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‘The Kool-Aid Man’ challenge: Six NY teens arrested for busting fences as part of viral TikTok trend

The teens were given appearance tickets in Family Court and are scheduled to be arraigned on March 6, 2023

LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK: A total of six teens, unidentified but reported to be between the ages of 12 and 18, were arrested on Monday, February 20, in connection with damaging fences as part of the Kool-Aid Man TikTok challenge. They have been charged with criminal mischief after they were caught on surveillance footage kicking and breaking the fence at a home in Centereach.

According to Suffolk County police, the owner of the house, retired corrections officer Charles Damiani, reported hearing loud noises during the early hours of February 20 at around 1 am and saw six boys break parts of his fence on his surveillance cameras. He said, "it "sounded like a gun go off," reports NBC New York. They went back to the house and returned just after 4 am. Meanwhile, Damiani reported the incident to the police, who caught the pranksters in a black car on Hammond Road, as per Pix11. Their parents were called following this. The teens were given appearance tickets in Family Court and are scheduled to be arraigned on March 6, 2023.

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'It’s criminal and they will be held accountable'

Commenting on it, Suffolk County Chief of Patrol Gerard Hardy told, "On the night in question, it looks like four homes were hit and tied to these individuals." Police believe some of the suspects are involved in at least two other similar incidents in Centereach and Selden. Those investigations are ongoing. On the other hand, the police are also trying to discourage others from replicating this prank. Chief Hardy said, "This is a really bad decision, they shouldn’t be influenced by social media or their friends. It might seem fun and it might be a prank, but it’s criminal and they will be held accountable."

What is Kool-Aid Man TikTok challenge?

This challenge, which previously went viral in July of 2021, requires participants to record themselves attempting to run through a fence and break through it while shouting, 'Oh yeah!,' as reported by Distractify.

A similar incident to the recent arrest was reported in May 2022, when the Sarpy County Sheriff's Office said in a news release that nine juveniles had been cited for criminal mischief in connection to that damage. The juveniles were all described as high school-aged and "mostly boys."

Anyone who may be a victim of the challenge is asked to call the Suffolk County Police Department at 631-854-8652.