SANTA and his elf have taken up a side-gig fighting crime as they chase down thieves outside a mall. Two unnamed undercover cops with the Riverside police department in California launched the program ...Santa's Intervention... to catch unsuspecting thieves as they pretended to be merry St Nick and his helper outside a mall.
Police officers in California dressed as Santa Claus and his elf to stop criminalsRiverside Police Department 
The duo stopped three car thieves and another trio of shopliftersRiverside Police Department The department was trying to think outside the 'gift ' box when it came to targeting shoplifters who ramped up their crimes as Christmas approached. Setting up video surveillance inside a Target store in the Canyon Springs shopping center, ...Santa... waits outside to receive the heads up. ...As the suspects exited the store with merchandise they just stole, Santa and his elf were waiting to take them into custody for the theft,... the department said in a Facebook post. When the program was launched in December 2020, the duo was alerted to three suspects trying to steal an older white Honda CR-V. Two of them attempted to run away after spotting the cops but were quickly caught. ...One suspect resisted arrest but was taken into custody with the help of our undercover Santa, and the second was detained by the undercover elf,... the department said. Most read in News TOUCHING TRIBUTES Victim, 29, from Las Vegas dies in NFL star's tragic car crash accident JONBENET MYSTERY Slain child beauty queen's brother reveals why he thinks cops suspect mom 'BRILLIANT & BEAUTIFUL' Victim killed in NFL star's horror crash pictured as family mourn SHOPPERS' TERROR One victim injured in Target store shooting as cops clear scene outside CRACKING THE CASE How JonBenet Ramsey murder mystery could be 'solved in HOURS' MAULED TO DEATH Boogie boarder is killed by shark in horrific attack on Christmas Eve The third suspect drove off in the stolen Honda before cops found the car abandoned nearby and the driver nowhere to be found. In their post, police said they have identified him and are on the hunt for him. ...Changes in property crime laws within the recent years have contributed to increases in retail theft and shoplifting,... Detective Everth Bercian of the Property Crimes Unit said in the statement. ...Theft of merchandise totaling less than $950 is only a misdemeanor, and any arrest made whether it's a felony or misdemeanor, results in little to no consequences for these crimes.... Police also arrested some people shoplifting some high-value items as well. One suspect, 55-year-old Patrick Seilsopour, stole ...expensive Lego toy sets totaling $1,000 and was arrested outside by Santa and his elf for grand theft.... Another person was arrested for leaving the store without attempting to pay for the items they stole. They were then searched and found to be in possession of illegal narcotics. The police also made another misdemeanor arrest involving ...a local transient who is a habitual thief at this particular store.... Police recognized the man as he entered the store but stopped him before he could attempt to steal again. They then arrested the man for trespassing and also for being in possession of illegal narcotics. It's unclear is Santa and his elf will be returning to fight crime in 2021. 
Riverside Police DepartmentThey arrested two people trying to steal a white Honda '/ ' 
They also stopped three people trying to steal items, including a serial shoplifterRiverside Police Department 
One of the people they stopped was Patrick Seilsopour, who stole ...expensive Lego toy sets totaling $1,000...Riverside Police Department Source:
