Masked Man Forces St. Louis Station to Cancel Live Shot
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KMOV in St. Louis canceled a live shot because of some guy in a mask.
Police in Belleville are investigating after a masked man showed up in the background of a KMOV live shot Wednesday during the 5 p.m. newscast.
Reporter Brittany Noble was scheduled to go live and throw to her package about a string of thefts from construction sites in southeast Belleville.
Shortly before air time, Noble and cameraman Alonzo Metcalf noticed a man wearing a white mask pacing in the background and occasionally ducking behind a truck, KMOV news director Brian Thouvenot said.
"The man went away, then came back (with a different mask)," Thouvenot said. "So for the safety of our crew, we decided to cancel the (live) shot."
The crew went to the van and called Belleville police, Thouvenot said, adding that Metcalf kept the camera rolling and collected footage of the masked man.
Later, Noble posted some video of the man on her Instagram account. She also wrote: "I wanted to go live @5 today but this guy kept watching me so I called police. If you know who he is contact them."
Thouvenot said one of the masks was that of the Michael Myers villain character in the "Halloween" movies.
Although neither mask could be described as a Ku Klux Klan-type head covering, Thouvenot said the white masks — and the fact that Noble and Metcalf are both black — prompted station managers to proceed as they did.
Belleville police have not commented.
