Published: July 17, 2008 10:19 pm      

Person in trenchcoat, mask seen in Hafer Park

EDMOND — What began as a normal Thursday morning in Hafer Park for ladies participating in an exercise group turned into a 9-1-1 situation when a suspicious person was spotted lurking nearby.

Edmond Police received the 9-1-1 call at 6:51 a.m. Thursday morning when ladies participating in an exercise group were frightened by someone wearing a long black trench coat and a “Scream” movie-type mask, said Glynda Chu, spokeswoman for the Edmond Police Department.

“The person just watched them and never made any attempt to approach them or speak to them, but it did frighten the group of women,” Chu said.

Because the women were exercising they had all left their cell phones in their cars and by the time they went to get a phone and called police the person in the trench coat had left, Chu said.

On the 9-1-1 recording, the group leader tells the operator that the group was in the area of Hafer Park in which Shakespeare in the Park used to be. The caller said the person was watching them, hiding in the woods.

In addition to the trench coat and mask, the person was wearing a red backpack, the caller said.

“We would like to take this time to remind people that if you are biking or running in our parks or neighborhoods, please always have your ID and an emergency number with you as well as a cell phone if possible,” Chu said.

Chu said police are not sure if it is related, but on some nearby bushes, officers found a man’s T-shirt and men’s underwear. No one was approached in this situation, but it was unsettling, Chu said.



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