Police in Lee, Florida, had a field day arresting a mother who allegedly claimed her children's Christmas presents were stolen to solicit donations from the public by dressing her in a Grinch costume and handcuffing him.
“This deplorable behavior is unacceptable, especially given the circumstances of this holiday season. “This woman took advantage of the system and is now paying the price for her selfish decisions,” Sheriff Carmine Marceno of Lee County, Florida, said on Facebook last week.
On November 19, 39-year-old Shana Hudson contacted police and reported a theft from her home, including all recently purchased Christmas presents for her children.
Given the “unfortunate circumstances and bad timing,” the investigators themselves decided a few weeks before the Christmas holidays to organize a gift collection from charities to surprise the mother, the mortuary police officer continued in his release.
At the same time, the latter turned to television to tell her tearful story and thereby attracted the sympathy of her community, the New York Post reported on Wednesday.
However, investigators realized the whole story was just window dressing after receiving information that led them to another family member's residence where they allegedly found all of the stolen items.
Stung, the police decided to invite the Grinch to dance during the mother's arrest by sharing the humiliating video on social networks.
“Dry, dry!” Hey Shana, Chouville called, they want their Grinch back […] “Hudson was taken to the Marceno Motel for her charges, where this Grinch will have plenty of time to think twice about stealing Christmas,” the Lee County Sheriff's Office further teased on Facebook.
The 30-year-old was accused of fraud and making false reports to law enforcement authorities.