A quick Target run is supposed to be one of life’s simplest errands. You go in for one thing, leave with ten, maybe grab a coffee on the way out, nothing dramatic. But for one Missouri man, a particular Target location doesn’t feel casual at all. In fact, he says it’s the “scariest” one in the entire country.
And once you hear why, it’s not hard to understand where he’s coming from. The moment started when a TikTok user, known online as @djhoneypot, filmed himself sitting in his car outside a Kansas City-area Target. At first glance, it looks like any other suburban parking lot. But his tone quickly shifts as he explains why this place gives him an uneasy feeling every time he visits.
“This is the scariest Target in America,” he says, before referencing a tragic case that has stuck with him for years. “I still will never get over what happened in this parking lot… Every time I come here, I just get the heebie-jeebies. Every time.”
Missouri Man Calls Local Target The Scariest In America
He’s talking about the 2007 disappearance of Kelsey Smith, an 18-year-old who had stopped by the store for what should have been a quick shopping trip. What followed became one of those stories that lingers long after headlines fade.
Kelsey had planned a normal evening, picking up a gift before meeting her boyfriend. But when she never showed up, alarm bells started ringing. Her family and boyfriend began searching, eventually looping in police when there was still no sign of her. What investigators uncovered was chilling, per PEOPLE.
Her car was later discovered abandoned across the street, wiped clean of personal items. Surveillance footage from the store revealed a man following her inside before ultimately forcing her into her own vehicle in the parking lot. That man was later identified as Edwin Hall, who would go on to plead guilty to multiple charges connected to the crime and receive a life sentence.
For many, the case became a sobering reminder of how quickly an ordinary moment can take a devastating turn. And that’s exactly why this Missouri TikToker says the location feels different.
Kelsey Smith’s Murder Still Haunts Kansas City
It’s not about the store itself, it’s about what happened there. The memory of it has transformed an everyday space into something that feels heavy, even years later. It’s the kind of story that changes how people view places they once considered routine. Online, others admitted they feel the same way.
“My family and I were literally at the mall the day this happened… and we were never allowed to go to that target again,” one person shared. Another added, “It’s so scary to think that it was just a quick run in to Target for her.”
“The energy there is so incredibly heavy,” a third person added. “I think of it every time I go there,” a fourth comment read.
Because Target, like most big-box stores, represents normalcy. It’s errands, convenience, routine. But stories like this remind people that even the most familiar places aren’t immune to tragedy.
The Missouri man’s video isn’t just about calling a store “scary,” it’s about how memory and reality can overlap in ways that make certain places feel permanently changed. And while most shoppers will continue walking those aisles without a second thought, for some, that parking lot will always carry a different kind of weight.
Nina Franklin 
Sofia Bassett 
Preston Thomas 
