- Here’s a free tip to all boxy crooks out there — eye holes help you see.
Modern technology has really made things difficult for our poor burglars. With surveillance cameras everywhere, they have to wear something on their faces to hide their identity.
But sometimes you forget to prepare properly for the burglary. That’s when you have to improvise a mask out of whatever you have on hand.
Take this Florida burglar for example. Claude Vincent Griffin Jr. has been arrested under suspicion of robbing a grocery store three times in one night — while donning a cardboard box on his head.
Alright, in the name of honesty, he only wore the box on one of his raids. But that was definitely his most memorable sojourn into the store, and the one that spelled his doom.
While pilfering some cell phones, he knocked the box off his head, revealing his face to the world.
Due to that blunder, the cops were able to easily find and arrest Griffin.
Useless Alarm System
Griffin’s crime spree happened in the wee hours of June 3. Just after midnight, he broke into a Price Choice Supermarket in Miami Gardens.
The store was supposed to have a security alarm. But the storeowner, Jeremias Berganza, clearly hadn’t gotten his money’s worth on the system because it never activated.
Fortunately, his security cameras were more functional. They documented every trip Griffin made to the store over the next few hours.
On his first visit, Griffin wore a real, regular mask of sunglasses and a full-head hood. Surveillance footage shows him entering through the backdoor and heading to a filing cabinet inside the supermarket.
Rummaging through the cabinet’s content, Griffin found a pair of gloves — which he took and pulled on. Hey, at least he’s trying to keep his fingerprints off of stuff.
He then went to the store’s front counter and grabbed several scratch-and-win lottery tickets and multiple cartons of cigarettes. He stuffed his loot into a plastic bag, which he also stole from the store.
With that, Griffin left.
Back with a Box
And then he came back an hour later. But something was different — his mask was gone.
Instead, the surveillance camera documented Griffin wearing a cardboard box on his head. We don’t know where his mask went and why, but for some reason, he had to resort to the box.
Griffin walked back to the front counter, but he wasn’t after more lottery tickets and cigarettes. This time, he used a blunt object to smash the class of the display counter.
He then began pulling out iPhones from the case and stuffing them in his bag. However, he had made one fatal mistake.
The man didn’t seem to have cut eye holes into his box. With the box limiting his vision, he accidentally knocked it off, revealing his distinctive facial tattoos and an “abnormal lump” on his cheek.
“I had a laugh on my face [when I saw the video],” Berganza told Local10. “I was sad because it happened.”
Berganza has a big heart, feeling sorry for the burglar robbing his store.
After the box blunder, Griffin smashed another display case and stole multiple watches. Then, he left again.
Third Time’s the Charm
And then he came back. Again.
Yet, Griffin was now wearing his proper mask again. We really wonder why he didn’t wear it on his second burglary.
This visit was much faster than the previous ones, probably because Griffin knew the store’s layout and stock by now. He grabbed a few more iPhones before jumping behind the counter to pry open a cash box.
Griffin stole 19 cell phones and around $8,200 in cash during his three adventures. According to police filings, he made off with $30,000 worth of goods in total, on top of $2,000 worth of damaged property.
On the Run — For a Few Hours
He didn’t get to enjoy his illicit riches for long, though. Only 10 hours after the break-in, a barber shop owner in the same plaza as Price Choice spotted Griffin in front of a liquor store.
The man tried to run when the cops showed up, but it did him no good. The officers tackled him and out came the handcuffs.
On his person, the police found one of the stolen iPhones — in addition to a sandwich bag of cocaine. According to court documents, Griffin later confessed to the crime.
Griffin has now been arrested and jailed on a $23,500 bond. He faces 10 felony charges, including burglary, grand theft, criminal mischief, drug possessions, and resisting an officer without violence.
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