COCOA, Fla. – Melbourne police arrested a 21-year-old Cocoa man who they say was dressed as "the Joker" at a movie theater.
Police said Christopher Sides was arrested on an unrelated warrant after he walked into the Premiere Oaks 10 theater off West Hibiscus Boulevard just after 10:30 a.m. wearing Joker-style makeup, a leather jacket, jeans and boots.
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According to the police report, the caller told police Sides was pacing back and forth in front of the theater before walking in.
Sides, who was also sporting pink hair, was arrested on a failure to appear in court warrant on a misdemeanor charge. Police said he had purchased a ticket to see "The Expendables 2."
Local 6 spoke to the mother of Sides, who said he is mentally disabled with the mental capacity of a 10 to 12 year old. She said she does his makeup every morning because he asks her to and on Wednesday he wanted stripes.
She said she didn't know Sides was going to the movies and that he wasn't trying to scare anyone. Sides' mother says he is infatuated with theatrics.
Sides didn't have any weapons on him and didn't make any threats while at the theater, according to police. He was taken to the Brevard County Jail.
The incident comes nearly two months after a deadly shooting at a Colorado theater's showing of a "Batman" movie led to the deaths of 12 people and a wave of scares and security concerns at movie theaters across the nation.
The suspected shooter in that case, James Holmes, walked into a crowded theater and opened fire, later telling law enforcement agents that he was "the Joker," a villain featured in Batman comic books and movies, police reported.
Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.