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Florida Grinches Rob Kids' Christmas Presents

And now, for a special Floriderp: Holiday Edition story. Three Grinches almost ruined Christmas for one family when they robbed gifts from under their tree. Of course, they could have gotten away with it if they had just heeded simple traffic rules. Like, obeying a stop sign or two or...
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And now, for a special Floriderp: Holiday Edition story.

Three Grinches almost ruined Christmas for one family when they robbed gifts from under their tree.

Of course, they could have gotten away with it if they had just heeded simple traffic rules.

Like, obeying a stop sign or two or three, for instance.

Also, they crashed into a brick wall trying to flee police. So there's that.

According to a Seminole County Sheriff's Office report, the three burglars had robbed a home in the Druid Estates, which is a subdivision in Maitland.

On Wednesday around 11 a.m., a Seminole County Sheriff's deputy was driving around the area when he spotted the suspects throwing large bags of stuff into a gold Ford Explorer parked in the driveway of a home on Westchester Drive.

But when the Ford Explorer drove off, the driver ran several stop signs.

That's when the officer fired up the lights to pull the vehicle over. But the Ford Explorer made things appreciably worse by failing to pull over. He then took things to another level of derp when he decided to floor it and try to outrun the cop.

But if history has taught us anything, it's that Ford Explorers are no good at trying to get away from the authorities. Be they white Fords or gold Fords.

Another SCSO unit in the area was dispatched and came at the Ford from the front. The suspect swerved in an attempt to avoid the second cop and proceeded to crash into a brick wall.

The crash was so severe that the jaws of life had to be used to get the driver, David Smith, 25, out of the Ford Explorer. Smith was transported to the Orlando Regional Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries.

The other two Grinches managed to jump out of the Ford Explorer and jumped the brick wall, leaving their buddy trapped inside. They ran off and, in a daring act, tried to hide from the cops in a tree.

But police used a K-9 unit to track down the two and barked at the tree until they came down.

Quinton Chambers, 24, and Shamoule Bridges, 21, were taken into custody without further incident.

According to the report, the Grinches had stolen cash, jewelry, and kids' Christmas presents from the home they had broken into. Deputies also found a stolen handgun, burglary tools, and drugs in the vehicle.

Chambers and Bridges were booked into the John E. Polk Correctional Facility on multiple charges of burglary, grand theft, and drug possession. Smith faces additional charges of driving with a suspended driver's license and fleeing and eluding. He remains hospitalized.

Send your story tips to the author, Chris Joseph. Follow Chris Joseph on Twitter



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