It's never a good idea to run up a restaurant tab and then skip out on the bill -- and it's an even worse idea when said eatery is lousy with cops.

After Alan Golden, 22, of New Mexico, ate dinner with a group of friends at a local Applebee's, they thought they'd pull a classic dine-and-dash on the $30 tab. His two companions left ahead of him, and then Golden allegedly tried to slip out behind them.

What he apparently didn't know was that the restaurant was taking part in the Tip-a-Cop fundraiser that day, wherein numerous area law-enforcement officers act as hosts and servers to collect tips for athletes participating in the New Mexico Special Olympics. Which meant not only did Golden try to stiff a charity event, he tried to stiff a charity event being run by police officers.

It didn't take long for the cops to snag him, proving that sometimes, karma will literally chase you right out the door.

[via Las Cruces Sun-News]