Brian Couture was arrested and charged with initiating a false report and improper use of an emergency reporting system. The crime he committed is incredibly embarrassing. According to KPTV, Couture faked a home invasion to cover for the fact that he stole the money his daughter raised by selling Girl Scout cookies.
The 40-year-old Couture stole more than $700, according to Global News.
From the report:
Police said Couture called 911 on March 6 and reported that someone had gotten into his home through a sliding glass door leading to a struggle. Couture was unresponsive when police arrived and he was taken to the hospital. The area was searched, but no suspect was located.
“There’s a distinct difference between being unconscious and being unresponsive,” Forest Grove Police Captain Michael Hall said, via KGW8. “It’s kind of really strange though, did he hit himself in the head,” Gwin asked. “He went away in an ambulance.”
After Couture called 911, police began an all-out search — which included a K-9 unit — for the alleged break-in suspect.
Of course, no one was found.
Couture eventually “admitted to Forest Grove Police investigators that the alleged incident was staged” and that he faked the robbery in order to “conceal the theft of money belonging to a non-profit organization, that was spent inappropriately.”
The Girl Scouts have since responded to the news.
“On Friday, a troop family reported to us that a theft had been experienced and we started our internal process when things like that take place, and then this morning we learned of the arrest and that changed our perspective a little bit,” said Sarah Shipe, of the Girls Scouts of Oregon and Southwest Washington. “As stewards of that money for girls, we really want to protect that and it’s constantly our top priority to make sure that those funds are used as they’re meant to be used.”
Couture was released from jail on Tuesday, April 2.
Don’t steal your kids’ Girl Scout cookies, folks.
