The contagion of creepy clowns sweeping the United States appears to have hit Victoria, police say.
Numerous sightings of people wearing threatening clown costumes have been reported across America in recent months, with terrifying accounts coming from multiple cities.
Victoria Police said on its Facebook page that it was aware of people parading in public wearing clown masks.
Have you seen a creepy clown in Victoria? Email us at scoop@theage.com.au
In one US report this week, a person in a clown suit intimidated subway passengers in New York before chasing a 16-year-old boy with a kitchen knife through a turnstile and up a flight of stairs.
The first reported sighting is believed to have come in August from Greenville County in South Carolina, where police were told by children that someone dressed in a clown suit was enticing kids to follow them in to the woods.
A woman told police that her son had "seen clowns in the woods whispering and making strange noises", CBS News reported.
Since then there have also been incidents in Alabama, Georgia, Maryland, New Jersey, North Carolina and Pennsylvania.
Growing community concern has even prompted a response from the White House, who said law enforcement was treating the problem seriously.
"The clown purge appears to be a copycat of incidents being seen in the USA recently," Victoria Police's Facebook post said.
Any intimidating, threatening or anti-social behaviour would not be tolerated, police said.
Anyone who sees a scary clown is asked to contact their local police station if they have any concerns.