US Police failed to act on massive warning of clown threats

Five years ago, there was a massive uptick in clown-related crime alerts. Was it just people generally being scared of clowns? Or had the Joker finally succeeded in his 80-year-long schemes? The answer remains unclear. But, as the US Joint Regional Intelligence Center noted at the time (emphasis added):

In the most recent trend since August 2016, dozens of sightings of people dressed as menacing clowns, often in dark or secluded areas, have been reported to police and news media nationwide.