The largest gun bust in the history of New York City was set in motion in part by a few pictures on Instagram.
The New York Police Department announced Monday the seizure of 254 guns as part of an illegal gun smuggling ring that transported weapons to the city from North and South Carolina.
In total, 19 suspects have been indicted on 552 total counts of conspiracy, criminal sale of a firearm, and criminal possession of a weapon charges as the result of a 10-month investigation that moved in focus from narcotics to weapons when investigators came across Instagram photos showing handguns and wads of cash.
Alleged criminal incriminates himself
An aspiring rapper from Brooklyn, 26-year-old Matthew “Neno” Best, uploaded the incriminating pictures to the popular photo-sharing service during the course of working with a group of gun smugglers, various outlets state. Best also released a mixtape, Live From The Carter, in 2011.
On social media platforms and throughout his music, Best did not shy away from references to criminal activity. Aside from a persona that pays homage to the fictional drug kingpin Nino Brown from the 1991 movie New Jack City, his opus Live From The Carter features many songs in which Best alludes to his alleged crimes.
The chorus of one song, “Gettin’ Money,” contains the refrain, “Getting’ money/ You can see I shine/You can tell a d-boy/By the way I grind.” The NYPD took note of Best’s “shining” — usually illustrated with photos — on social media.
At Monday’s press conference, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said the investigation took off after Best boasted on YouTube that he was, “packing more guns than the Air Force.” Best’s Instagram account has been deleted, but images captured from it show wads of bills, weapons and, according to reports, he tagged Omole Adedji, 31, on the photo-sharing network, who police now say was responsible for procuring the guns from the Carolinas, while working with two additional gun runners.
And Best is not alone. In recent years, news reports have been peppered with incidents of criminals busted after sharing their illicit acts online.
Social media sharing sheds light on crime
In 2011, a Philadelphia woman offered $1,000 via Facebook to anyone that would kill the father of her child, leading to her apprehension by authorities. Last year, a Miami man was arrested after posting a video to Facebook of himself having sex with 14-year-old girl. Earlier this month, a single tweet put a man on the radar of his local authorities.
Sunith Baheerathan, a mechanic at a Mr. Lube location near Toronto, shared in a message on Twitter stating that he was looking to buy marijuana. “Any dealers in Vaughan wanna make a 20sac chop? Come to Keele/Langstaff Mr. Lube, need a spliff or two to help me last this open to close,” the tweet read.
Before long, he was met with a response from an account belonging to the local police department. “Awesome! Can we come too?” While no arrests were made, the tweet by the police received more than 7,000 retweets. When Baheerathan’s employer caught on, he was promptly terminated.
A social media shift in policing
These events and the recent weapons bust signal a shift in policing, one in which investigations take advantage of online evidence and suspects often tip police off themselves through their social media engagement.
Facebook Chief Security Officer Joe Sullivan told Reuters last year that the company has developed software to scan posts and chats for criminal activity, then passing information over to the appropriate authorities.
And perhaps unbeknownst to many (including Matthew Best) the NYPD has a special unit that monitors social media sites for clues of criminal acts. In August, the department announced the creation of its “Social Media Unit.”
The unit operates under the Community Affairs Bureau, in part, scouring MySpace, Facebook, Twitter and — no doubt now – Instagram.
Follow Donovan X. Ramsey at @iDXR