New Hampshire Burglary Suspects Arrested in Facebook-Related Crimes

(Sept. 13) -- Three men in Nashua, N.H., have been charged with a string of burglaries after police say they used Facebook to check status updates to determine when potential targets were not home. The case is another in a long list of crimes linked to social media sites.

"The [suspects] have been connected to 18 burglaries," Lt. Jeff Bukunt of the Nashua Police Department told AOL News. "In some of the cases, the residents or the residents' teenage children had put on Facebook and other ... sites that they [were] either away on vacation or out of town."

According to Bukunt, the suspects, identified as Mario Rojas, 25, Victor Rodriguez, 17, and Leonardo Barroso, 17, stole more than $100,000 in cash and merchandise, including jewelry, precious metals and watches. Bukunt said the three suspects have been charged with multiple felony counts, each punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

Nashua Police Department

Three suspects who allegedly robbed houses after checking Facebook status updates are seen in these mugshots from the Nashua, N.H., police department. Shown from left are Mario Rojas, Victor Rodriguez and Leonardo Barroso.

"We anticipate [the] possibility of additional charges and possibly additional defendants," Bukunt said.

The investigation into the rash of burglaries began in May 2010. The case came to a head earlier this month when police learned that a significant quantity of stolen property was being stored at a Nashua residence.

Officers were sent to the Nashua home to secure the residence until they got a search warrant. While guarding the home, police said, they saw Rodriguez and Rojas trying to enter. The suspects fled into a wooded area but were caught after a short chase.

Detectives later found most of the stolen items inside the home. They also linked Barroso to the crime spree.

Bukunt said the ongoing investigation has revealed that the suspects used Facebook to target some of the homes they burglarized. Apparently, they searched out status updates in which people had stated that they were out of town for vacations or would not be home at certain times.

"We just [want to] remind people to be vigilant in protecting private information [and] preventing information like that from going out," Bukunt said.

The case in New Hampshire is not unique. A quick search of Google reveals multiple incidences of criminals using social networking and other interactive websites to target victims. Among them:

In March, an Indiana couple's home was burglarized after they posted a message on Facebook saying they were going to a concert. While they were gone, a pair of thieves stole more than $10,000 worth of items from their house.
In April, a couple in Tennessee chronicled their Florida vacation on Facebook. When they returned, they discovered that their house had been ransacked and that thousands of dollars' worth of electronics were missing.
And who could forget "the Bling Ring," a group of California teens who targeted several celebrities, including Paris Hilton, Orlando Bloom and Lindsay Lohan? The group allegedly used websites such as Twitter and TMZ to track their victims' movements. In total, they stole some $3 million in cash and belongings.