BYRAM, Miss. - Thanks to the vigilance of 5-year-old TyLon Pittman from Byram, Mississippi, the Grinch will not be stealing anyone’s Christmas this year.

On Monday night, with the help of Byram’s police department, TyLon "arrested" the Grinch after he made a 911 call over the weekend to report him.

“I just want to tell you something. Watch for that little Grinch. Because the Grinch is gonna steal Christmas, okay?” TyLon said on the 911 call, which was obtained by ABC News.

TyLon told police that he was terrified that the Grinch would steal his Christmas after he had watched YouTube videos about the character.

Officer Lauren Develle took his call and showed up at the house shortly after to reassure TyLon that she would not let the Grinch steal any presents this year.
The police department then decided they wanted to do something special for the boy who was worried not just about his own Christmas, but about whether other children would be able to celebrate the holiday too.

Byram Police Chief Luke Thompson told ABC News he invited TyLon to tour the station. When the boy arrived, officers surprised him with the Grinch in the back of a police car. Officers then let TyLon lead the festive crook to the holding room for questioning.

“It took him a while to decide that he wanted to let him out,” TeResa Brown Pittman, TyLon’s mother, told ABC News. “Then the Grinch talked to him and said he was sorry and that he would stop stealing Christmas presents.”

Brown said when she first heard that TyLon made a 911 call, she thought it was a joke -- until Develle showed up at their front door late Saturday evening.

“We all started laughing and thought, ‘No, he didn’t,’” said Brown of finding out that her son really did dial 911.

TyLon has always wanted to be a police officer, his mother added.

Thompson said he told TyLon that when he is 21, he can fill out an application to be a real officer. But that didn’t stop TyLon from offering up his assistance in the meantime.

“He told them to call him anytime and that he would come and help,” said Brown.