Two Daytona Beach police officers escorting Mr. and Mrs. Claus to a tree lighting ceremony broke up a major theft ring in the parking lot Saturday night, the Police Department said.

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Officers Joe Evans and Courtney Wooleyhan were returning to duty, after escorting Santa and Mrs. Claus to the Tanger Outlets tree lighting, when they saw two men stealing a tire from a vehicle in the parking lot.

The officers detained the men as well as two women who accompanied them.

Inside the suspects’ car, the officers found stolen merchandise from Old Navy, H&M, Express, Polo, Rue 21 and Under Armour.

Police identified the suspects as Johnarian Young, 19; Shaijuan Christie, 25; and Debbie Champagnie, 47, and an unidentified 16-year-old.

The stolen merchandise and tire were returned to their rightful owners, police said.