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Broward County Sheriff's Office
The photo provided by the Broward County Sheriff's Department shows Steven Mulhall, 21, of Coral Springs, on Facebook holding a judge's nameplate that was pried from the door of Broward Circuit Judge Michael Orlando's courtroom.
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Note to thieves. If you steal a nameplate from a judge, don't let anyone post a picture of you holding it on Facebook.
Authorities in South Florida say that's exactly what led to the arrest Thursday of 21-year-old Steven Mulhall on violation of probation charges.
Broward County Sheriff Al Lamberti told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel that Mulhall pried the $40 nameplate from the courtroom door of Broward Circuit Judge Michael Orlando while making a court appearance. He says Mulhall has multiple petty theft convictions and now faces felony charges.
"The nameplate is like only $40, not that big of a crime, but what an idiot. He puts it on Facebook," Lamberti told the Palm Beach Post. "Here he is flaunting it on Facebook. He violated the terms of his parole by stealing, from a judge he appeared before, no less. He's got multiple convictions for petty theft, so now this is a felony."
Girlfriend’s Facebook page
Deputies picked up Mulhall, Lamberti added, after verifying the suspect had appeared before Judge Orlando. The judge's nameplate was pried from the door around Feb. 23, according to the arrest report. A tip to Broward County Crime Stoppers led authorities to Mulhall.
"The tipster gave us his address, name and the Facebook page," Lamberti told the paper. The picture reportedly was found on Mulhall’s girlfriend's Facebook page. The girlfriend's name was Natalie ComaToze Segura, according to arrest records.
The nameplate will be returned to the judge. A phone number wasn't available for Mulhall.
Msnbc.com staff contributed to this report from The Associated Press.
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