Little Cindy Lou Who, who was no more than two, grew up in Whoville, not in Peru.
Otherwise, she might have encountered a very different version of Dr. Seuss’s notorious, Christmas-hating “Grinch.”
Police in the Peruvian capital of Lima posted a remarkable 67-second clip to X on Monday showing an officer leading a drug bust and even taking a sledgehammer to the alleged perpetrators’ door while dressed as in a “Grinch” costume.
His fellow officers took multiple suspects into custody.
In another nice touch, an instrumental version of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” accompanied the drug raid footage.
“In an ingenious operation, agents from the Green Squadron arrested the aliases La Reina del Sur, La Coneja and Pote, alleged members of the La Mafia de San Bartolo gang, dedicated to the sale of drugs,” a translation of the National Police of Peru’s post caption said.
“Narcotics and various species were seized,” the post continued.
📌| En ingenioso operativo, agentes del Escuadrón Verde detuvieron a los alias La Reina del Sur, La Coneja y Pote, presuntos integrantes de la banda La Mafia de San Bartolo, dedicada a la venta de drogas.
Se decomisaron estupefacientes y diversas especies.
relacionadas al TID. 🕵️♂️ pic.twitter.com/QF6SM2cx4Y— Policía Nacional del Perú (@PoliciaPeru) December 23, 2024
Did you grow up watching “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”?
As one might expect, the officer’s exploits made news around the world.
For instance, Sky News Australia posted a brief report to Facebook. Unlike the Peruvian police, Sky News showed the suspects’ faces, including a man and two women.
Moreover, this particular police unit has a reputation for dressing its officers in holiday-themed costumes.
Here, for instance, is a BBC report showing an officer from the same unit conducting a Valentine’s Day raid while dressed as a teddy bear and holding a heart-shaped balloon.
Of course, those with experience in law enforcement can speak to any practical advantages such costumes might offer. One guesses that concealment of that kind works to police officers’ advantage. The costumes could also have quite a disarming effect on suspects.
On the other hand, the Peruvian police might have simply decided to troll the bad guys. If so, more power to them. Either way, God bless them.
Meanwhile, those of us who grew up watching “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” each holiday season cannot help but remember some relevant moments from the 1966 classic.
First, in his quest to eradicate Christmas, the Grinch stole a Christmas tree from little Cindy Lou Who’s family.
When the little girl awoke in the middle of the heist, she saw the Grinch dressed as Santa Claus and asked why he had stuffed the tree up the chimney.
The Grinch then lied and told the little girl that the tree had a defect, so he would take it to his shop, repair it and then return it to the family.
In other words, the Grinch relied on deceit. So, too, did the Peruvian police, albeit for a more noble objective.
Second, the Grinch had a redemption arc. When he discovered that the residents of Whoville celebrated Christmas in spite of all the decorations, gifts and other accoutrements he had stolen from them, he discovered the true meaning of the holiday, grew in strength and transformed from the story’s villain into its hero.
For those who have made bad choices and run afoul of the law in Peru and elsewhere around the world, one prays for a similar redemption.
In the meantime, one must applaud the police’s good work, especially when carried out with such festive flair.
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