Bank robber arrested after boasting of crime on MySpace
Here's a bizarre use of MySpace that I'm actually glad about.
According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice in Columbia, S.C., a man's message on his MySpace page helped authorities arrest him on bank robbery charges.
Joseph Wade Northington, 27, of Roanoke, Va., pleaded guilty Thursday in a Columbia, S.C., federal court to using a firearm during a violent crime.
On January 20, during a visit to North Augusta, S.C. Northington allegedly robbed the Security Federal Bank there of $3,924. After he returned to Virginia, the man with whom he stayed during the visit allegedly recognized Northington in surveillance photos shown on television and notified authorities.
Investigators learned that Northington, who had a gunshot scar on his face, used MySpace, and accessed his page. There they found that he had posted a message mentioning the robbery: "One in the head still ain't dead!!!!!! On tha run for robbin a bank Love all of yall."
Nine days later, Northington was arrested in Virginia.
Northington is now facing a fine of $250,000 and imprisonment for a minimum of seven years and a maximum of life. By Thursday, Northington's MySpace page was still up with the status reading "Wanted."
Considering how he kept his MySpace status up to date, it's going to be very difficult for Northington's attorney to defend him. I just wonder how he's going to survive in a prison where the access to the Internet is limited, if available at all.
Dong Ngo is a CNET editor who covers networking and network storage, and writes about anything else he finds interesting. You can also listen to his podcast at insidecnetlabs.cnet.com. E-mail Dong. 
