A thief in southern Illinois posted a pic to Facebook that helped land her behind bars.
Police in West Frankfort say 27-year-old Danielle Saxton posted pictures on her Facebook page showing off a new dress.
But the problem was the dress was stolen from a local boutique.
“What she stole is a very distinct leopard dress,” said co-owner of Mortie’s Boutique Kert Williams.
Within hours after the theft, the boutique owners posted pictures of the stolen dress to their Facebook page, and people quickly put the two pictures together and Saxton was identified.
“We just had a description and a direction of travel, but when the social media aspect played into it, we were able to identify who it was. And by looking at the background of the photograph we were able to pinpoint where she was at,” said West Frankfort Police Chief Shawn Talluto.
Talluto says Saxton still had the clothes in her hand when officers arrived. Police also found two t-shirts, sunglasses and a necklace she had taken from the boutique.
They arrested her and later found she was wanted on another warrant in Jackson County.
He’s not surprised by the help from social media.
“When you put something out there, it’s a matter of minutes before it can go viral, and it can go to the world,” he said.
The CNN Wire contributed to this report.
