A celebration to kick off the Tim Horton’s Smile Cookie campaign got off to a suspicious start at the Edmonton Convention Centre Monday.

“I do believe a crime has been committed this morning – I think someone stole our cookies,” deputy chief Derek McIntyre with the Edmonton Police Service (EPS) said.

The suspect was quickly identified as the Cookie Monster himself.

The EPS tactical section members located him in the rafters and rappelled down after him. A high stakes pursuit ended in a dramatic arrest.

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“It felt really good to not only to catch the Cookie Monster, but that the Cookie Monster apologized and we were able to let him go with a warning,” McIntyre said.

With the cookies recovered, Kids and Families from Radius Health’s Pregnancy Pathways program were finally able to decorate them.

“We believe in empowering police officers to use their specialized skills – skills the rest of us don’t have to impact the community in unique and innovative ways, and this is just an example of that,” Edmonton Police Foundation (EPF) executive director Elisha Jackson said.

For a second year, the EPF was selected as the Smile Cookie campaign recipient.

Every $2 cookie sold at Edmonton locations will help fund EPF youth programs.

“It’s just helping youth stay on a positive path away from cycles of crime, harm and victimization,” Jackson said.

Last year, the initiative raised nearly $400,000.

“These programs, they change youths lives. Young people get some better outcomes, are at a better place in their life because of this money,” McIntyre said.

The campaign is on until May 3.

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