A man seen on security camera video wearing a horror mask as he chased several people in Philadelphia for what authorities said might be a social media stunt has ties to the Los Angeles area, investigators said.
In a Thursday update on the investigation into the bizarre series of confrontations near Philadelphia City Hall, authorities said 22-year-old Zymire Hughes, who has a warrant for his arrest, may have left Philadelphia. Investigators said they received information that Hughes left Philadelphia on Tuesday and added that he often travels to the Los Angeles area and Las Vegas for employment.
“You think it’s funny to scare people? Well, get ready to get scared by us because we got the handcuffs,” Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner said at a Thursday news conference. “We got the jail cell. We got the Philly jury that’s going to tell you it’s not funny at all. You think it’s funny to make people run? Get your sneaks. Because that’s what Zymire Hughes is doing right now. Mr. ‘big and bad’ is on the run. We’re not having it in this city. We are not tolerating it.”
The early morning altercations were reported Aug. 12, when authorities said a man in a Chucky-style mask approached several people In one case, the man asked a woman whether she was “ready to die,” police said. The Chucky doll was the main antagonist in the “Child’s Play” horror franchise.
The man appeared to be holding a cell phone and recording the encounters, police said. Investigators identified two TikTok accounts and an Instagram account that they believe are connected to Hughes.
“There wasn’t an attempt by himself to lay hands on anyone. He didn’t brandish any weapon,” Philadelphia Police Captain Jason Smith said. “Although in the case of the jogger, he did have his right arm behind his back, implying that he had a weapon. But at no point in time did he furnish a weapon. To the best of our knowledge, there were no other injured parties, other than the jogger.”