Stupid Crooks like This Make Life Easier for Everyone

There’s a surprising amount of policework that is really just not being dumb. My late father, for example, got an “attaboy” from the chief because of his diligent work solving a theft. What happened was that he simply followed the stolen lawnmower’s tracks in the dirt alley that led right to the thief.

A lot of it is much, much more complicated than that, admittedly, but sometimes, it’s just not. 

That’s especially true when the criminals make it easy on the police. See, most crooks don’t think they’ll get caught. They’re convinced they’re too smart or too lucky for the police to catch them. That might be true if they were actually smart, or maybe even lucky. Most of them aren’t. Then they make it even easier by doing stuff like this.

Social media posts led to a wanted felon being arrested and charged with possession of a machine gun on Indy’s northeast side this week.

IMPD says the case reflects an ongoing public safety priority.

At the time of the bust on Monday, the suspect was on probation after being convicted of a previous gun case as a juvenile, but that didn’t deter Patrick Owens from allegedly posing on Instagram with firearms while he had an active warrant out for his arrest.

Police claim Owens posted numerous videos with firearms on social media, which as a convicted felon, he is not legally allowed to carry.

That investigation led to the 18-year-old being arrested at an apartment complex near 42nd and Meadows Drive.

“This is super important because it highlights the great work we continue to do, getting repeat offenders and guns held unlawfully off our streets and keeping Indianapolis safe,” said IMPD officer Tommy Thompson.

Again, this is a felon in possession of a firearm, who flashed his guns on social media, where literally anyone could see it, including the police, and I bet he’s still trying to figure out how he got caught.

Then we have the fact that he was posting on social media at all while he had an active warrant out for his arrest. I mean, if 4Chan can figure out where Shia LaBeouf was hiding out based on flight patterns and star charts, you’ve got to believe the police can figure out where you are while you’re in the same city with them if you post enough.

I wish this were an unusual example of a particularly stupid criminal, but it’s not. I’ve seen these examples aplenty in my time at Bearing Arms, though most of the time I’ve got other stuff I need to cover. This time, though, something about this guy just struck me as the sort of person who needs to be roasted over and over again on the internet for this stupidity.

Police work, on the whole, can be very difficult. Despite my first paragraph of this post, I know it’s a tough job, even if there are times when just not being blind helps greatly. Guys like this make the job much easier on law enforcement, though, and for that, I say may all criminals share this level of intellect.

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