Police arrest creepy clown found lurking in Kentucky woods

America has been besieged by clowns in 2016 and they're not all hanging out in Trump Tower.

In fact, there have been sightings in at least six U.S. states as a wave of reports has spread across the nation. North and South Carolina have been particularly hard hit.

Now, finally, a clown has been taken into custody.

Jonathan Martin, 20, was collared in a full clown getup in a wooded area in Middlesboro, Kentucky, at around 1 a.m. local time Friday. He was charged with wearing a mask in a public place and disorderly conduct.

Martin was spotted crouching amid trees near an apartment complex. He was "wearing a full clown costume" police said, according to local reports, and tried "running towards a vehicle at Cumberland Village [apartments]."

Once arrested he was de-masked for his mugshot.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Nearby Barbourville PD posted a message warning people not to dress up as clowns on Facebook Tuesday. "Dressing as a clown and driving, walking or standing in public can create a dangerous situation for you and others," they said.

"While dressing up is not, in and of itself against the law, doing so in public and thereby creating an unnecessary sense of alarm is illegal. Approaching people in a threatening manner and threatening people is illegal."

The police department also warned people against falsely reporting incidents and "assaulting, shooting, attacking or otherwise injuring" people in costumes.

As stories of clowns luring children into the woods have circulated, so have false reports. In North Carolina, a man was charged after he fabricated a story about a clown knocking on his window.