Philadelphia authorities have identified a 22-year-old man they say terrorized pedestrians while wearing a disturbing Chucky-style mask, chasing women through city streets and allegedly threatening one by asking whether she was “ready to die.” Police said Thursday that the suspect is now wanted on an active arrest warrant and may have fled Pennsylvania.
Zymire Hughes has been named as the man investigators believe was behind the frightening series of encounters in Philadelphia last week. Authorities say Hughes is actively attempting to evade law enforcement and are asking the public to help locate him.
Police confirmed Thursday that an arrest warrant has been issued for Hughes, 22, as investigators continue searching for him.
The allegations stem from the early morning hours of Aug. 12, when police say Hughes wore a creepy Chucky-style Halloween mask while confronting pedestrians. During one encounter, authorities allege, he assaulted a woman after pursuing and chasing her.
Investigators say Hughes recorded his encounters on a cellphone as he approached numerous people while masked and deliberately antagonized them.
“If Zymire Hughes was trying to scare people, make them run. Who’s scared now? Who’s running now?” Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner said during a news conference Thursday afternoon.
Krasner delivered an even sharper message directly to the wanted suspect.
“You think it’s funny to scare people? Well, get ready to get scared by us because we got the handcuffs,” Krasner added. “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.”
Police said Hughes allegedly shouted at one woman, asking whether she was “ready to die,” while also chasing other people during the bizarre episode.
According to Krasner, Hughes is already serving probation in connection with an unspecified offense committed in Montgomery County. Prosecutors expect him to face both felony and misdemeanor charges stemming from the Aug. 12 incident.
Surveillance footage allegedly shows Hughes suddenly running toward people on Philadelphia streets. Authorities said he also attempted to enter a Dunkin’ Donuts but was refused service because he would not remove the mask.
In another disturbing moment captured by surveillance cameras, one victim can apparently be seen crouching down, raising his hands and seemingly begging for his life as the masked individual approaches.
“It’s readily apparent that this individual is certainly in fear of their life,” Philadelphia Police Capt. Jason Smith said.
Police said the masked man continued walking through the area and harassed more than a dozen pedestrians before pursuing a woman who was heading to an early-morning exercise class.
That woman, 25-year-old Philadelphia actress Jameka Wilson, fought back. Wilson, who has stage-combat training, described to Fox News Digital how the masked man reacted when she unexpectedly turned around and confronted him.
“He seemed surprised that I had turned around initially,” she said. “I saw his head tilt from side-to-side, like [he’s] trying to figure out what he’s supposed to be doing in the scenario.”
Wilson said the man’s positioning gave her an advantage as she prepared to defend herself.
“Essentially, what he did in defense terms was that he opened up all of the lines of attack that I could possibly make to him,” she added.
Smith said investigators suspect Hughes may have carried out the frightening encounters to generate social-media content. Because authorities say he did not actually injure anyone, police believe the motive may have been “his own sick personal amusement” or an attempt to make money from the resulting footage.
“There wasn’t an attempt by himself to lay hands on anyone,” Smith said. “He didn’t brandish any weapon, 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.”
Authorities have identified three social-media accounts they say are associated with Hughes as they work to track his movements and determine where he may have gone.
Investigators said Hughes “has a tendency” to travel to unspecified destinations on the West Coast for work, raising the possibility that he has already left Pennsylvania.
Police said Hughes has ties to both California and Nevada.
Authorities describe Hughes as a Black male with a medium complexion, approximately 5 feet 8 inches tall and with a thin build. During the Philadelphia incidents, police say he wore a white Chucky-style Halloween mask with black hair and carried a black-and-blue plaid backpack.
Krasner also issued a warning to anyone considering copying the masked confrontations for attention or social-media content.
“There is nobody in the world who should be trying to imitate what this scared man who’s running is doing,” he said. “Now he’s a punk. I mean, that’s the bottom line. He’s a punk who scared a lot of people for no good reason, and we’re not going to tolerate it.”
{Matzav.com}
