Teen in clown mask nabbed by principal after harassing middle schoolers, reports say

A unidentified juvenile in a clown mask was scaring students from a Colorado middle school as they walked home from school this week. He later was caught by the school's principal but wasn't charged, authorities say. (Aurora Police Department)

Halloween came early this week when a juvenile in a clown mask and hoodie frightened middle school students in a Denver-area neighborhood before being caught Tuesday, ending the boy’s reign of clowning around.

The unidentified boy chased students walking home from Horizon Middle School in Aurora on Monday, FOX 31 Denver reported. The Aurora Police Department issued a tweet Tuesday warning of the prankster.

“This sort of harassment will not be tolerated,” the department tweeted.

A short while after the police warning, the clown-masked boy returned to the same intersection for a second round of scares. This time the school’s principal and a security staffer were ready and caught the boy, a school spokeswoman told the Denver Post.

The juvenile was turned over to police, who reportedly gave the boy a ride home.

Police said that while the juvenile won't be charged, they told him his clown act was canceled, Denver's KMGH-TV reported.

Meanwhile, the city of Oak Park, Mich., this week reversed a ban on clown costumes from its Halloween festivities after community backlash, FOX 2 Detroit reported.

Recreation Director Laurie Stasiak told the Oakland County Times the ban was proposed because many clown costumes have a “very scary and evil look,” affecting people with clown phobias and anxiety.

“About three years [ago] there were national incidents in the news where people were dressing up as clowns and scaring people and in some cases assaulting them. … It’s because of this that we asked people not to dress up as clowns for this community event," she said.