From Thailand comes a story that’s pure Hollywood: police going undercover as festival lion dancers to nab a suspected art thief.
Dressed as the rump and head of a large Asian lion costume during Lunar New Year festivities, the police sprang upon the suspect and took him into custody, phone cameras mercifully recorded.
Bangkok police received a call earlier in February about a home burglary with a loss of “numerous Buddhist objects and two 12-inch Buddha statues,” the Straits Times reports, estimating the items as worth $81,000, or 2 million Thai bat.
Evidence collected indicated that the suspect made numerous attempts to break into the house before succeeding. Police had few leads, but obviously enough evidence to recognize him in person.
After weeks of keeping watch around the house and neighborhood for the man they believed to be the suspect, officers hatched a plan for the Lunar New Year. They’d dress up as traditional lion dancers and join in the festivities at a local Buddhist temple.
They danced into the night, eventually spotting their target. Approaching under the folds of the lion suit, they got close enough to tackle the man, who as it turns out was a 33-year-old previous offender of theft and drug-related offenses.
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