Police respond to ‘break-in,’ find music video shoot instead

From San Diego Union Tribune.com (Dec. 8):

PEMBROKE PINES, Fla. —

Police in South Florida descended on what they thought was an armed break-in at a men’s clothing store Tuesday morning after people were spotted storming in with rifles — but officers arrived to find a music video filming, all with the store owners’ knowledge.

The guns were not real and the men holding them were actors in a video, said Amanda Conwell, a spokeswoman for the Pembroke Pines Police Department.

The music video was being filmed inside the men’s clothing and accessories store with a film crew while the larger shopping center was closed, The Miami Herald reported, citing a store manager. The manager said the filming was supposed to take less than an hour.

But a witness saw the events unfolding, and not knowing it was staged, called police, authorities said. The scene being filmed depicted two men with guns entering the store and demanding workers to put money in the bag, according to the news outlet.

Pembroke Pines officials said the city had not given a permit for the filming, and the shopping center’s management team said in a statement that it was also not aware of the video. [read more]

The men’s clothing store should have let the police know or the local news know what was going on so the police wouldn’t waste a trip to the clothing store.