Social Networks, Criminal Networks?

19.03.2010

Graffiti artist Cyrus Yazdani (known through his graffiti tags as "Buket") started posting YouTube videos of his "artwork" on Los Angeles walls, busses, and highway overpasses, and became, well, rather popular. His videos, including an of him tagging a highway overpass, drew more than 500,000 views. Unfortunately, some of those views were from the LAPD, who arrested him on charges of felony vandalism in May 2008.

On February 3, 2010, Chris Crego was arrested at his workplace in Terre Haute, Indiana, after he posted the details -- including his work hours -- to his Facebook and MySpace pages. Crego was previously arrested in the fall of 2009, in New York, for assault -- to which he pled guilty and promptly fled the state.

Detectives started looking for Crego on the internet and found a Facebook page and a MySpace account, both of which listed his current residence as Terre Haute, Indiana, and his place of employment as a tattoo parlor called Body Art Ink. Using this information, U.S. Marshals in Indiana easily tracked Crego down.

to one year and 15 days in Niagara County Jail on assault and driving while intoxicated charges.