Creepy Clowns May Be Making Their Way to Southern California

As the era of the creepy clowns takes hold across the Carolinas, Ohio, Tennessee and beyond, it seems as though the disturbing trend is making its way to Southern California.

One school district in Connecticut even banned clown costumes for Halloween - calling them a "symbol of terror," according to an NBC affiliate. 

Residents were looking over their shoulders on the East Coast after agencies warned residents to call 911 as some had reported clowns trying to lure children into the woods. 

Now it seems the spine-tingling pranksters were spotted in the Inland Empire - specifically on a Temecula street.

"I would be terrified. Like, who does that?" Maria Barrios, a Los Angeles resident, said.

LA School Police also have taken notice. The department received a trespass call of two "juveniles" in clown costumes at Taper Elementary in San Pedro who tried to frighten a custodial worker. 

The clowns fled before officers arrived.

The department said it plans to provide extra protection Wednesday at Taper Elementary and San Pedro High School because of the chatter on social media.

In the San Bernardino County community of Fontana, police issued a statement about people dressed as clowns and making threats.

"The Fontana Police Department is aware and monitoring the situation," the department said in a statement. "We are also working with the Fontana Unified School Police to assure students' safety throughout the City of Fontana. Social media has seen this activity occurring across the country for the past several weeks and it is believed to be a hoax."

Reaction to the clown posts is mixed, ranging from just kind of creepy, to downright terrifying.

"You can give somebody a heart attack, right?" Barrios said.

Professional "funny" clowns now fear that the creepy clowns are putting them at risk for severe backlash.

"I feel sad for you because you're destroying something that is good in this confused, messed-up world," semi-professional clown Dewy Bond said.

A new Instagram account recently popped up under the name "wearecomingtoCali."

One of the first posts - a clown holding balloons in a park at night - went up with the caption: "We are hitting Culver City first."

"I'm not personally afraid of clowns so I'm not so worried about it, but my husband's terrified of them," Culver City resident Tomika Matzner said.

NBC4 checked with the Los Angeles Police Department, and so far, there have been no sightings of creepy clowns in the city reported to police.