‘Passed out drunk’: Raccoon breaks into, ransacks Hanover ABC store

HANOVER COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — A crime unlike any other unfolded at the Ashland ABC store over the weekend -- involving a tipsy, furry suspect.

Animal control officers say a raccoon helped itself to bottles of alcohol before passing out in the store bathroom. Employees discovered the animal face down next to the toilet the morning of Saturday, Nov. 30.

The animal had left behind a trail of broken bottles, ransacked shelves -- and a cleanup crew left scratching their heads.

Officer Samantha Martin of Hanover County Animal Protection was the one to respond to this unusual call.

Nov. 29 incident involving a raccoon breaking into a Hanover County Virginia ABC store. (Photo: Hanover County Animal Protection and Shelter)

Nov. 29 incident involving a raccoon breaking into a Hanover County Virginia ABC store. (Photo: Hanover County Animal Protection and Shelter)

Nov. 29 incident involving a raccoon breaking into a Hanover County Virginia ABC store. (Photo: Virginia ABC)

"He locked himself in the bathroom, passed out drunk, after he probably knocked over a good 30 to 40 bottles of liquor," she said.

Martin said the raccoon apparently made its dramatic entrance the day before.

New York Times says Richmond clothing store is one of America’s best

"Supposedly, he crashed the ABC store on Black Friday," she said. "He was found right when the store manager got there.”

Photos from the scene show the raccoon sprawled out amid the damage -- a mess made even more mysterious, because there’s no surveillance video of how it happened.

According to Martin, the raccoon fell through the ceiling, taking out security cameras as it dropped into the store.

The incident quickly went viral, drawing people out just to visit the building.

Mischief, the nearly 20-pound cat up for adoption in Goochland

"I thought it was just a generic viral post that happened somewhere else," said Ashley Brown. "I was stunned that it just happened up the street from our house.”

Brown and her daughter, Quincy, went to the store to see it for themselves. Quincy told 8News she gave the raccoon a name: "Racooney-coon."

Hunter Southall, who works in the area and was walking past the store when 8News visited, was shocked to learn what happened -- but it gave him a good laugh.

“He must have been going through a lot of stuff," Southhall said. "Must have just been too stressed out. Kids at home … who knows?"

Many Richmond streets to see closures for Dominion Energy Christmas Parade

After sleeping off his bad decisions, the raccoon was safely released back into the wild, Martin said.