Lana Clay Monaghan was shopping for baby products at a Southern California Target when everything suddenly went dark.
Something had been placed over her head. Confused, alone and frightened, the mother of two twin boys could hear people around her laughing.
"I immediately felt something come over me -- a human presence behind me," she said. "I started screaming. It was really abrupt. It really scared me.
"When I turned around, it was a group of male inviduals filming me. I know they were fiming me because the (camera) light was on. They all had their phones and they were laughing."
Get top local stories in Southern California delivered to you every morning. >Sign up for NBC LA's News Headlines newsletter.
But why?
Tustin Police said security camera video from the store reveals what happened. Monaghan was the victim of a TikTok challenge in which a bucket or basket is placed over an unsuspecting individual's head -- all to record the reaction.
Monaghan, who suffers from epilepsy, struggled for several seconds to remove the bucket. She said she passed out and later woke up in a hospital.
Local
Get Los Angeles's latest local news on crime, entertainment, weather, schools, COVID, cost of living and more. Here's your go-to source for today's LA news.
"This is not ok. It's not humorous and it has consequences," Monaghan said. "So I really implore everyone to go home and talk to their children."
Tustin Police said they are investigating the case as an assault and battery.
"Sometimes these kids think what they're doing is a prank," said Lt. Ryan Coe. "In reality, it's a crime."
Authorities did not release security camera video of the encounter. They said four teen boys left the scene on electric bikes.
