The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office would like to alert the community, particularly parents, caretakers and others who influence children and teenagers, of the emerging “Orbeez” social media challenge.
This encourages participants, typically teenagers, to video themselves approaching pedestrians and shooting them with water-filled beads from high-powered water bead guns. They then post the results on TikTok.
Orbeez is a brand of these water beads, but there are numerous manufacturers. This challenge has resulted in serious injuries to victims and those responsible facing felony-level charges.
Additional details:
• Water bead guns shoot in semi-auto or full-auto modes;
• The beads are sometimes frozen before they’re used, making them more destructive;
• Velocity settings on some water bead guns can be adjusted to as high as 250 feet per second (similar to a BB gun designed to shoot steel BB rounds);
• Many of these water bead guns match the appearance of actual firearms, making it difficult to tell the difference;
• El Paso County has seen an increase in reports recently by persons shot and injured by water beads; and
• Numerous instances have been reported nationally of law enforcement officers who have been struck by water beads after teenagers confront them.
This social media challenge has the potential for unnecessary, serious injury to victims as well as avoidable catastrophe. Worst case, the very realistic appearance of many of these guns could create a situation in which an armed citizen or law enforcement officer uses deadly force against a prankster with what appears to be an actual firearm.
The Sheriff’s Office encourages parents and caretakers to monitor their children’s activity and ensure they are not equipped to be and/or participating in this challenge.