Holiday heist: Bear steals Grinch decoration in Florida community

By Samantha Romero

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    COLLIER COUNTY, Florida (WBBH) — What initially seemed like a prank for a Golden Gate Estates family turned out to be a surprising twist straight out of a holiday movie.

Shanick Suarez said she put up her decorations in November, but her inflatable Grinch decoration on her porch vanished on Black Friday.

“We were just dumbfounded,” Suarez said. “We were like, where did it go?”

After searching her yard and checking security cameras, Suarez thought a prank or a wandering dog might have been to blame. Days later, a neighbor texted her, saying they spotted the Grinch two houses down.

Suarez retrieved it, plugged it back in, and thought the mystery was solved.

Then, early Wednesday morning, Suarez’s security cameras sent her another alert. When she checked the footage, she couldn’t believe her eyes — it was a bear!

“I never expected it to be a bear!” Suarez said. “I thought it was the funniest thing ever. I literally, like, text my husband. I’m like, ‘What is going on?’ We were texting back and forth, just rewatching the video, sending it to all of our family and friends at five in the morning.”

The furry thief was caught on camera clawing at the inflatable Grinch, unplugging it, and dragging it into the woods.

Unfortunately, the Grinch didn’t survive his encounter with the bear. The inflatable was too damaged to repair, forcing Suarez to toss it in the trash.

“We thought it was the craziest thing,” Suarez said, holding up the chewed-off cable with a laugh.

While the Grinch won’t be stealing Christmas this year, it seems the bear managed to swipe the spotlight instead.

“It’s a funny story to tell,” she said.

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