Philadelphia police have launched a manhunt for a man who wore a “distinctive Chucky doll Halloween-style face mask” and terrorized people early in the morning around the Center City Hall.

According to police, the man, who is believed to be a Black man aged between 16 and 20, reportedly harassed multiple random people who were going about their business in the area for approximately 20 minutes on Wednesday, August 12, starting around 5.18 a.m.

Philadelphia Police Captain Jason Smith said in a press conference on Monday that the young man first went into a Dunkin’ Doughnuts on the 1500 block of Chestnut Street wearing the mask but was refused service due to his erratic behavior. He later ran up to random people in the nearby areas and started recording the interactions “for his own purposes,” according to Smith. “During that time span, he was able to accost a good many people, most of whom haven’t come forward yet.”

In one instance, surveillance footage showed the masked man chasing a female jogger, whom he allegedly asked, “Are you ready to die?” The victim ran away screaming for help and injured her leg during the ordeal, Smith revealed.

Smith described the woman’s encounter: “(She) appears startled, at which time the male asks her again, ‘Are you ready to die?’ Clearly she’s not ready to die, so she takes off.”

The woman, later identified as Luanda Marinho, said she was meeting her friend at 12th and Chestnut streets for a morning run when she encountered the suspect. “We’re scared, so now we’re thinking about changing our routes or changing our schedules, which shouldn’t be an issue. It was just weird, like some twisted game,” Marinho was quoted by CBS News.

 

Investigators believe the man ran up to at least six people and “attempted to scare or antagonize” them. “He’s targeting men and women, just whoever he appears to come across,” Smith said.

Detectives are checking social media to locate the man if any material about the incident is posted online. The captain revealed that the man pulled his white mask down, exposing a part of his face. Police described the man as a Black male with a thin build, approximately five feet and eight inches tall.

Smith said that police have only received a report of the Wednesday incident and are unaware of other similar incidents. He urged any other people who are “victimized by this individual” to come forward.

Kate Egan, a coffee shop worker, told the New York Post, “It’s really unsettling just trying to get to work and have a kid like this actively terrorizing women. I really hope he is caught.”

The suspect, once apprehended, may face charges of terroristic threats, harassment, simple assault, reckless endangerment, and intimidation.

Disclaimer: The Inquisitr could not independently confirm the facts of this incident and is reporting based on the information available within the public record.