If you have been around the Stapleton neighborhood lately, you would have noticed the high percentage of homes festively decorated for Halloween. But at a closer look, one will recall that many of these homes have been decorated since early September. “Once I heard the through streets were coming soon, I started taking additional precautions,” said Stapleton resident Tim Clark. Clark said that he already has quality dead bolts as well as a security system, but wanted to add a little something extra. “It kind of started as a joke. My wife and I saw some Halloween decorations back in September and we teased that maybe we could use the decorations to stave off potential intruders. Then we realized that it wasn’t that bad of an idea.”
The Clarks started small with some spooky decorations that make noise when you approach them. “We placed some on the back of the garage at first, as we know that is where a lot of the burglaries happen,” said Clark. “Then, we hid some in the bushes around the front porch. So, hopefully, the noise startles them a little bit, and if kids have a fun scare with it around Halloween, that’s great too.”
They didn’t just stop with the exterior of the house, either. “We put a big mummy in the garage that should freak someone out enough to have them run off if they see it. Right when you come in the house, we have a scary monster that pops out of the closet and says, ‘can I help you?’ in a scary voice.” The Clarks have no idea if the props are scaring away intruders, but so far so good. “We will never know for sure,” said Tim. “But no news is good news.”
Resident Brad Tournier is taking it to a whole new level. “We decided to really mess with any intruder that dare enter our house,” said Tournier. “If someone comes into our house after the alarm is set, a series of events occur that should scare them enough to never burglarize a home again.” Brad has a set up where if someone comes in the house, all of the lights go off, and the speakers play the sound of doors locking and shutters slamming shut. Then, the song Dead Skin Mask by Slayer is cranked throughout the house. “The idea is that they will be so scared of being trapped in the house that they will sprint out the front door.” So far, the Tourniers have only used it as pranks on friends and neighbors. “It has been really fun messing with people, but I also think it will be pretty effective.”
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