Yes, it’s still true — Annabelle the haunted doll has not escaped from the the Warrens’ Occult Museum, located in Monroe, Connecticut.
However, to reassure social media users the escape is nothing more than a hoax, museum owner and caretaker of Annabelle, Tony Spera, also the son-in-law of Edward and Lorraine Warren, posted a video to YouTube and stood alongside the doll on display, proving she is right where she belongs.
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“I’m in here, in the museum, because of the rumors that Annabelle has escaped,” Spera said in the video. “I gotta tell you something. I don’t know if you’re gonna wanna hear this or not, but Annabelle did not escape... She didn’t take a trip. She didn’t fly first class, and she didn’t go out to visit her boyfriend.”
“Annabelle’s alive... Well, I shouldn’t say alive. Annabelle is here in all of her infamous glory. She never left the museum,” Spera assured social media users.
The rumors of Annabelle’s escape began Friday after an internet user changed the doll’s Wikipedia page, claiming she had escaped from the museum. The Wikipedia page has since been corrected. Still, social media was ablaze with the rumor.
Spera said in the YouTube video that the museum, which is currently closed due to a zoning violation last year, has high-tech security. So, if the doll actually had left the premises, Spera said he would’ve been aware.
“Remember, I have high-tech security here. If she had left the museum, I’d instantly know if something happened or if someone broke in,” Spera said. “We have good alarm systems here and the police are very good to respond.”
Ultimately, Spera said he wants to put the rumors to rest, but that isn’t without a word of caution, in case Annabelle did actually ever leave.
“Let’s put the rumors to rest guys,” Spera said. “I appreciate all of the concern. I’d be concerned if Annabelle really did leave because she’s nothing to play with.”
Annabelle’s story was told in the horror film series, “The Conjuring,” and she resides in the Warrens’ museum for the time being.
Before she was turned over to the Warrens, the doll was first owned by two women who claimed she was “moving through their apartment” and was leaving written notes, according to a Newsweek report. The owners of the doll then consulted with a psychic.
Some paranormal experts claim the doll was tied to a demonic spirit, pretending to be a child, Newsweek reports. Eventually, the doll went into the Warrens’ possession, which led to Annabelle being housed in their museum before its closure.
Even on the Warrens’ first car ride with the doll, Newsweek said the pair claimed they were put in serious danger, and they believed Annabelle caused their car’s brakes to fail.
RELATED: Don’t worry — the Annabelle doll did not actually escape from the Warrens’ Occult Museum