he wrote: 'Parents, please talk with your children about this dangerous trend, which could end in tragedy.'
The sheriff has asked anyone with information on the suspects in the video to call the department.
A slew of similar incidents have taken place in Florida, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Texas, and more.
This is just one of the latest incidents, as two teenagers were slapped with felony burglary charges after they kicked another stranger's front door in the Sunshine State.
Jeffery Merthie, 15, and Zahmarii Reddick, 13, were arrested in DeBary, near Orlando, on July 6 after they kicked a neighbor's door in.
Merthie and Reddick were seen on doorbell footage sneaking up to the house, before slowly turning around with their backs to the door and kicking it several times before fleeing.
Bodycam footage later showed Merthie being placed in cuffs while he stood next to another teen, who was not identified. Both boys told Volusia Sheriff's deputies that they were leaving Reddick's house.
One officer asked: 'Where's the girl?'
The unidentified teen responded: 'We didn't do nothing, I promise you.'
The officer who was placing Merthie in cuffs said: 'I promise you you did. Not you, but he did.
'The camera is crystal clear [of] you running up on their front porch and you turn around and kick their front door in... The camera can not be no more clear.'
Merthie was picked up by police after they noticed his 'distinctive' shorts, which were multicolored.
When asked why they did it, Merthie told them they were 'just being dumb.'
He added: 'We weren't responsible, we won't do that no more.'
Merthie tried to defend their actions, saying they just kicked the door, but the officer quickly pulled up photos of the broken door on his phone to show the teen.
The door had large chunks of splintered wood and the lock and doorknob was entirely busted off.
The officer said: 'That's completely broken in. You know those people could have shot you?'
Reddick was taken into custody after her mother allowed officers inside the home to search for the girl.
Outside of Florida, a woman in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania - about 30 minutes outside of Philadelphia - caught the suspected prank in action at her home in June.
Her Ring camera caught a group of teens trying to kick her front door open, leaving damage to it as they did so.
Lansdale Police Chief Mike Trail said the department identified the suspects, and said parents need to monitor their children closely.
Talking about children's social media use, Trail said: 'Understand that there a lot of safety parameters that you can institute.
'Like family pairing, where you can tell what your kids are looking at.'
Also in June, police in Van Buren Township, Michigan responded to two incidents where homeowners said their front doors were forcibly kicked open.
One video showed a teen kicking the door while another watched on and recorded it.
In May, Fort Worth Police said there were at least 21 reports involving the dangerous prank occurring in multiple parts of the Texas city.
Fort Worth police Officer Buddy Calzada, while in conversation with NBCDFW, made it clear that in Texas especially people have 'every right to arm themselves.'
The officer said: 'We're in Texas. People have every right to arm themselves, they have whatever they can do to keep somebody from coming into their house.
'And when somebody kicks on it, that may not be what they're wanting to do to break in, but it definitely gives a perception of that.'
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