Watch Fla. Police Arrest Chuck E. Cheese Mascot at Restaurant: 'Come with Me, Chuck E.'

Tallahassee police handcuffed a Chuck E. Cheese worker dressed as the chain's mascot after the man was accused of fraudulently using a customer's credit card.

Sept. 3, 2025

3 min read

What to know

Tallahassee police arrested a 41-year-old Chuck E. Cheese employee, dressed in the mascot costume, on felony charges of credit card theft and fraud.
The suspect allegedly stole a customer’s card in June and made multiple purchases totaling $105.57 at local businesses in July.
Officers confirmed his identity with staff, found a matching receipt on him and took him into custody after a brief struggle.

By Kelly Corbett

Source syracuse.com

A Chuck E. Cheese employee was arrested this week (July 23) while working his shift dressed as the namesake mascot.

Jermel Jones, 41, was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly stealing a customer’s credit card last month (June), then using it for multiple purchases in July that totaled $105.57, per a police report obtained by E! News.

A photo of Jones dressed as the iconic rat being escorted out of Chuck E. Cheese in handcuffs has since circulated on social media. Kids are seen in the background watching the arrest.

Per the report, the customer whose card Jones had stolen had visited the Tallahassee Chuck E. Cheese location on June 28 for her daughter’s birthday. Soon after, she noticed charges on her bill “from establishments she did not shop at.” She flagged the transactions, which were made at 1Smoke Shop, Whataburger, Circle K, Time Saver, and other shops.

Then she allegedly visited one of these locations to obtain security footage of one of purchases and “immediately recognized the suspect as an employee at Chuck E. Cheese.”

Jarrett Cruz of the Tallahassee PD completed the arrest after confirming with another Chuck E. Cheese employee that Jones was working and was in fact in the costume when he arrived.

“As I approached Jones, I grabbed his right arm while giving the verbal instruction, ‘Chuck E, come with me Chuck E,’” the report said. “Jones immediately started tensing up locking both of his arms forward in front of his chest and attempted to pull away from my grip on his right arm.” Cruz further noted in the report that Jones was put “into double locked handcuffs and escorted to my marked patrol car.”

Jones denied stealing a customer’s credit card and then making fraudulent purchases with it, but officers found a receipt on him that allegedly matched one of the purchases in question.

He was charged with felony counts of credit card theft, criminal use of personal identification information (such as bank information), and fraudulent use of a credit card over 2 times/over $100.00.

In a statement to E! News on Thursday (July 24), the company said: “We are aware of an incident involving a part-time employee arrested at our Tallahassee location on Wednesday, July 23. We have taken the appropriate action concerning the subject employee.”

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