Who’s scared now?’ Philly’s ‘Chucky’ suspect unmasked as manhunt goes national

BS BULLETIN

Police have identified the creepy masked suspect as 22-year-old Zymire Hughes, who remained at large early Friday with the U.S. Marshals joining the hunt.
Authorities say Hughes may have terrorized roughly 16 people during an early-morning spree near Philadelphia City Hall before escaping on a SEPTA bus.
One female jogger suffered a serious leg injury after Hughes allegedly chased her and asked: “Are you ready to die?”

The creepy “Chucky” character who allegedly spent an early morning terrorizing strangers around downtown Philadelphia has finally been unmasked — and now police say he may have fled Pennsylvania altogether.

Philadelphia authorities identified the suspect Thursday as 22-year-old Zymire Hughes, issuing a warrant for his arrest and bringing in the U.S. Marshals Service as the search expanded beyond the city. Investigators said Hughes has connections to California and Nevada and was seen leaving his Philadelphia apartment with packed bags earlier this week.

Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner had a message for the accused masked menace:

“Who’s running now?”

According to investigators, the bizarre saga unfolded in little more than half an hour on Aug. 12.

Police say Hughes traveled by bus from his apartment to Center City, put on a grotesque Chucky-style Halloween mask around 5 a.m. and started approaching strangers while apparently filming the encounters with his cellphone. Authorities now believe he encountered about 15 or 16 people during the spree.

Surveillance video showed one frightened man crouching down with his hands raised as Hughes approached him.

“The victim is absolutely terrified of Mr. Hughes,” Philadelphia Police Capt. Jason Smith said, describing footage of the encounter.

Things then became much more serious.

Police say Hughes approached a 40-year-old woman jogging near City Hall, allegedly asked her “Are you ready to die?” and chased her as she tried to escape. The woman fell while fleeing and suffered a severe leg injury that authorities say will require extensive medical treatment.

Another woman, identified in local reporting as Jameka, said she tried to warn the jogger before Hughes turned his attention toward her. She eventually kicked him in the chest to get away, according to her account.

And then comes the part that may have Philadelphia commuters wondering whether they accidentally wandered into a very strange horror-comedy.

Police say Hughes entered Suburban Station, where SEPTA officers encountered him while he was still wearing the mask.

The officers told him to remove it.

He pulled it up enough to partially expose himself but, according to police, kept another black COVID-style mask underneath and ultimately walked away from the officers.

“He does successfully evade them,” Smith acknowledged.

Hughes then allegedly boarded the Route 33 bus, put the Chucky mask into his backpack and simply rode home.

Unfortunately for him, Philadelphia is loaded with cameras.

Investigators used surveillance footage from Center City, SEPTA and Hughes’ apartment building to reconstruct his trip. Video from the apartment complex captured him without the mask, helping investigators identify him. SEPTA officers and two other people also helped authorities make the identification, police said.

Detectives are investigating whether the whole thing may have been created for internet attention. Police linked social-media accounts to Hughes but said Thursday they had not found posts of the Aug. 12 incidents on those accounts. Smith suggested Hughes may have been frightening strangers for his own amusement or potentially to create monetized content.

Hughes was already on probation stemming from a Montgomery County criminal case, according to Krasner, and authorities say the new conduct would violate those conditions. He is expected to face charges including terroristic threats, harassment, simple assault and reckless endangerment once apprehended.

Krasner offered another warning to Hughes:

“You think it’s funny to scare people? Get ready to get scared by us.”

For once, Chucky may be discovering that sequels don’t always end well for Chucky.

MY QUICK TAKE

I realize we now live in the age of TikTok, where apparently millions of Americans wake up every morning and ask themselves: What incredibly stupid thing can I do today while holding a cellphone?

But chasing a woman through downtown Philadelphia wearing a horror-movie mask and asking her “Are you ready to die?” is not a prank.

It is not “content.” It is not edgy. It is a terrific way to discover that the person you picked for your little viral video may have a considerably different interpretation of the Second Amendment than you anticipated.

And can we discuss the getaway? This guy allegedly terrorizes half of Center City dressed like Chucky, gets confronted by transit police — and then apparently takes the bus home.

Not exactly Ocean’s Eleven. More like Child’s Play Meets SEPTA.

Fortunately, Philadelphia has enough surveillance cameras to track a cheesesteak from Pat’s to the airport, so detectives reportedly reconstructed practically his entire morning — apartment, bus ride, mask, City Hall, subway station, bus ride home.