A US man clad in spandex known as the Shadow Hare is on a mission to become a hometown superhero.
The Shadow Hare — whose identity is hidden behind a mask and a cape — comes equipped with handcuffs, taser guns and pepper spray as he roams the streets of Cincinnati, in the midwestern state of Ohio.
"My message to Cincinnati is that there is still hope and all we have to do is stand together," he was quoted as saying by local TV news station WLWT.
"We help enforce the law by doing what we can in legal standards … we will intervene on crimes if there is one happening in front of us."
In a movement which appears to be inspired by the do-gooders without super powers in recent movie Watchmen, Shadow Hare makes citizen's arrests, hands out food to the homeless and once stopped a guy from beating up a woman.
He claims he belongs to the "Allegiance of Heroes" which includes Aclyptico in Pennsylvania, Wall Creeper in Colorado and Master Legend in Florida.
However, the risk to personal safety that comes with fighting evil occasionally has got the better of Shadow Hare — once he earned a dislocated shoulder while attempting to intervene in a street attack.
The masked man's true identity has not been revealed, but he claims he is 21 years old and was abused as a child.
His MySpace page, on which he refers to his occupation as "superhero", is adorned with tributes and videos to fictional characters including Batman and Donnie Darko.
His 438 friends include like-minded aspiring superheroes Dark Demon, Knight Owl and Saint Shade.
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