UPPER EAST SIDE, Manhattan — Creepy clowns are now in the subway.
A clown menaced straphangers in the 96th Street subway station at Lexington Avenue around 4 p.m. Wednesday, police said. The clown chased a 16-year-old boy through the station after the teenager bumped into him.
The teenager ran through a turnstile and up a flight of stairs, police said. He looked behind him and saw the clown holding a kitchen knife.
No arrests have been made.
Clown sightings were also reported on Long Island and New Jersey on Wednesday. A 14-year-old boy reported being approached by a knife-wielding clown in Long Island and clowns in a car also allegedly terrorized drivers in New Jersey.
Reports of creepy clowns have been made across the country. Sightings originated in North Carolina this year and have spread to dozens of states.
The NYPD has investigated several clown threats and found they were not credible, according to John Miller, the NYPD’s deputy commissioner for counterterrorism and intelligence.
“We’re tracking it, but we don’t see any real threat here,” Miller said Monday. “Our main message is: don’t believe the hype, and don’t be afraid of the clowns.”
