Target halts clown-mask sales amid clown hysteria

Send out the clowns.

Target will stop selling clown masks amid a rash of reported clown attacks — real and fake — that have terrorized the United States in recent months, a company spokesman said.

“Given the current environment, we have made the decision to remove a variety of clown masks from our assortment, both in stores and online,” Joshua Thomas, the spokesman, said in an email.

The Minneapolis-based retailer has 1,799 stores in the U.S. The company did not clarify Monday whether the decision would affect all of its stores.

But Target seemed to have quietly stopped selling clown masks on its website. On Monday morning, searches for “clown masks” on Target.com turned up nothing. Links from search engines to clown masks that Target previously stocked simply led to a message that said, “Product not available.”

Clown costumes for children, oversize clown suits and “sexy clown” outfits are, however, still available for sale.

The retail giant’s decision, just two weeks before Halloween, comes as the frenzy over “creepy clown” sightings and threats has reached a fever pitch.

Across the country, scary-clown rumors have led to school lockdowns and arrests.”