Fourteen people have been arrested in four separate incidents at the permanently shuttered Adventure Zone entertainment center in West El Paso, where police say a social media trend has been pushing people to trespass and break into the property. Officers say the arrests stem from alleged trespassing and property damage at the site, which closed for good months ago but has apparently become a magnet for thrill-seekers chasing online clout.
Police Link Break-Ins to Viral Challenge
According to KTSM 9 News, El Paso police said officers responded to four separate incidents at Adventure Zone that resulted in 14 total arrests. The department attributed the break-ins to a dangerous social media trend encouraging people to trespass and break into the shuttered entertainment center, rather than any single isolated incident of mischief.
Adventure Zone had been a West El Paso staple known for go-karts, mini golf and tacos before it closed permanently at 8 p.m. on a Sunday in early August, as reported by the El Paso Times. Months later, the empty property has become the latest target in a wave of social-media-fueled trespassing that has hit shuttered commercial sites elsewhere in Texas and beyond.
Police Warn of Felony Exposure
El Paso police did not mince words about the potential fallout for anyone tempted to film themselves breaking into the closed property. The department said participating in these online challenges is not a game — it is a crime, and the station's report notes that the actions carry severe legal consequences, including felony charges for burglary and evading arrest. Anyone involved in such offenses can also face detention, arrest and long-term criminal records, per the same account.
Police are advising parents and youth that illegal entry or property destruction tied to online trends are criminal offenses, not harmless pranks. The department is also asking residents to immediately report suspicious activity around closed commercial properties, signaling that Adventure Zone may not be the only vacant site drawing unwanted attention.
Not an Isolated Problem
El Paso's situation mirrors incidents elsewhere in Texas. In late March, deputies with Constable Mark Herman's Office arrested six people after they were found trespassing at the abandoned Main Street America site in Spring, Texas, according to KWTX. Investigators there said the group went to the property after seeing it featured in a social media challenge. Four adults and two juveniles were charged with criminal trespass, and a 16-year-old in the group also faced charges of resisting arrest and unlawfully carrying a weapon.
A similar pattern has played out in Georgia, where Gwinnett County police reported seven burglary cases tied to Urban Air Adventure Park locations since June 4, as detailed by WJCL. Those investigations resulted in 15 arrests, including 11 adults and four juveniles. Police there said the trend encouraged teenagers and young adults to break into businesses after hours, play games, use the attractions and damage property, CBS News Atlanta reported, noting that eleven people ages 17 to 20 were arrested along with four juveniles taken into custody.
Why These Trends Keep Spreading
Researchers who study so-called performance crimes say social media is not necessarily inventing new forms of lawbreaking so much as accelerating how fast they spread. A criminology expert told Police1 that what social media changed was the speed of the process, pointing to how viral videos have previously driven spikes in other crimes, including a surge in Kia and Hyundai thefts that police departments in a dozen cities tied to clips showing how to start the vehicles with USB cables. TikTok's own enforcement data from the final months of 2022 showed that 5% of videos the platform removed were taken down for dangerous acts and challenges, with 82% of those removed within 24 hours.
For now, El Paso police have not detailed the specific charges filed against the 14 people arrested at Adventure Zone, nor identified the online post or platform believed to have sparked the break-ins. What is clear from the department's warning is that the consequences for showing up at the shuttered property are not limited to a stern talking-to — they can include felony exposure under Texas law for anyone who follows the trend through the gates.
