Eight pranksters who dropped their pants and showed off their underwear in a staged prank on the subway Sunday were taken into custody and cited for disorderly conduct.

According to Improv Everywhere, the group that organized the stunt, all of the jokesters trying to elicit laughs and snickers were ultimately released.The group says more than 160 riders participated in the fifth annual No Pants Subway Ride before police stopped the No. 6 train they were on about 5 p.m.Charlie Todd, who founded Improv Everywhere in 2001, says it's not his group's intent to offend but to "create chaos and laughter" in places around the city.