Photo Credit: Fox 10
In a city where everything is photographed for Instagram, from your pink pasta to your overpriced mimosas, two alleged lovebirds forgot one crucial Scottsdale survival rule: assume you’re always on camera.
Last month, Corrisa K. Sucanick, 30, and Brian H. Morrow, 39, were arrested for what can only be described as the most romantically misguided burglary in Old Town history. The dynamic duo allegedly decided that Mon Cheri, that rose-covered, Instagram-worthy restaurant where bachelorette parties go to die happy, would make the perfect setting for their crime spree. And by crime spree, we mean stealing cash, liquor, and apparently, a moment.
According to Scottsdale PD, the pair broke into the restaurant near Indian School Road and Goldwater Boulevard in the early hours of Oct. 25, helping themselves to approximately $450 from the cash register, an iPhone, and a bottle of Bacardi rum. But here’s where things get… interesting. They also allegedly had sex inside a rose display designed for guests to take Instagram photos.
Yes, you read that correctly. The very same photo backdrop where countless bridal parties have posed with champagne flutes became the scene of what police delicately termed “alleged amorous activities.”
The restaurant’s owner, Lexi Caliskan, put it best when she told reporters, “They got caught in the moment, there’s roses everywhere, maybe it was kind of romantic but modern-day Bonnie and Clyde.” She also noted, with what we can only assume was exasperation, “Help.. they violated our roses.”
Now, here’s the thing about Mon Cheri: it’s decked out with roses and chandeliers, designed specifically to be an Instagrammable spot for girls’ brunches and celebrations. The entire establishment is basically a surveillance-friendly wonderland, complete with a ring-light adorned photo booth in the main inside dining area featuring a heart-shaped faux rose wall.
So naturally, the restaurant’s security cameras captured everything. And unlike most Old Town establishments where blurry footage leads nowhere, the suspects didn’t use facial coverings to conceal their identity. Because when you’re swept up in romance among the roses, who thinks about mundane details like surveillance technology?
Thanks to that crystal-clear footage and tips from the community (read: people who recognized them), Sucanick was arrested Nov. 3 in Scottsdale and Morrow was arrested the next day at a Motel 6 in Phoenix. Because of course the romantic getaway ended at a Motel 6.
Both face burglary charges, with Morrow also charged with possession of burglary tools. As for their passionate interlude? Police said that element did not meet the criteria for criminal prosecution. Small mercies.
The moral of this very Scottsdale story? If you’re going to commit crimes in Old Town, maybe pick a location that isn’t specifically designed for maximum photo documentation. And if you simply must get frisky during your felony, perhaps choose a venue that doesn’t literally market itself as an Instagram photo oasis.
After all, in Scottsdale, if it’s not documented on camera, did it even happen? Unfortunately for our amorous alleged burglars, it happened. And so did the arrests.