A Sicilian man showed up at a police station on New Year’s eve, asking to be arrested so he could spend the night in prison, but police officers told the man that they could not arrest him because he had committed no crime.

But the 35-year-old man, determined to avoid spending the night with his family at all costs, headed next door, stole a packet of chewing gum from a tobacco store, and waited for the police to arrest him for robbery.