Screengrab from 8 Mile
Police in the Massachusetts town of Charlton issued a warning last week to residents about random men wanting to challenge people to rap battles.
Via a Facebook post, the police stated that there have been suspicious men approaching children and challenging them. Authorities fear that the men want to abduct young boys — or worse.
According to the Facebook post, there was an incident over the weekend where a black SUV pulled up to three young boys and the passenger of the SUV jumped out and began freestyling in the teens’ faces. The teens were terrified of the whole ordeal and declined the challenge. The race of the alleged freestyler was not mentioned, but from the description, the man may have been white or Hispanic. The post was written after the incident.
The original post, written March 14, stated:
* * * * Community Notice * * * *On 3-12-2016 approximately 3:00 p.m. a black SUV with 2-3 male occupants, in their…
Posted by Charlton Police Department on Monday, March 14, 2016
The Charlton Police Department posted an addendum on their page clarifying the original statement. They realized that their warning could be seen as racial profiling and wanted to distance themselves from the incoming backlash.
“… The purpose of the post was to notify the community that we were contacted by parents because their children were approach on the street by several older individuals. We are were not investigating Rap music being sung in Charlton, and just posted the facts regarding the manner these older individuals used when approaching these children …”
On the surface, the incident was a very lame prank. NBC News reports that police were later contacted by the teens’ parents. The department described the encounter as “suspicious” and “frightening,” but they concluded that the men were not a real threat and the incident was not an attempted abduction.
