ESCAMBIA COUNTY, Fla. — Christmas revelers everywhere can sleep a little easier tonight knowing the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office took the worst of the worst off Florida’s streets on Christmas Eve.
The Grinch was taken into custody early Saturday in the ECSO parking lot after a concerned citizen alerted authorities to shenanigans that, quite frankly, “stink, stank, stunk.”
“We hope he thinks through his actions, and his heart will grow three sizes,” the sheriff’s office told NorthEscambia.com in a prepared statement, crediting Santa’s right-hand reindeer, Rudolph, with an assist on the arrest.
“Rudolph found the Grinch lurking in a parking lot dressed as Santa this morning and called us immediately,” the law enforcement agency stated.
It was not immediately clear if Rudolph was acting as an agent of the office, as an informant for Santa or simply said something after seeing something.
Meanwhile, the Grinch will be held without bond until Dec. 26, the sheriff’s office confirmed.
According to NorthEscambia.com, the Grinch is known to local law enforcement and has a lengthy criminal history of attempting to steal Christmas that dates back to 1957.
Officials said it was too early in the investigation, however, to determine if an extradition hearing to Mount Crumpit, where the Grinch lives in a cave, will be warranted.
NorthEscambia.com was on hand to capture the Grinch’s dramatic arrest: