Cop buys groceries for alleged shoplifters

Somerset, MA -- a cop bought groceries for two women who were accused of shoplifting five days before the celebration of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. 

Police officer Matthew Lima was dispatched to a Stop & Shop grocery store, where two women with their youngsters were being detained for not scanning all of their groceries in the self-checkout aisle,  according to the Somerset Police Department.

"The two children with the women reminded me of my kids, so I had to help them out," Lima said in a  statement Tuesday.

When officer Lima arrived at the Stop & Shop, he spoke with one of the women accused of shoplifting and learned that they had fallen on hard times and did not have enough money to purchase an entire Christmas dinner.

"The woman I talked to, she explained she was working, but the mother of the children was not working and had some other family issues going on and that what she had taken was Christmas dinner for the kids," Lima told local news outlet WJAR.

Lima checked their receipts and saw they had only purchased food.

Store employees asked the two women to return the items they did not scan back onto the shelves and issued them a "Notice Not to Trespass" order. 

Lima, who has two young daughters himself, decided to help the two women. Rather than booking them for shoplifting, he bought them a $250 gift card to cover the full cost of their groceries. 

I have no proof, and I could be mistaken, but I somehow believe that Lima is not a socialist and may even be a Trump supporter.

"Obviously, this family was in need, and I can't imagine having to make the decision to go to Stop & Shop and just only pay for what I can afford -- or do I go there and try to take things for Christmas dinner for the kids?" Lima told station.

He added that the women were "very thankful" and "kind of shocked." It's unknown whether or not they were on the "defund the police" bandwagon prior to this incident, but it's unlikely they are after this incident.

"I just did what I felt was right. It's not about me, I just tried to put myself in that family's shoes and show a little bit of empathy," Officer Lima told WJAR.

The incident was "a true testament of Officer Lima’s great character and decision making," Somerset Police Chief George McNeil said in a statement.

"I would like to personally commend Officer Lima for his actions," McNeil said. "His actions exemplify what it means to protect and serve the members of our community. When faced with a difficult situation in which a family was trying to provide a meal for their kids, he made the generous decision to not press charges and instead ensured that they would have a Christmas dinner they could enjoy."

Democrats are still calling to defund the police, confiscate legal guns, and close down the prisons. 

What could go wrong?

Happy New Year to all!

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