Used furniture shopping took a straight up sinister turn this week as Craigslist ads for creepy nightstands began popping up in markets around the country. Now there’s a mad dash to crack the mystery with scavenger hunts in New York and Los Angeles.
It all started with this ad, posted in the “free stuff” section of Washington D.C.’s Craigslist. Gently-used, solid wood, yada yada yada. Seems fine, yeah?
Inside the drawer an old polaroid photo of a woman and her dog was found with the words “DON’T THINK IT. DON’T SAY IT.” scribbled below the image.
You can expect the unexpected when responding to a Craigslist ad—but take a closer look and you’ll see what appears to be the shady figure of a hooded man in the background.
Freaked out yet?
Under the photo, the drawer’s red and white liner paper is printed with the same words — “DON’T THINK IT. DON’T SAY IT.” — written in concentric circles.
Peel that off (not cute) and you’ll find the words THE BYE BYE MAN carved into the wood, giving us spine-chilling flashbacks to Ted Bundy etching his name into the defendant’s desk.
But this thing isn’t unique to D.C. —other mysterious nightstands have popped up in major cities across the U.S. Thrifters in Atlanta, Chicago and Dallas have all reported creepy furniture marked by The Bye Bye Man, although the the ads have since been taken down by time of publication.
We have inside info on a scavenger hunt that will take place in New York and Los Angeles on Wednesday, Dec. 21. Aspiring detectives in each city will only have 4 hours to find a nightstand with an undisclosed cash prize inside. To add a little hometown rivalry, the first city with a winner will get a larger prize than the second.
Intrigued? Spooked? Clues for the hunt will be released on twitter @TheByeByeMan starting Wednesday at 5pm EST (that’s 2pm PST). You can also help your city of choice get the first clue by voting here.
Now please excuse us while we go check every dresser drawer in the house for signs of a creepy-ass boogeyman. ?
