CLERMONT — It’s not exactly “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas,” but it was a young girl, sort of like Cindy Lou Who, who put a stop to a Grinch wannabe porch pirate.

Carlos A. Moreno Marquez, 34, of Clermont, was charged with grand theft, burglary to an unoccupied dwelling and possession of burglary tools in the theft of packages from three addresses. But it was a sharp-eyed 11-year-old neighbor girl of Joe Lutes who furnished the clue in the who-done-it.  

Deputies went to Lutes’ home in the 16000 block of Lanesboro Court on Friday morning, and learned that a neighbor had not only seen a Hispanic man taking a package off his porch the day before, but also had the tag number of the purple Mazda four-door and surveillance video.

Chris Miller said his daughter, Isabella, was walking home from the school bus stop when she saw a man take the package and drive off in his car.

“So, she called me and gave me the description of the car,” Miller said. “I happened to be coming home to take her to another school function and I saw the car,” he said. He followed the vehicle and took down the tag number.

The Lutes’ loss? Thirty-five dollars worth of toilet paper.

Later that same day, deputies contacted a resident of the 17000 block of Magnolia Island Boulevard, who also had video of a thief who took a Dyson vacuum worth $328, some Keds sneakers worth $158 and a brush worth $60.   

They went to another home on the same street and talked to a man who said his doorbell surveillance    video also recorded a thief taking a package with an iPad case inside. All three victims described the man’s clothing as a white and grey shirt and blue jeans.

The arrest seems inevitable in retrospect. Neighbors had been on the lookout once they heard of someone stealing packages and began posting pictures on Facebook.

Deputies traced the car tag registration to an apartment in the 600 block of Birch Court. There, they met Moreno Marquez’s girlfriend, Lynn Shernowitz.

She was expecting them. She said she called authorities on Dec. 1 after seeing Facebook postings of Moreno stealing packages. She confronted him, and he admitted it, she said.

Moreno Marquez confessed to investigators, too. Shernowitz had been demanding that he contribute more to the household budget, he said. His contribution had been toilet paper and some frozen food. He denied taking the vacuum cleaner.

Deputies found a pair of binoculars in the Mazda. He said he had followed a UPS truck making deliveries.

The toilet paper was photographed for evidence and the swiped wipes were returned to the rightful owners.