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Man Arrested After Sending Selfie to NYPD From Stolen Phone, Officials Say

By Aidan Gardiner | February 27, 2014 1:51pm | Updated on February 27, 2014 3:14pm
 Muggers uploaded selfies from a phone they stole in one of four robberies, police said.
Muggers uploaded selfies from a phone they stole in one of four robberies, police said.
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NYPD

MANHATTAN — A man was arrested Monday after he accidentally sent a photo of himself to police from a phone stolen in a string of Harlem muggings, officials said.

Jazeke Samuels, 20, who was charged with criminal possession of stolen goods, told authorities that he only bought the stolen phone, he didn't steal it, according to a criminal complaint.

Two suspects mugged an 18-year-old boy at Seventh Avenue and West 117th Street about 8:30 p.m. on Sept. 24 and ran off with his phone, police said.

A short while later, Samuels bought the phone from the suspects who told him that it was stolen, he told prosecutors, according to court documents.

Samuels started taking photos of himself which were automatically uploaded to the victim's photo sharing account and into the hands of investigators, the NYPD said.

They showed him in a black Lacoste hoodie with white earplugs dangling from his ears.

He was not charged with the theft of the phone or in connection to any of the other muggings, a police spokesman said.

Samuels was released without bail after his arraignment and due back in court in April, records show.

He has been arrested seven other times, a police spokesman said, including in 2011 when he was caught up in a high-profile Harlem gang takedown.

He was also arrested in April 2010 for disorderly conduct because he was obstructing traffic, an NYPD spokesman said.

The Sept. 24 mugging that lead to Samuels' arrest was the last of four similar muggings in which two thieves ran off with cellphones, money and a MetroCard, police said.

None of the victims were injured, police said.

Samuels was the only person arrested in connection to the muggings, a police spokesman said.

Police said their investigation was ongoing.