Portsmouth police say a bizarre TikTok trend involving a Cat in the Hat costume and vague threats has now prompted local calls to police.
Officers were called to Allard Street after a report that two males had taken pictures of a house, posted them on TikTok, and made a threat.
According to the police report, the caller said her grandson was now scared because of the post.
An officer said this was the second call he had received that night about the same “absurd” TikTok trend.
The officer wrote that the trend apparently involves a Cat in the Hat costume and vague threats.
Police said they planned to send an email to administration in hopes of making a public service announcement through the department’s Facebook page about the behavior.
No arrest was listed in the information provided.
SCDN has also recently covered reported threats involving Northwest High School and schools in Lawrence County, as districts and law enforcement continue dealing with copycat threats, social media rumors, and online posts that can send parents, students, and police scrambling.
This is the problem with so-called online “trends” that involve threats.
The person posting may think it is funny.
The child who sees it may not.
The grandparent calling police may not.
The officers who have to track it down may not.
And schools and communities already on edge from recent threats definitely do not.
Taking pictures of someone’s home, posting them online, and attaching any kind of threat is not a harmless joke. Even vague threats can scare families and trigger police response.
In this case, police called the behavior absurd.
But they still had to respond.