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RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Two undercover police officers dressed as Santa Claus and his elf stopped two suspected car thieves and three suspected shoplifters backyard a Riverside, California, browsing middle Thursday.
Riverside Police branch’s Property Crimes Unit, assisted by way of officers from the college resource Officer Unit, performed a vacation enforcement program — which they’re calling “Santa’s Intervention” — targeting retail theft all through the vacations, the police department wrote on facebook.
holiday ENFORCEMENT program NETS several ARRESTS
Riverside, CA – the day prior to this on Thursday, December 10, 2020, detectives…
Posted by Riverside Police department on Friday, December eleven, 2020
On Thursday, detectives and loss prevention specialists performed video surveillance interior the target store in the Canyon Springs searching core as different detectives and officers remained outdoor to assist detain any suspected thieves, ABC news suggested.
Of these waiting outdoor have been a detective and officer dressed as Santa Claus and his elf. At one aspect, they obtained counsel about three suspicious men making an attempt to steal motors in the parking space. probably the most undercover detectives noticed the suspects attempting to steal an older white Honda CR-V.
After being detected by way of officers, two of the men tried to flee the scene, but have been directly apprehended, in keeping with ABC.
“One suspect resisted arrest however became taken into custody with the assist of our undercover Santa, and the 2nd became detained with the aid of the undercover elf,” police wrote on facebook.
The third suspect drove stole off in the stolen Honda before police may attain him. The vehicle was later found abandoned neighborhood and the motive force turned into not found, but detectives have him recognized and will be making an arrest for auto theft sooner or later, they pointed out. They additionally included a photo of the suspect in their fb post.
some of the two suspects detained changed into later launched, while the other turned into arrested for possession of unlawful medication and resisting arrest, police said.
“changes in property crime legal guidelines inside the fresh years have contributed to increases in retail theft and shoplifting,” Detective Everth Bercian of the Property Crimes Unit, said in the commentary. “Theft of merchandise totaling below $950 is barely a misdemeanor, and any arrest made no matter if it’s a legal or misdemeanor, outcomes in little to no consequences for these crimes.”
also on Thursday, undercover police backyard the searching center arrested three suspects who tried to shoplift.