(End of the American Dream)—When three thugs in Halloween masks terrorized a family in northern Virginia a few days ago, it was a sign that Halloween crime season is off to an early start this year. Once we get to the evening of October 31st, you will want to make sure that your home is both occupied and secure, because criminals love an easy target. It is the one time during the year when criminals can wear masks and freely approach your home without causing much suspicion. Unfortunately, many choose to use that as an opportunity to cause mayhem.
According to the National Retail Federation, Halloween has become a lot more popular in the U.S. over the last couple of decades…
The National Retail Federation has surveyed Americans about their Halloween plans each September since 2005. Back then, slightly more than half of Americans said they planned to celebrate. In 2025, nearly three-quarters said they would – a huge jump in 20 years.
And people are planning to shell out more money than ever. Total spending on Halloween is expected to reach a record US$13 billion this year, according to the federation – an almost fourfold increase over the past two decades.
It was once a relatively minor holiday, but it has now become one of the biggest holidays on our entire calendar.
Halloween is a festival that literally celebrates evil, and so it shouldn’t be much of a surprise that violent crime spikes on October 31st every year…
“The evening violent crime count on October 31 is about 50 percent higher than on any other date during the year, and twice the daily average,” criminologist James Alan Fox wrote for the Boston Globe, noting criminal activity peaks during trick-or-treat hours, and trails off later in the night.
“The most popular hours for gathering Snickers and Junior Mints around the neighborhood are apparently also the prime time for violent crime.”
This time of the year, Americans consume millions upon millions of hours of Halloween programming that show people in masks doing all sorts of unthinkable things, and there are always going to be sick people that want to copy what they see on their screens.
In fact, a group of three “mask-wearing creeps” absolutely terrorized a family in Virginia just a few days ago…
Halloween mask-wearing creeps terrorized a widow in Virginia as chilling doorbell footage showed the trio trying to break into her home and threatening to kill the occupants.
The three suspects showed up at the Alexandria home — about eight miles from Washington, DC — around 10 p.m. Tuesday, according to the homeowner’s daughter, Shayla, WUSA9 reported.
“At first I thought it was just a Halloween joke, a little prank,” Shayla said. “So I said, ‘Happy Halloween.’”
It turns out that this wasn’t a joke at all.
The thugs just kept pounding on the door and demanding to be let inside…
Shayla said the trio kept knocking and pounding “harder and harder” on the door.
“It’s either you coming out or we coming in,” one person can be heard saying on the video. Another shouted, “Open the door!”
I can’t even imagine how frightened Shayla must have been.
The three criminals were unable to get in through the front door, so they went around back where they “broke through a wooden fence, slashed open deck screens, and banged on windows”…
The group broke through a wooden fence, slashed open deck screens, and banged on windows while peering inside.
“They were just hitting the window,” Shayla told WUSA. “My heart dropped when they said they were gonna take a chair and break down the door. That is just too much.”
Shayla told the outlet the masked suspects “threatened to kill us.” After about 10 minutes of pure terror, the trio finally left — leaving Shayla and her widowed mother shaken.
This is the kind of people that our culture is producing.
Wearing masks and frightening people is considered to be “fun”, and often that is combined with theft.
For example, a woman in Tennessee was recently caught stealing a package from someone’s porch while wearing a clown mask…
A woman in a clown mask was caught on camera stealing a package, giving people quite a scare in Baxter.
The unwanted visitor and thief had several folks double-checking their locks and home cameras this past week.
“To think somebody was so brazen enough to do it in the daylight in a clown mask is kind of crazy,” said Terry, a neighbor of the victim.
In Seattle, two young males were arrested for “harassing two women while wearing clown masks and brandishing guns”…
A 19-year-old man and a 17-year-old boy were arrested early Monday after allegedly harassing two women while wearing clown masks and brandishing guns in the Bitter Lake neighborhood, Seattle police said.
The incident unfolded around 12:20 a.m. when officers were flagged down by two women on Aurora Avenue North.
In Indiana, a teen that was spotted “wearing a clown-like mask” went on quite a crime spree before he was finally caught…
An Evansville teen who was seen wearing a clown-like mask on security camera has been arrested and charged, according to the Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office.
VCSO says a 16-year-old from Evansville was arrested and charged with multiple crimes, including attempted burglary, theft, and attempted theft.
The arrest is connected to a series of car break-ins and attempted residential burglaries in the Wellington Acres neighborhood of northeastern Vanderburgh County.
This time of the year just seems to bring out the worst in many people.
One forensic psychologist believes that Halloween is a time “when we expect and almost accept petty crimes and mischievous acting out”…
Forensic psychologists say the holiday’s mischievous nature inspires criminals.
“Halloween is a celebration of the dark side — a time when we expect and almost accept petty crimes and mischievous acting out,” said forensic psychologist Barbara Kirwin, the defense shrink for serial killer Joel Rifkin. “Mostly it acts as a pressure valve that allows repressed people to release some of their pent-up anger and hostility.”
Sadly, we don’t just see a spike in petty crimes during Halloween.
Every year, homes get invaded.
Every year, women get raped.
Every year, innocent people get murdered.
So it is important to take precautions. The following list of safety tips for Halloween comes from CBS News…
- Don’t leave your home unoccupied. If you have to go out, leave lights and the TV on, and ask neighbors to keep a watch. Never put a spare key under the mat.
- If you’re home, make sure your walkway is well-lit to prevent trips and falls by children who can’t see through their masks. Make sure to see who’s at the door before you open it.
- Keep pets indoors and under control. Dogs can become easily spooked by strangers, especially in disguises, and end up biting friends or children.
- Put away outside movable objects such as grills, lawn mowers and bicycles that could be stolen, vandalized or thrown against your home.
- Park cars in a garage, if possible, or in well-lighted areas and remove all valuables. Activate the car alarm when leaving.
- If you’re going out, remain on high alert and avoid children in dark costumes whose minds will be on candy, not safety.
- Set up an informal “Neighborhood Watch.” Some locales have a “Witch Watch” — groups of volunteers who guard the community.
There is one point on that list that I disagree with very strongly.
If you have dogs, make sure that they are visible to anyone that approaches your home, because most criminals do not like to deal with dogs.
In general, I would recommend doing whatever you can to make your home as unwelcoming to intruders as possible.
We live at a time when our society is absolutely teeming with predators, and it is only going to get worse in the years ahead.
So please be very careful and take the security of your home seriously, because the safety of your family is not something that you want to gamble with.
Michael’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.
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