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Crucial spelling mistake revealed that fire vehicle was really a decoy, officials say

A decoy SUV featured a crucial spelling mistake at the U.S.-Mexico border.
A decoy SUV featured a crucial spelling mistake at the U.S.-Mexico border. Chief Patrol Agent of the U.S. Border Patrol's Tucson Sector

Someone made a bogus fire district SUV in Arizona - but they made a big error.

A crucial spelling mistake gave away a “cloned vehicle” in Arizona, U.S. Border Patrol agent John Modlin said. The car was modeled to look like it belonged to the fire chief.

The SUV should’ve said “Mormon Lake Fire Dist.” on the car door. Instead, it read “Mormon Like,” photos posted on Aug. 8 show.

Officers rushed to the scene, but no one was in the SUV when they arrived. Officials said several people fled to Mexico.

“Agents responded to a suspected vehicle incursion and encountered the abandoned SUV,” Modlin said on Twitter.

Modlin did not say what happened to the vehicle.

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This story was originally published August 9, 2022 at 1:20 PM with the headline "Crucial spelling mistake revealed that fire vehicle was really a decoy, officials say."

MC
Maddie Capron
Idaho Statesman
Maddie Capron is a McClatchy Real-Time News Reporter focused on the outdoors and wildlife in the western U.S. She graduated from Ohio University and previously worked at CNN, the Idaho Statesman and Ohio Center for Investigative Journalism.
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