Cape students vandalize school restrooms for viral TikTok trend

A viral TikTok trend called "Devious Licks" has inspired some Cape Girardeau School District students to vandalize school restrooms.

Central Middle School administrators said in a letter to parents Tuesday the school has seen "an extreme amount of vandalism" in its restrooms.

Students ripped numerous soap dispensers off the walls, according to the letter. Students poured an unknown "red liquid" all over toilets and walls. Towels were shoved into toilets to intentionally flood bathroom floors.

"At this point, the acts of vandalism are becoming a safety concern," administrators wrote in the letter. "These acts are not only being experienced by us here at Central Middle School, but across the district, as well as across the country."

Several schools across the U.S. have reported vandalism since the "Devious Licks" trend took off earlier this month. Viral videos on the TikTok app show students unzipping their backpacks to show off stolen goods. Some users boasted about fire alarms, security cameras, computers and microscopes they stole.

The trend led Central Middle School administrators to restrict bathroom usage Monday. With certain exceptions, students were only allowed in bathrooms during scheduled breaks every couple of hours.

Cape Girardeau School District superintendent Neil Glass said Central Middle School and other secondary schools in the district had an uptick of students participating in the trend last week. However, the issue has since decreased after school administrators held conversations with students.

"We feel like we got ahead of it," Glass said. "The students responded in a mature, responsible way."

In a Sept. 15 tweet, representatives of TikTok announced any posts found related to "Devious Licks" would be removed.

Jackson School District has had minimal issues because of the challenge. Merideth Pobst, Jackson's director of communications, said only a hand sanitizer dispenser and a soap dispenser have gone missing.

Pobst said the district regularly keeps an eye on national stories and trends and will monitor "Devious Licks."

Cape Girardeau students caught vandalizing would be subject to school disciplinary actions, parent restitution and potential prosecution for property damage, according to the Central Middle School administrators' letter.

So far, no Cape Girardeau School District students have faced disciplinary actions, according to Glass.

"Unless students come forward who have witnessed the vandalism, we have very little to go on," Glass said.

Cape Girardeau school board president Kyle McDonald said he hopes students will take this as a learning opportunity for appropriate behavior.

"I just wish students would appreciate the facilities we have available to them and not feel it's necessary to vandalize facilities for the sake of a social media challenge," McDonald said. "They need to know that if they are caught doing that [vandalizing], there will be some discipline handed down."