A high school senior prank in Maryland left a school full of ladybugs roaming the halls and the suspects facing criminal charges.
Trinity Alexander told WTTG, "I saw one ladybug just pass me, and then all of a sudden, there was like 1,000."
Deputies in St. Mary's County southeast of Washington, D.C., sayfive people wearing masks and hoodies released about 72,000 ladybugs throughout the school while two others waited in a car.
"I would look at one light, and there would be about 1,000 swarming, just all around it," another student said.
Some of the students thought it was funny because the bugs are considered harmless. But officials didn't agree.
A spokesperson with the St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office told WTTG: "They set the burglary alarm off and the police did respond and we arrived there. ... Then it takes it to a different level and we certainly don't want to see anybody get hurt."
Deputies say four juveniles have been charged with burglary, property destruction and disruption of school activities. And the three others, who are old enough to be considered adults, will be charged with criminal summons.
So, where does someone get these ladybugs? Did someone collect them through the years? Nope. Investigators say one of the suspects ordered them online.
We had to see if this was a thing, and sure enough, it is.
Amazon is selling 1,500 live ladybugs for $8.99!
So, if the suspect bought theirs for that asking price, he would've spent around $430. (Video via Discovery)
We're not sure that purchase was worth it.
This video includes images from Getty Images and Philip Bouchard / CC BY NC ND 2.0.
