A Florida police department came up with a creative way to combat vandalism to its Flock cameras by deploying a fake devices, nabbing a suspect and surprising the city's mayor.

Oviedo Police Chief Dale Coleman told WESH-TV that the decision to use fake license plate reader cameras came after two of the city's eight devices had been either vandalized or stolen. In a report to Megan Sladek, he said an officer used a 3D printer to create fake cameras, and they were donated to the department.

The fake cameras were deployed Aug. 16 at the sites of the missing cameras, Coleman's report to Sladek stated. The department saw results shortly before 1 a.m. Thursday. 

A 24-year-old man is accused of using pruning shears to damage the fake Flock camera. Charges against the suspect include vandalism and grand theft of property valued at $750 to $5,000.

This tactic came as a surprise to Sladek, who expressed her shock on social media after finding out about it.

"I am speechless," she wrote in a Facebook post, adding that the city council had already planned to discuss ending the use of Flock cameras.

Coleman told WESH that he thinks the devices are effective law enforcement tools.

"We're trying to be good stewards of what the people trust us to do, but we do know that it does benefit us when it comes to solving crime," he said.

Despite the controversy around Flock cameras, Sladek stated that vandalism and theft are not acceptable ways of expressing dissatisfaction with the devices.

"I don't care if it's a Flock camera, a piece of art, or graffiti in a public space, it's not right," she wrote. "The police caught a person who engaged in destroying public property, and that's what we hired them to do. They did their job."