A Christmas miracle was necessary to rescue a man from Massachusetts who became trapped in a chimney while from the authorities.
“Detectives from the Community Action & Suppression Team (CAST) executed a search warrant for 127 Canal Street” on the evening of Tuesday, Dec. 10, according to a Facebook post by the City of Fall River Police Department.
After “two males fled from the residence via rooftop,” according to authorities, one of the men, later named as 33-year-old Robert Langlais, “invoked the essence of the seasonal icon [Santa Claus] and attempted to hide inside of a chimney,” as described in the Facebook post.
“Langlais quickly became stuck in the chimney and required the assistance of the very detectives he was previously fleeing from,” investigators said.
“With the help of the Fall River Fire Department and Fall River Emergency Medical Services, Langlais was rescued and taken into custody. Due to his Santa-antics, Langlais was transported to a local hospital out of precaution and was medically cleared,” they continued.
According to the police, the second suspect “eluded capture by bounding from the roof and onto a parked vehicle.”
One cop said, “He’s on the roof!” and then added, “Hey!,” in the bodycam footage that the police posted to Facebook. “Hey! Get down here… show your hands or I’m gonna come up there and grab you.”
A member of the public tipped off the police, who then asked, “Are you stuck?” after finding Langlais in the chimney.
After Langlais was apprehended, he was “formally arrested for Possession of Class A drugs, Possession of Class B drugs and a slew of charges from outstanding warrants,” according to the police’s Facebook post.
“Also present and arrested, with less theatrics, was Tanisha Ibay (age 32) for the charges of Possession of Class A drugs and Possession of Class B drugs,” the authorities said.