British police are blaming pop singer Justin Bieber for allegedly sparking a trend that has left many neighborhood residents with egg on their homes.
Staffordshire police have received dozens of complaints about teenagers egging houses across Stoke-on-Trent, the Daily Mail reported.
Mr. Bieber is still facing possible felony charges of vandalism after he allegedly egged his neighbor’s home on Jan. 15.
“Some of the children have told us this craze has been going around the schools, and it was linked to Justin Bieber,” Staffordshire Police Constable Barry Joyson told the Mail.
“We had lots of reported incidents of people finding eggs had been thrown at their houses. It was totally random, no one was being targeted,” he said. “Quite a lot of residents were getting annoyed because this was happening on a few occasions.”
Police have reportedly urged local school teachers to warn their students not to throw eggs or else face prosecution similar to Mr. Bieber.
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Eight children, aged 10 to16, have already been investigated and forced to sign contracts vowing to stay out of trouble.
Barry Blakemore, 55, whose house was egged, told the Mail: “Why somebody would want to copy Bieber is beyond me. How much of an idiot do you have to be?”
“I understand people look up to pop stars but to emulate them by committing mindless acts of vandalism is just absurd,” he said.
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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