Police in Quebec’s Eastern Townships have issued a warning after five incidents of the so-called “lug nut challenge.” The stunt has been featured on social media, showing people loosening or removing lug nuts on the tires of vehicles without the owners’ knowledge. Memphremagog police issued a news release this week saying there have been five incidents since last fall, including four in the last two months. In two of the cases, a tire came off while the car was being driven and the driver barely made it safely to the sides of the road. Police say parents should talk to their teens about it and stress the serious potential consequences. “We hope that a lot of parents will have a discussion with their kids, their teenagers. That’s the kind of challenge we see on TikTok. It’s a really dangerous challenge. Cars can go off the road. We have to spend some time with our teenagers to talk about this stupid challenge,” said Memphremagog police spokesperson Nicholas Marcoux. If a person is caught and convicted of loosening the lug nuts of a car leading to a fatal crash, the penalty could be a life sentence in prison.
