Assault Suspect On The Run Arrested After Posting Selfie On Facebook
AMBRIDGE (KDKA) – A man wanted on assault charges in Beaver County had a hand in his own arrest.
"I'm certain when he woke up that morning, the thought never crossed his mind that he was going to go to jail that afternoon," said Chief James Mann, of Ambridge Police.
Chief Mann says 22-year-old Donald Harrison had been on the run since Jan. 24 when he allegedly beat up a woman inside her own home in the 200-block of First Avenue.
He was arrested in Ohio after posting a selfie on Facebook while on a bus en route to South Carolina.
The alleged incident began as an argument, but eventually became physical.
The woman told police that Harrison refused to let her leave the apartment for more than 12 hours. During that time, Harrison allegedly body-slammed her to the point where she was losing consciousness, and covered her mouth so she could not scream for help.
Harrison also allegedly took her phone so she could not call police.
Eventually, Harrison left the apartment to call a friend to pick him up. At that time, the woman called police.
Shortly after the incident, Harrison posted a picture to Facebook with the caption "[On my way] TO SPARTANBURG SC SAY A PRAYER FOR ME"
"It's arrogance, I think. You could look at his picture, his expression, he thought he was slick and he's getting away and he's going to post it to rub it in the victim's face and our face, and it wasn't going to happen," said Chief Mann.
Police determined Harrison was on a Greyhound bus and learned it was scheduled to make a stop in Youngstown, Ohio.
Due to the result of a coordinated effort, Harrison was arrested when the bus made that stop.
Harrison is facing a list of charges including unlawful restraint, simple assault and harassment.
He's still in Ohio, awaiting his extradition back to Beaver County.
He is also facing assault charges stemming from an incident on Dec. 29.
Police say this is not the first time they've used the internet to catch criminals.
"We use social media to help us solve crimes, to help us further our investigations, and these dumb criminals that do this kind of stuff, in particular my incident, it might qualify him for an episode of 'Worlds Dumbest Criminals.'"
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