Police investigating after images of cloaked figure go viral

GASTONIA, N.C. -- A post online has Gastonia police investigating claims that a cloaked figure was leaving raw meat near a playground in a North Carolina town, reports CBS affiliate WBTV.

Whether the photos are a prank or not, it still has some residents on edge. According to posts online, the mysterious pale figure, "sparked fear among locals after it was reportedly caught on camera standing outside an apartment complex in Gastonia, North Carolina, dressed in a dark cloak."

Police spokesperson Donna Lahser tells WBTV that investigators were called out to meet with the manager of the apartment complex about the photos. There is a playground near the wooded parts of the apartment complex reports WBTV, but Lahser says officers could not confirm that the photo actually came from that apartment complex.

"It could have come from anywhere," Lahser said. "We don't know if this is some bogus prank someone is playing."

Rumors swirling online are that the person wore floor-length, hooded attire. But the identity and gender of the cloaked figure are unknown.