Man Wears KKK Outfit In Stafford As 'Social Experiment': Police

STAFFORD COUNTY, VA — A man dressed in a KKK outfit outside a Target in Stafford County Tuesday afternoon was warned by Stafford County Sheriff's Deputies about wearing a mask in public, the sheriff's office said Tuesday. After the deputies spoke with him, the man left the area.

At around 2:30 p.m., Stafford deputies arrived at the Stafford Marketplace Target near Garrisonville Road in response to the man in the KKK outifit. Upon arriving at the scene, the deputies "were able to identify the black male as a subject that did not live in Stafford County," Major Shawn Kimmitz with the Stafford County Sheriff's Office said in a video statement posted on social media.

The unidentifed man informed the deputies he was "conducting a social experiment," according to Kimmitz. "He was warned on wearing a mask in public and has left that area," he said.

Virginia law does not permit any person above the age of 16 to wear a mask in public with the intent to conceal his or her identity. In order to wear a mask that conceals the wearer's identity on private property, the wearer must get written permission from the property owner or tenant.

The law allows masks in public as part of a traditional holiday costume as well as for physical safety like the masks worn by firefighters and construction workers, theatrical events, and medical purposes.