FREDERICK, Md. — The Frederick County Sheriff's Office is warning of the latest TikTok challenge exposing school students to potential violence.
The Orbeez Splat Gun Challenge urges young people to use toy guns to carry out random drive-by style shootings on unsuspecting bystanders.
According to Frederick County School Resource Officer Sergeant Kevin Britt, most related incidents have occurred after school as kids are walking home.
Although the gel-like projectiles often times don't cause injury, they can still be dangerous and be confused for a real gun.
“I can envision a situation going bad with someone firing a splat gun out of a moving vehicle at someone, and that person return fire with a real firearm," said Frederick County Sheriff Chuck Jenkins. "Someone could very well lose their life in that circumstance."
In Loudon County, Virginia, at least 11 similar incidents have been reported.
MORE: Multiple incidents of Orbeez social-media shooting challenge reported in northern VA
Officials there say these toy guns can shoot from over 100 feet away at a velocity of up to 200 feet per second. Some of the gel-like projectiles aren't so soft either, meaning they can cause pain.
"These types of careless pranks can’t continue to be tolerated, and so far, we have been very lucky," said Jenkins. "This relates back to the social media threats by students in the public schools and somehow parents have got to manage their kid’s social media involvement."
So far during the 2021-2022 school year, Frederick deputies have investigated 50 school threats, many of which originated on social media, including recent incidents at Urbana High School, Ballenger Creek Middle School, and Middletown Middle School.
