Such precautionary measures seemed to go over the head of a young Ohio couple who were recently arrested in connection with a bank raid in tiny Ashville, 20 miles south of Columbus.
John Mogan and Ashley Duboe came to the attention of cops after the couple posted at least five selfies on Facebook flaunting a large amount of cash.
One shows the couple handling what appears to be a substantial amount of money, while another has Mogan holding a thick wad of notes in his mouth.
Cops told NBC12 that the Facebook photos, witness statements, and Mogan’s previous conviction for robbery was enough to convince them that they had their man.
The couple allegedly committed the robbery last month, with cops moving in to make the arrests in recent days.
With so many people using Facebook, perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised about stories like these hitting the headlines from time to time.
The widespread use of social networking services – and some people’s tendency to post about every aspect of their life – certainly hasn’t gone unnoticed by the authorities, with police departments across the U.S. actively monitoring the sites for clues to crimes. Just recently we heard about San Francisco’s very own “Instagram officer” who scans the photo-sharing site on a daily basis, looking for signs of criminal behavior or additional information on suspects.
Still, some criminals make it easy for cops, hitting Facebook or similar sites to openly brag about their misdemeanors or foolishly draw attention to themselves. One guy in Montana was arrested shortly after “liking” his own wanted ad, while an Illinois woman was picked up by police after she posted a selfie wearing a recently stolen dress.
And then there was the guy wanted by cops who taunted them on Facebook with a “catch me if you can” message. He was arrested the next day.
