Two arrests made as 'Killer clown' pranks spread throughout North-East

Two arrests have been made after another clown incident as a bizarrecraze inspired by the US sweeps the country.

Officers were called to Gent Road in Bishop Auckland in County Durham yesterday (October 9) after concerned residents saw two men 'with a clown mask and brandishing a weapon' in the street.

When the police arrived at the scene the teenagers fled and made an attempt to discard the mask but were apprehended after a short foot chase.

Police say they have seized the 'offensive weapon' and the clown mask. Itis not clear whether either of the men were actually wearing the clown mask at the time.

A number of frightening figures dressed as clowns have been spotted across the UK in recent weeks.

The 'killer clown' craze first started in the US with dozens of reports ofpeople being scared by people wearing the circus garb.

On Friday (October 7) a masked man carrying a knife left a group of children aged 11 and 12 'upset and distressed' when he jumped out at them close to a school in Chester-le-Street.