People use Facebook for all sorts of reasons. Oftentimes a primary use is to keep track of family and friends through updates and photos. As technology has made it easier to record videos and take photos, people are sometimes less than judicious about the sorts of things they put onto their own pages. On occasion, this can get people into trouble. We have heard stories about people whose claims for workers’ compensation have been derailed after they posted photos of themselves engaging in activities like running marathons when they were not supposed to be able to walk, let alone run.
Now it appears that this has come into play in a child support enforcement case. A man in Wisconsin failed to pay $150 a month that he owed the mother of his child. However, the man posted pictures on his Facebook account of himself posing with large amounts of cash and bottles of liquor. It was not clear where the money came from, but the man seemed to want people to think that it was his.
Of course, a photo alone on a social media site is not enough evidence to charge someone with a crime. Investigators did say, however, that they began an investigation because of the photos. This led them to question the man’s family and friends to determine if he actually had resources available to him.
As a result of their investigation, the man now faces multiple felony charges of failure to support. He could face more than 10 years in prison if he is ultimately convicted of the charges.
Source: ABC News, “Facebook Money Pics Bust Dad for Allegedly Dodging Child Support,” Alexa Valiente, March 22, 2013
- Our firm handles cases in this vein. For more information, please visit our Dallas child support modifications and enforcement page.