Clown attack a hoax to cover for woman’s work tardiness, police say

An 18-year-old woman from Hamilton allegedly lied about being attacked by a knife-wielding clown as an excuse for being late for work, the Associated Press and Journal-News’ partner WCPO-TV are reporting.

Police in the Cincinnati suburb of Reading say investigators found inconsistencies in 18-year-old Alexsandra Conley’s story and charged her with making a false alarm, a misdemeanor, according to media reports from AP and WCPO-TV.

WCPO-TV reported that Conley said someone dressed like a clown jumped a fence Saturday, waved a knife at her and cut her thumb.

No phone listing could be found for the Hamilton woman. It couldn’t immediately be determined whether she has an attorney, the AP reported.

There have been several recent reports nationwide of people having frightening encounters involving clowns. A report last week of a clown grabbing a woman by the throat and threatening Reading schools led to classes being canceled for the day.

A report last Friday in Reading to police, in an unrelated case, a woman claimed that a person dressed as a clown appeared on her porch and grabbed her by the throat while she was smoking a cigarette.

Reading police said the woman claimed that her attacker threatened students and teachers at the high school while attacking her. They did not say if the woman being attacked was a teacher or employee of the schools.

The incident prompted Reading Community City School District officials to cancel classes for the day.

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