‘America’s dumbest criminal’ sends police a selfie after being unimpressed with his mugshot
A man on the run from police was so unimpressed with his ‘terrible’ mugshot, that he decided to send authorities a ‘better’ selfie.
Donald ‘Chip’ Pugh, 45 of Lima, Ohio, is wanted for failing to appear in court on a string of charges including arson and vandalism.
When Lima Police Department posted a photo of his mugshot online, the wanted man sent them a ‘better’ photo to use.
“Here is a better photo of me, that one is terrible,” he captioned the image, which features the suspect in a suit and wearing gold sunglasses.
The mugshot in question shows a very different looking Pugh with bloodshot eyes and a five-o’clock shadow.
“This photo was sent to us by Mr. Pugh himself,” LPD police wrote on their Facebook page.
“We thank him for being helpful, but now we would appreciate it if he would come speak to us at the LPD about his charges.”
While dodging the law, Pugh found the time to talk to a US radio station to explain why he didn’t like his original photo.
"Man, they just did me wrong," he told 104.9 The Eagle.
"They put a picture out that made me look like I was a Thundercat ... or James Brown on the run. I can't do that."
By sending his more flattering selfie, he has attracted even more attention to his mugshot, with Facebook users comparing him to actor Alfonso Ribeiro, who plays Carlton on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
Many users commented on Pugh’s decision to send in a selfie, with one user labeling him ‘America’s dumbest criminal’.
“You can't buy stupid. It comes naturally,” one person wrote.
“His arrogance is, or will be, his undoing,” another man said, with police sharing the same view.
"He's drawing more attention to himself, which is going to make it easier for us to locate him, because the more attention that this post garners, the more people are going to see it, the more tips are going to come in about this guy," Lieutenant Andy Green told YourNewsNow.
"So our hope at this point is that he will come to his senses and turn himself in and stop making this worse for himself."
The LPD are still searching for the image-conscious crook, who has labelled himself as a ‘hometown hero’.
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