Drunk raccoon found passed out after 'liquor-fueled rampage' at Va. store

Muri Assunção, New York Daily News on Dec 3, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

A “very intoxicated raccoon” was found passed out in the bathroom of a liquor store in Ashland, Va., over the weekend after breaking in and ransacking several shelves, officials said Tuesday.

The “Black Friday break-in” was discovered early Saturday morning by an employee at the Ashland ABC store.

The employee called the local animal control office to report that she had found the break-in “suspect” passed out on the bathroom floor.

Animal control officer Samantha Martin responded to the scene and “safely secured our masked bandit and transported him back to the shelter to sober up before questioning,” the Hanover County Animal Protection and Shelter said in a Facebook post.

After a few hours of sleep and no signs of injury — “other than maybe a hangover and poor life choices” — the raccoon was released safely back into the wild, hopefully after having learned that “breaking and entering is not the answer,” the agency said.

Officer Martin was commended for her professionalism and good humor in handling the “chaotic scene.”

“Just another day in the life at Hanover Animal Protection!” officials said.