“He was released on no charges” : Internet reacts to drunk raccoon passing out at Virginia ABC liquor store

Reports of a raccoon entering a liquor store, Ashland ABC, are currently grabbing a lot of attention. The incident occurred last Saturday, November 29, during the early hours of the day.

The raccoon reportedly broke some bottles inside, due to which a lot of alcohol spilled on the floor.

ABC News stated that the animal passed out at one point after drinking alcohol and was discovered sleeping inside the bathroom.

Hanover County Animal Protection and Shelter shared a few snaps of the store and the animal on Facebook.

The post says that the local animal control official, Samantha Martin, was initially contacted by the liquor store. Martin found after arriving at the spot that many shelves were “ransacked.”

On the other hand, netizens reacted to the news on X, as they took to the comments section of a post by Collin Rugg.

One of the users seemingly gave a funny response, addressing the fact that no charges were imposed on the raccoon.

“And he was released on no charges. This justice system is broken”, @Mericamemed wrote.

Another user referred to the liquor brands that were possibly consumed by the animals.

“He mixed Glenfiddich with Limoncello. No bueno”, @24hourcampfire commented.

A user also questioned whether the animal was of the same age as where it can be allowed to have alcohol.

“Did the raccoon just turn 21?”, @realPabloClay said.

One of the individuals seemingly refused to believe that the animal entered the store by itself.

“So basically anyone can break into a store, drink the inventory, leave behind a racoon and they’re good?”, @Prochilles stated.

A user alleged that the animal was possibly involved in a similar incident in the past.

“He made it to the bathroom. I have a feeling this isn’t the first time”, @SoterMt said.

Samantha Martin shared her response to the raccoon incident

While announcing the news, Hanover County Animal Protection and Shelter described it as a “break-in” at the beginning of the Facebook post.

The organization praised Martin for how she handled the entire situation with “professionalism and good humor.”

They shared some more updates, as the statement reads:

“Officer Martin safely secured our masked bandit and transported him back to the shelter to sober up before questioning. After a few hours of sleep and zero signs of injury (other than maybe a hangover and poor life choices), he was safely released back to the wild, hopefully having learned that breaking and entering is not the answer.”

The post additionally described the animal as an “intoxicated raccoon” in the post.

Apart from the bottles being destroyed, the animal’s entry inside the store also led to the collapse of a ceiling tile, as stated by CBS News.

During her conversation with the Associated Press, Samantha Martin said that she was giggling when the animal was being taken to the shelter. She further stated:

“I personally like raccoons. They are funny little critters. He fell through one of the ceiling tiles and went on a full-blown rampage, drinking everything.”

As of this writing, Ashland ABC has not addressed anything about the incident from their side.