The Freeland Police Department in Pennsylvania may have stumbled upon an innovative new way to catch suspects using social media. Unfortunately, it requires all fugitives to be as stupid as Anthony James Lescowitch, Jr.
The department posted the following status on its official Facebook page late Monday evening, asking for information about the whereabouts of Lescowitch, who was wanted for a wide range of charges stemming from an incident back in July:
Within minutes, Lescowitch had shared the status to his own Facebook page. If you’re trying to decide whether he’s incredibly ballsy or just stupid, the next chapter of the story has your answer:
An officer pretending to be an attractive woman then messaged Lescowitch, according to police. Lescowitch refused the offer of a drink but eventually agreed to meet for a cigarette, and was arrested at the agreed-upon location.
The entire saga took only 45 minutes from share-to-capture, according to the department’s followup status. Which makes it all the more baffling that Lescowitch had been evading police since November.
Lescowitch remains in the Luzerne County Jail today, where he faces a preliminary hearing on charges including aggravated assault, reckless endagerment, and disorderly conduct.