An Ohio haunted house actor is being charged after police say he stabbed an 11-year-old boy in the foot with a knife.
Christopher Pogozelski, 22, who was working at the 7 Floors of Hell haunted house at the Cuyahoga County Fairgrounds, was attempting to scare the boy, who thought the knife was a prop, according to a police report.The boy’s mom, Karen Bednarski, told the The Washington Post that her son told the man he wasn’t afraid of his knife because it was “fake.”
“So the man was like, ‘Oh, it’s real. Trust me, it’s real.’ And that’s when he started poking it at his feet multiple times until he stabbed him,” she told the paper.
Pogozelsk has been charged with negligently assault after he allegedly cut his toe. Pogozelsk told police that it was an “accident” and admitted using the knife, which he brought from home, was not a good idea, The Post reported.
The Post reported that Rodney Geffert was the president of Night Scream Entertainment. He said that Pogozelski has apologized numerous times following the incident.
Actors at the haunted house are instructed not to touch the patrons and to use fake props only.
Pogozelski’s plea is not known.