Two Massachusetts Boys Charged After Allegedly Following TikTok Trend

tiktok trend outlets

Two teenage boys in Massachusetts have been charged after they participated in a viral challenge that damaged several electrical outlets at their school.

The 15-year-old and 16-year-old have both been charged with attempting to burn a public building and malicious destruction of property in connection with an incident at Whitman-Hanson Regional High School last week, according to a statement from the Hanson Police Department.

The teens, whose names were not released, were charged after officials at the high school discovered eight electrical outlets had been damaged last week as a result of the trend. According to a release from the Holden Fire Department last week, the “challenge” seen on the popular video app, TikTok, involves using the plug part of a phone charger and partially inserting it into the wall outlet, then sliding a penny down the wall onto the exposed prongs. That scorches the outlet and can damage the electrical system and can even cause a fire.

"School officials identified two students who did damage to some, if not all, of the outlets,: the statement from police said. "Hanson Police were called to investigate the situation on Thursday, Jan. 23 and determined that the students would be charged."

"This is not just a harmless prank that kids are doing," Hanson Police Chief Michael Miksch said in Monday's statement. "Causing an outlet to short circuit this way can cause serious injury and could potentially start a fire. Not to mention the damage it can do to a building’s electrical system, along with hundreds or thousands of dollars worth of damage."

Similar incidents were reported across the state last week, officials said.

"We are taking this issue seriously and anyone identified doing this will be charged criminally," Miksch said.

Photo: Hanson Police Department


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