A New Hamphire police officer caught the Christmas spirit early.
Portsmouth Officer Michael Kotsonis answered a call at the Ocean State Job Lots store following a shoplifting event.
According to a Dec. 3, 2015, UPI story, “Employees told him a woman had left the store with cake mix, Crisco and frosting. Kotsonis was able to identify a suspect and he visited her home, where he discovered the items had been taken to bake a child's birthday cake.
A police spokesman said, "She [said] the only reason she took what she took was because she couldn't afford it. The ingredients that we found out that she took were for a birthday cake for her daughter." The officer brought the stolen items to a store manager and said, "I'd like to buy it for them."
"I'm not going to take away a kid's birthday cake," Kotsonis told the local newspaper. "I ended up bringing it back to the mother." The policeman said he does not approve of the mother's actions, "but the kid shouldn't have to pay."