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Facebook post helps police nab suspected thief

A TV reporter in Maryland had an enterprising idea to stop a local produce thief.

 

Jordan Valinsky

IRL

Posted on Sep 4, 2012   Updated on Jun 2, 2021, 11:43 am CDT

Here’s some news you can use: a television station in Maryland took to its Facebook page Aug. 30 to identify a suspected thief.

A produce owner in Salisbury, Md. claimed that an unidentified man was allegedly stealing money from his stand. He sent surveillance film to WBOC-TV reporter, Ko Im who posted it to the Salisbury, Md. television station’s Facebook page last Thursday asking users if they knew the alleged thief.

It worked. The post garnered 108 shares and 50 likes and hundreds of comments ridiculing the suspected thief.

“Looks pretty damn guilty to me,” wrote Gee Lancaster. Another commenter wrote that the video “trumps all allegations!!”

According to Im, someone tipped Maryland State Police of the thief’s identity thanks to the post.

“Thanks to social media and our Facebook fans, Maryland State Police say they now have a suspect in the theft case for a Salisbury produce stand,” Im wrote.

Im told MediaBistro that around 15,000 people saw the post.

“We got calls possibly identifying the man behind the theft at a produce stand—and by news time, police say they’ve got a suspect.”

Watch Im’s report below.

Photo via WBOC-TV

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*First Published: Sep 4, 2012, 11:45 am CDT