Stoner Claus: Guy Dressed as Santa Arrested for Giving Out Bags of Weed

December 19, 2017
By: Catherine Townsend

Photo by: Seaside Police Department

Seaside Police Department

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SEASIDE, CA — Christmas came early for patrons of a California restaurant when Santa Claus showed up with a sack full of weed.

A 57-year-old Monterey Peninsula man, Randy Lange, was arrested in January 2015 after police say he handed out marijuana to customers and staff at the Buffalo Wild Wings in Seaside.

The Monterey County Herald reported that Lange claimed to be Santa Claus and said the pot was a gift to the recipients, according to a press release from the Seaside Police Department. At around 4 P.M., Lange was allegedly seen wrapping marijuana in napkins and handing it out to people inside the restaurant.

Lange also allegedly gave one employee a napkin filled with pot, put cannabis in the tip jar, and told diners that “he was Santa and that he had a gift for them,” authorities said.

Customers called police, and after officers arrived on the scene, they found two pounds of pot on Lange, who was arrested for furnishing marijuana.

“He told me he likes giving out marijuana. I have never experienced anything like this,” Sergeant Nicolas Borges said.

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