Life-size Jason and 4 creepy clowns stolen from Oakwood Halloween House in Raleigh
Halloween #Halloween
Raleigh’s best-known house for Halloween decorations lost $3,000 in displays early Friday morning as thieves made off with five life-sized pieces, including a rare animatronic “Jason” figure.
Owner Jesse Jones has spent a decade collecting more than 50 life-sized figures for his home in Raleigh’s Oakwood neighborhood, which regularly gets featured in local news outlets and draws thousands of trick-or-treaters — some of whom arrive by the busload.
Jones, an N.C. State University graduate and defense attorney practicing in Harnett County, said he lost the hockey-mask-wearing Jason figure from the front of his house on Oakwood Avenue and four large custom-made characters from the “Clown House” he uses as an annex on East Street around the corner. Jason is from the “Friday the 13th” horror movie franchise.
Another of five figures stolen from Jesse Jones’ Halloween House in Raleigh’s Oakwood neighborhood.
He estimates the thieves struck between 11 p.m. Thursday and sunrise Friday.
“My wife said she heard a truck outside late but didn’t think anything of it,” he said. “My cameras didn’t catch it. The clown house is basically gone.”
Another of five figures stolen from Jesse Jones’ Halloween House in Raleigh’s Oakwood neighborhood.
The display stops traffic at his corner every fall while passers-by snap selfies of his two-story-high tyrannosaurus and his 13-foot skeletons posing alongside a growling werewolf and hordes of bloody zombies.
“The thing about Halloween,” he told The N&O last year, “is it doesn’t matter who you are, your race, your religion. It’s letting you escape reality.”
Another of five figures stolen from Jesse Jones’ Halloween House in Raleigh’s Oakwood neighborhood.
Jones hopes a neighbor caught footage of the thieves or that someone spots the rare figures for sale online. A fuller view of the display can be seen on his Facebook page.
To report a crime, Raleigh police offers this non-emergency line: (919) 831-6311.
Another of five figures stolen from Jesse Jones’ Halloween House in Raleigh’s Oakwood neighborhood.