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A moment of apparent pride for the Detroit Police Department quickly turned into one of ridicule Thursday as online commenters swarmed a post about a bust that netted a bunch of fake Louis Vuitton and Gucci handbags.
The department post boasted of the vice unit's recent haul of nearly 700 counterfeit bags, confiscated after a man on 8 Mile tried to sell an undercover officer one for $150. Police took his bags and also his Chevy truck.
We'll admit, when we saw a TV news reporter share this story with a straight face this morning, we nearly spit out our coffee.
Others had a similar reaction. Here's a sampling of the approximately 700 comments under the post promoting the "Big Fake Bag Bust":
- "The struggling folk at Louis Vuitton thank you. Has anyone seen my catalytic converter?"
- "My cousin was murdered by a fake Gucci handbag that escaped from a high security prison. So glad these dangerous predators are off the streets"
- "This is petty, all the crime in Detroit and y’all pick this case to work on. Now we gotta go and order from DHgates and wait a year for my new Gucci."
- "Say what? I hope this is a joke post? ... I hope officers time not truly spent on something like this"
- "Pretty sure you have bigger fish to fry. Can’t believe you posted this!"
- "Now every DPD Officer including the men will be stunting."
A few commenters came to the department's defense with some speculative best-case scenarios. Maybe, they offered, the bust didn't take very long and was borne out of a resident complaint. Or perhaps fake-purse peddling is a more insidious crime than we realize.
We've reached out to the department to learn more.
