Tim Ryan, tryan@wolfrivermedia.com
Contributed Image The Shawano County Sheriff’s Department posted this photo on Facebook following a burglary Jan. 29 in Bowler. The posting prompted numerous responses and led to identifying the suspects. Area law enforcement agencies are increasingly including use of social media in their investigations.
Social media, and particularly Facebook, is quickly becoming a standard tool for law enforcement, allowing for community outreach and soliciting the public’s help in solving crimes.
A recent incident in which a burglary suspect’s photo was posted was shared 225 times by Facebook users and seen by 16,000 people, according to Shawano County Sheriff Adam Bieber.
“There was a lot of interaction on that photo and a lot of comments,” he said.
The photo, which shows a woman and another suspect getting into a vehicle, was taken from a trail camera that had been set up in the yard of a residence in Bowler.
That turned out to be a lucky break for law enforcement and the homeowner.
“Most people don’t have surveillance cameras,” Bieber said. “Most people don’t take those steps to have added security around their house. But these folks happened to be going on vacation and they thought it would be a good thing to do.”
The photo was first sent to regional law enforcement, but no one was able to identify the woman.
The sheriff’s department then turned to Facebook. Comments started coming in within a couple of hours, mostly about the vehicle, but still no identification of the woman, until the burglary victim checked the Facebook page.
“From what I understand, the homeowner saw the photo on Facebook and recognized the woman,” Bieber said. “It was the person that routinely cleans their house.”
This was just the latest case in which Facebook played a part in the sheriff’s department’s criminal investigations.
Last May, a Facebook posting regarding a rash of vehicle break-ins — including $20,000 taken from an unlocked vehicle — led to the identification and arrests of three juveniles.
“A woman read that and knew it was one of her relatives,” Bieber said.
In September, another burglary caught on camera yielded photos posted on Facebook and the subsequent identification and arrests of three suspects.
In November, a man who escaped from the Winnebago Correctional Center was captured in the Shawano area after his photo was placed on Facebook.
Earlier this month, a man wanted by Antigo police was recognized at a store in Wittenberg after Shawano County authorities shared his photo on Facebook.
The man led authorities on a high-speed chase that ended in Marathon County. He was alleged to also have marijuana, heroin and methamphetamine in his vehicle.
Bieber said here have been quite a few tips based on Facebook postings.
“We’re getting a lot of tips regarding drugs, welfare fraud and burglaries,” he said.
Bieber said his main goal in using Facebook, however, is community outreach and education.
The site routinely promotes classes the sheriff’s department conducts on concealed carry, self-defense and CPR.
Weather information, such as icy road warnings, are also regularly posted.
Bieber also posts news about what’s going on at the department or the county jail, such as the recent announcement that 244 jail inmates had gone through the Alcoholics Anonymous program.
Noteworthy incidents from the daily incident log are also sometimes posted, but without names or detail.
“I don’t want people to get into a bickering match,” Bieber said. “I just say, ‘This is what happened; people were arrested. Your justice system is working.’”
Bieber said social media is important for law enforcement because it allows authorities to educate the public about what departments do and how they do it.
“An educated public is better for everybody,” he said.
The Shawano Police Department also keeps a regularly updated Facebook page.
Shawano Police Chief Mark Kohl, who also keeps touch with the public through a Twitter account, called social media a viable tool today’s crime fighting efforts.
“With the increase in social media use by our younger generation, and the gradual increase by the older population, we find ‘getting the word out’ as very effective,” he said.
As with the sheriff’s department, the police Facebook page emphasizes public outreach, offering news on upcoming classes and tips on helping citizens avoid becoming victims of crime. Many Facebook users share that information with others.
The department has also received information that has led to the arrests of wanted persons whose photos have been posted on the site, Kohl said.
Facebook postings have also helped solve a number of shoplifting cases, according to Kohl.
“We received a lot of comments and responses dealing with our shoplifting suspects,” he said. “Our retail establishments send us photographs which result in many apprehensions.”