"Caught Up in World Cup Fever": Peruvian Police Use Mascot Disguise to Nab Suspect

Peruvian police staged a unique operation, disguising themselves as 2026 FIFA World Cup mascots to raid a drug trafficking suspect's home and make an arrest.

On June 13 (local time), the Peruvian National Police released footage of the arrest on their official TikTok account.

In the video, two police officers drew attention by dressing up as "Clutch," the bald eagle, and "Maple," the moose—two of the mascots for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

FIFA introduced three mascots to symbolize the joint hosting of the North American World Cup: "Maple," "Zayu," and "Clutch."

Maple is a moose, a large deer species from Canada; Zayu is a jaguar representing Mexico; and Clutch is a bald eagle, the national bird of the United States.

The video shows the two officers, dressed as Clutch and Maple, using a hammer to break down a metal door before entering the house and apprehending a suspect wearing a white sleeveless shirt.

Police seized bags containing white powder and firearms before taking the suspect, identified as Carlos Cabrera, into custody.

Colonel Carlos Alcantara of the Peruvian police's "Green Squad" told the Associated Press, "We received intelligence that the suspect was a huge soccer fan and was completely caught up in the World Cup fever." He explained, "We disguised our agents as World Cup mascots so that the suspect would not be suspicious, allowing us to approach and make the arrest."

The police carried out the operation during the Group A opening match between Mexico and South Africa.

Previously, the Peruvian police have carried out operations disguised as various movie characters, including the Grinch, Freddy Krueger, Deadpool, Wolverine, and Santa Claus, to avoid raising suspicion among their targets.

(Photo: Captured from Peruvian Police TikTok account, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.