SHELBY, N.C. — Controversy over the Confederate flag has surged in the Carolinas for several weeks and now some people who fly the flag are being targeted.
Todd Mode said when he came home from work Tuesday evening the Confederate flags that once hung from his home in Shelby were missing.
"I had one large flag here above the car port," Mode said. "We also had two small ones on our porch."
Mode filed a report with the Cleveland County Sheriff's Office and deputies confirmed they're investigating the case.
"What really hurts most is someone coming on our property," Mode said.
Mode wonders if the theft was part of an illegal trend #noflaggingchallenge that's happening nationwide and exploding on social media sites like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.
The trend is a form of protest against the display of the Confederate flag, which remains a controversial topic since the racially-charged shooting at an African-American church in Charleston where nine people were murdered.
After that, South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley signed legislation that called for the removal of the battle flag from Statehouse grounds.
Still parts of the country remain heavily divided on the meaning of the flag, as well as if and/or where it should be displayed.
Regardless of a person's stance on the issue, police have warned that the challenge is not only illegal but dangerous.
The penalty for stealing a flag from someone's property would most likely be misdemeanor larceny, deputies said. Someone may also face a trespassing charge if signs are posted on the property or if you've been warned in the past.
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