No matter how many times it's said--that Facebook posts will be subpoenaed for criminal prosecution--it's criminals that don't listen. Wiping your teeth with hundreds apparently attracts attention
Moral of the story: no matter how nifty your scam may be, keep it off Facebook. Hopefully bragging to all those valuable "friends" was worth getting busted. The defendants may have awhile, in prison, to ponder the concept.
Federal prosecutors say two former bank tellers at the Houston, Texas, International Bank of Commerce decided to recruit two additional members for a bank robbery: one boyfriend and one brother, along with the two tellers, are accused of stealing more than $62,000 from the Texas bank in late March.
The two female (and former) bank tellers are 18 and 19 years old, the recruits a 19-year-old boyfriend of one teller and 22-year-old brother of the other teller. All four are now indicted on charges of bank robbery and embezzlement.
It seems there was genius at work, with law enforcement alerted through anonymous tips that followed some Facebook time. If you were the employee at an actual bank that was robbed, perhaps it would be smartest to at least wonder if you're under some type of general surveillance for awhile -- a theory that, in general, seems not to have crossed the mind of at least one International Bank of Commerce teller.
But keeping under the radar obviously wasn't a large concern, since the teller allegedly broadcast the heist on Facebook instead.
Some Facebook updates look kind of suspicious for a teenager, and particularly suspicious for a teen bank teller: "IM RICH." and "WIPE MY TEETH WITH HUNDEREDS." It's the bank teller we all hope for, to count our hard-earned money and handle our legal tender -- the one who apparently can't get even a grasp on using simple punctuation, or is capable of correctly spelling a denomination they handled daily.
So, while suddenly being rich is an idea that can construe different meanings to different people, the "wipe my teeth with hundreds" status certainly helps clarify things to a whole different level.
Lesson #1: Don't post criminal activity as your status update on Facebook.
Lesson #2: Don't post criminal activity as your status update on Facebook, to "Friends" who may be jealous of said update. Obviously the "anonymous tip(s)" arrived to law enforcement via said "Friend(s)" who are going to rat you out.
The boyfriend's attorney claims his client is "extremely remorseful for what he's accused of doing," a statement which may go down as one of the most unique from legal counsel: people can be remorseful for what they've done, or people can be really remorseful for being caught -- but both, simultaneously, is kind of impossible.
Taking a stab at it, he's really, really, remorseful to have been busted. Possibly more remorseful about his choice in girlfriends -- the smart one with the clever "hundreds" updates that led to demise.
Lesson #3: Consider choosing a different girlfriend who won't pose her criminal activity on Facebook.