Stranger Invites Trick-or-Treating Kids Inside His Home for Candy in Terrifying Social Experiment

Illustration - Shutterstock

When fall is in full swing, children’s minds turn to one of the most exciting holidays of the year: Halloween. Not only do they get to dress up, but there’s the promise of lots and lots of candy from trick or treating. Even parents who don’t normally allow their kids to have much sweet stuff around the house will often make an exception on October 31st.

But Halloween can be a dangerous time for kids. From candy or foods that have been tampered with to potential road-traffic accidents for kids who are paying more attention to their growing candy stash than to the road, there are lots of things that can go wrong when everyone’s out trick or treating.

To warn parents about the dangers, YouTuber Coby Persin set up one of his social experiments to see how kids would respond to shady behavior from strangers. Would they remember what their parents told them about being safe or would they lose sight of safety with the prospect of more candy?

Illustration - Shutterstock | Rawpixel.com

In the video, Persin sets up a large house decked out with orange lights and decorations as a trap. The first scenario shows two moms driving their kids down the street looking for places to stop at. “I can’t wait to get my candy!” one boy made up like a zombie says, full of excitement.

His little sister, dressed as a minion, chimes in, and she points to her basket, “This is going to be full by the end of the night.”

When consulted by the moms as to which house “looks best,” the kids immediately spot the test house that Persin is waiting in. Sure enough, his tactic of decorating it to the max has lured the kids in. “Wow, they went to town,” one of the moms comments.

“Orange lights, orange lights!” the kids yell from the back seat, drawn like moths to a flame. “The rule is that the [house with the] most decorations has the most candy [...] and the best candy!”

Before they let the kids out, one of the moms reminds the kids about safety. “Be careful when you get out. Please watch the cars coming.” The kids all agree to stay clear of traffic. “What are you going to say when you get up there?” she adds, making sure they are polite. “Have fun! Be polite!”

But what happens next shows the kids have just said “okay” to everything their moms have told them without actually hearing what she said about safety. As the kids go up to the large house and ring the doorbell, Persin is ready and waiting, posing as the owner of the home. “Trick or treat!” they shout in unison.

Persin opens the door and, strangely, invites them inside the house as he supposedly has to “go get the candy downstairs.” Once they are inside, patiently waiting for their candy, Persin closes the door. Not one of the three voice any concern to their friends about stepping inside a stranger’s house. None of them thought to go out and tell their moms about the wait for the candy. They all just spontaneously went in, completely trusting a complete stranger.

Then even more strangely, Persin reveals, “There is no candy,” and the children are shocked. Soon, there’s knocking on the door and their moms rush in, angry and worried sick. “You just come into this house! You don’t even know these people!” a mom scolds. “Do you know how dangerous this is? Do you have any idea what you’ve just done.”

That was just the first batch of kids to visit and enter the house that night. It wasn’t the last.

A second scenario is even more terrifying, as Persin convinces a group of candy-obsessed kids to come downstairs in his set-up home. “I think I’ve got Snickers. Do you like Snickers?” The answer is, of course, a very enthusiastic “Yes!” Without any hesitation, the kids are soon piling down the stairwell with Persin behind them, oblivious to the danger.

Once downstairs, the nightmarish scenario plays out again with Persin telling them, “There’s no candy,” and a costumed clown figure rushes out of the door as the light changes colors. Upstairs, the kids’ mom can’t believe how easily they were led astray. “What were you thinking?” she asks her daughter.

When asked on Varney & Co. if his video is going too far in terms of scaring kids and parents, Persin responded, “It’s the scare tactic that works.” As Persin explained, when trick or treating, “more kids should go with their parents.” Parents “should go up to the door. It should be supervised.”

A valuable lesson that could help avoid a truly horrific Halloween experience.