A 'KILLER clown' has been spotted in Thornbury, as police issued a warning about the craze sweeping across South Gloucestershire.

The pictures posted on social media last night show an individual dressed as a "creepy clown" under a lamppost on a green space in the town, described as wearing dark jeans and a dark jumper.

This comes as the 'killer clown' craze sweeps the county, with isolated reports having come in from areas including Yate and Mangotsfield.

Police urge residents who come across a 'killer clown' to give them a wide berth and report them immediately.

Inspector Julie Knight, from Avon and Somerset Police, said: “We don’t want to stop people enjoying themselves but we’d like to ask people to consider how their behaviour will affect others.

“These incidents can potentially be very distressing and frightening for those involved and we are taking all reports made to us seriously.

“Anyone involved in intimidating or threatening behaviour may well end up committing an offence, being arrested and having a criminal record and we’d urge them to think carefully about the consequences of their actions.

“We’re aware of a number of social media groups raising concerns about this type of behaviour and we’d ask people to refrain from taking matters into their own hands and to report anything they are worried about to us.

“We’d also like to remind people that in dealing with these issues valuable police resources are also being used, potentially impacting on our capacity to respond to other more serious incidents.”

Police have asked for anyone with information on these incidents to report it online at www.avonandsomerset.police.uk/contact-us/tell-us-something.