A terrifying viral social media prank carried out by teenagers who trick victims into thinking their home is being broken into has swept the nation.
A recent video of an incident resembling scenes from the purge-themed movie series, where all crime is permissible for one night each year in a dystopian America, showcased a group of five Florida teenagers approaching a residence in Riverview—approximately 20 minutes away from Tampa—on Friday around 10:40 pm.
Startling footage from a Ring doorbell captured the moment an unidentified teenager approached the house, wearing a ski mask and wielding an airsoft gun, before kicking the front door and shooting a plastic pellet before fleeing, as reported by Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister.
In the video, the teen was observed aiming the gun at the front door and firing, with several shots echoing. He then dashed back to the street with the rest of the group, laughing as they ran away.
Chronister, who called the new trend the ‘door kick challenge,’ said the prank is making waves across TikTok and needs to stop immediately.
‘Parents, please talk with your children about this dangerous trend, which could end in tragedy,’ he wrote on X alongside the clip.
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.
A teen, who approached a home in Riverview, Florida with a group of other juveniles, ran up to the front door, kicked it, then shot an airsoft gun at it before running away
The group of unidentified juveniles were seen walking around the neighborhood around 10.40pm Friday
This is just the latest incident, 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.
‘Where’s the girl?’ another officer asked.
‘We didn’t do nothing, I promise you,’ the unidentified teen told police.
‘I promise you you did,’ the officer, who was placing Merthie in cuffs, said. ‘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,’ the cop continued.
The incident was similar to the dystopian movie series The Purge (pictured) about an America where all crime is legal for one night of the year
The teenager with the weapon frantically ran after shots rang out. The group was then heard laughing as they fled the scene
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.’
‘We weren’t responsible, we won’t do that no more,’ he said.
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.
‘That’s completely broken in,’ he said. ‘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 that parents need to monitor their children closely.
‘Understand that there a lot of safety parameters that you can institute,’ Trail said of TikTok and other social media apps.
‘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 told NBCDFW made it clear that in Texas especially, people have ‘every right to arm themselves.’
‘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,’ he said.
‘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.’
