By Police1 Staff
A federal judge has ruled that police can create fake social network profiles on sites such as Facebook and Instagram to search through a suspect’s account to use against them in court.
United States District Judge William Martini denied a defendant’s motion to suppress evidence collected from his Instagram profile after he connected with an account created by undercover police officers, according to CNN.
Judge Martini ruled that the sharing of information was consensual after suspect Daniel Gatson accepted a request to become friends with an undercover officer, enabling law enforcement to view photos and other information that he posted to his Instagram account.
As a result, the police did not need a search warrant.