WATCH: Robbery report turns out to be deer in store in Rockland

Local News

“While clearing the building, officers were met with a fawn-tasic surprise, and caught like deer in the headlights.”

Oh dear, a robbery! Or, for Rockland, Maine, Police, it’s more like, “Oh, deer.” 

Body camera footage from a Rockland police officer showed a deer was the cause of damage to a local business that was originally thought to be a robber in desperate need of Thanksgiving plans. 

Around 1 p.m. Thursday, police responded to an alarm going off at a local business to find a shattered glass window and items inside the store knocked down, according to a statement.

Officers blocked off possible exits as they suspected the burglar was still in the establishment, police said. And they were correct — in a way. 

This body camera footage from the scene shows the culprit — a white-tailed deer — skidding around a corner, attempting to make a swift exit. 

“While clearing the building, officers were met with a fawn-tasic surprise, and caught like deer in the headlights,” according to a police statement on Facebook. The post described the suspect as “possibly trying to get a head start on some black Friday shopping.”

Police said officers assisted store management with herding the deer outside. The animal was able to leave the building on its own and was not seriously injured, according to officials.