Alabama Mannequin Challenge Shootout Leads To Multiple Felony Arrests
Perhaps this should be evidence that the Mannequin Challenge has officially expired. One of the most popular examples of the viral stunt has ended in multiple felony charges, reports WHNT News. Last month (Nov. 9), a Mannequin Challenge video involving 19 people, most of them armed, was posted to Facebook. In the video, a camera weaves through a staged shootout between two rival crews that has been made to look like the scene has been frozen in time. The video, which has now been watched almost 5 million times, was sent to the Madison County (AL) Sheriff’s Office shortly after appearing online.
Upon attaining a warrant, members of the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, the Huntsville Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives raided the Huntsville residence that was the site of the Mannequin Challenge. The raid occurred at 5:02 AM on Tuesday morning (Dec. 6).
“You have a lot of people with firearms at one address,” says police Captain Mike Salomonsky. “And you have to ask yourself the question, ‘Why?’ and the second question you have to ask yourself: is it a public safety issue?”
“We used a breaching technique which caused the front door to be removed from the residence,” said Salomonsky of the authorities’ efforts to enter the home at the address in question. There were reportedly six persons inside the residence at the time of the raid, including an unspecified number of children.
While searching the home, investigators report to have found “two hand guns, one assault rifle, one older single barrel shotgun, multiple packs of marijuana, an attack vest, multiple magazines for the assault rifle, multiple rounds of ammunition, and a computer.” (It is unclear why the computer was mentioned as part of the contraband). Authorities have since determined that marijuana was being sold out of the residence.
Two arrests have since been made; it has not been confirmed if either man was on the premises during the raid. Kenneth White, age 49, was arrested and charged with “first-degree possession of marijuana and certain persons forbidden to possess a firearm.” The latter charge is due to a prior felony conviction. His bond has been set at $30,000.
Terry Brown, age 23, was also arrested and charged with “possession of drug paraphernalia, loitering, and promoting prison contraband.” When Brown was taken to jail, marijuana was found on his person, which explains the lattermost (felony) charge.
Salomonsky expects “one or two more arrests” to ensue in the near future. “There are several persons in the video who may be convicted felons,” he said. “So, we’re going to try to do some identification, work with the ATF and see if we can generate any charges out of that.”
Remember folks (*ahem* Soulja Boy), the cops are all over social media. If it is any consolation to the jailed suspects, their Mannequin Challenge is still live on Facebook, with its view count going way up. Think these guys are regretting their (successful) attempt at viral fame?
