Gardaí in Co Wexford have responded after "The Cat in the Hat" was purportedly seen "causing havoc" locally and elsewhere in Ireland.

Suspicions arose earlier this week when a man in Co Wexford posted on social media claiming that his child saw a "a man in a famous movie character: Cat In The Hat with a scary face."

The man said he reported the incident to Gardaí, and encouraged people to "lock your doors and be safe."

A few hours later, the same man posted that his sister had seen the "stalker in the costume" go by her house in Coill Aoibhinn, Co Wexford. The man said it was "instantly" reported to Gardaí in Wexford.

From there, more claims about sightings of the "scary" Cat in the Hat figure spread on social media, not only in Co Wexford, but further afield in Co Tipperary, Co Wicklow, Co Limerick, and Co Dublin. The purported sightings were supported mostly by screenshots of Snapchat images and videos.

@dan_editz21 What even is Ireland anymore 😂#catinhat #wexford #fyp #viral ♬ origineel geluid - DVDB

While the "sightings" prompted concern among many, others questioned if they were real at all.

On Thursday, Gardaí in Co Wexford confirmed that the Cat in the Hat sightings are, indeed, not real.

"In an unusual turn of events we are hearing a lot about an illusive [sic] Dr Seuss character doing the rounds online, apparently causing havoc in neighbourhoods and towns across the country," Gardaí in Wexford said in a social media blast on Thursday.

"Fortunately, we can rule out the issue, which is essentially an AI prompt that places the character into images/videos of familiar places.

"To be clear, the Cat in the Hat was not in your driveway while you were out and he is not currently hiding out in Curracloe."