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Big Bend National Park Vandal Easily Tracked Through Photos, GPS Coordinates

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Yet another wayward soul intent on making their illegal mark on a national park has been done in by their need to promote their vandalism.

In this case the park was Big Bend National Park in West Texas, and the authorities had an easy time tracking the vandal: Not only had he showcased his crime on his blog, but he also had a SPOT tracking device that led rangers to his location. Here's how rangers described the incident:

On November 7th, rangers were contacted by a concerned citizen who informed them of a solo motorcycle adventurer's blog. The blog detailed the journeys of the rider, up to and including photos which had been taken in the park that day.

These photos included images of the rider’s motorcycle (and its license plate) and revealed that the rider had stayed at the Cottonwood Campground for two nights. Registration records provided his name, mailing address, and phone number. The photos also showed the rider vandalizing a historic structure, by signing his name and the date on the structure.

Through their investigation, rangers found a link to the rider's active SPOT device, which provided the rider’s exact location. Using this information, rangers drove up to where the rider was sitting in the local town of Terlingua.

When they approached the rider, he confessed: "I know what this is about and I am guilty."

Comments

Nice outcome for another case of park vandalism. Kudos to the citizen who first reported this - and to the park for quick followup. Maybe this situation shows that access to high-tech communications in parks has some unexpected advantages, if it allows idiots to promptly post their misdeeds for all the world to see, and thereby hasten their own undoing :-) 


Sounds like he was trying to get caught.


It was a cry for help.


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