This year, the Grinch is wearing blue instead of green.
On Christmas day, four Washington, D.C. police officers were caught on tape stealing from Toys for Tots, a charity organization that collects toys for poor children. The United States Marines led the group's toy collection drive.
Yvonne Smith, the Washington, D.C. police department's outreach coordinator, pleaded with the media for less focus on the crooked officers.
This "starts off Christmas on a sour note, puts distance between the community and the police, and worst of all, tarnishes the image of the Department during a time when we are trying to build strong relationships to foster trust that ultimately helps us solve crimes," she wrote in an e-mail to D.C.-area media.
Smith added that officers with her department had never done anything like this before -- both distributing, and stealing, the charitable toys.
No arrests have been made, but D.C. police say the officers have been placed on paid suspension pending the investigation's conclusion. Chief Lainer has vowed to see the officers "prosecuted to the full extent of the law."
