It’s a Fair Cop! Facebook Used in Undercover Operation

Police in Canada’s capital city, Ottawa, went undercover on Facebook to arrest a man who possessed an unlicensed handgun. The suspect pleaded guilty in court this past weekend. In stark contrast to the United States, Canada has strict firearm laws, requiring the registration and appropriate storage of any gun owned by a civilian. According to media reports, Christopher Huxford tried to illegally acquire a handgun for his protection and then decided to post pictures of himself brandishing what resembled a weapon on his Facebook profile. The 24 year old man had reportedly made his profile completely open for all to view—thus removing all privacy restrictions–and as such, police received a tip back in the summer from someone who had seen these photos on the site.

Authorities then proceeded to use the social networking site to make an arrest. An officer reportedly created a fake Facebook profile and then added Huxford as a friend. The uncover cop soon received a message from Huxford asking if he would be willing to sell him a gun. The 24 year old Facebook user agreed to meet his new online friend in person and even brought $800 in order to purchase a firearm from the uncover detective. He was arrested on the spot and will be sentenced in January 2010.

When asked why he used Facebook to buy a handgun, Huxford indicated that he thought it would be “cool.” The defendant’s attorney argued that photos of Huxford apparently holding what appeared to be a gun on Facebook were actually fake and that police may have known that these were not real weapons. But the most interesting aspect of the story pertains to Huxford’s past experiences with weapons. The 24 year old man was actually the victim of a shooting at Ottawa’s Rideau Centre shopping centre in 2004, where he was shot in the neck.