Man's car torched after being named on 'snitching' site
TACOMA, Wash. -- A Tacoma man who says he's helped police put dozens of gang members behind bars is now the victim of a crime as a result of that help.
The man, who does not want his identity revealed, said a Facebook page dedicated to exposing "snitches" lead to someone torching his car.
The car was completely destroyed by fire last Wednesday after the man says he cooperated with police.
"They broke the driver's window, lit a road flare, threw it in, set it on the seat and took off running," the man said.
After his second felony conviction, the man vowed to stop crime rather than committing it.
"If there's crime happening and I can prevent it, I'm going to try," he said.
But people on a Facebook page called Tacoma Snitches posted his picture and transcripts of testimony he me made against alleged criminals. He was also a witness in another case, and he said his previous car was torched after that, too. He said he's even had to move out of his home because he fears he'll be targeted.
"The streets think this is a joke, and it's fun and games that this is what they're doing. And it's really not," the man said. "I don't see how justice is serving. I'm helping the county and Tacoma put people away who are doing the wrong thing. Most people wouldn't step up to the plate and tell about what happened."
Other than a hundred dollars here and there and some gas money, the man said he gets no help from police for helping them. After this latest incident, he now says he regrets working with the police.
"I did what I did to stay free, not to live my life in fear," he said.
A Tacoma police source confirms the essence of the man's story, and Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist said he expects a report on the incident from police. But both cautioned that there's a fine line between free speech on Facebook and criminal witness intimidation.
As for the Tacoma Snitches Facebook page, the administrator took it down after KOMO's original story, but the page is back up.
The man, who does not want his identity revealed, said a Facebook page dedicated to exposing "snitches" lead to someone torching his car.
The car was completely destroyed by fire last Wednesday after the man says he cooperated with police.
"They broke the driver's window, lit a road flare, threw it in, set it on the seat and took off running," the man said.
After his second felony conviction, the man vowed to stop crime rather than committing it.
"If there's crime happening and I can prevent it, I'm going to try," he said.
But people on a Facebook page called Tacoma Snitches posted his picture and transcripts of testimony he me made against alleged criminals. He was also a witness in another case, and he said his previous car was torched after that, too. He said he's even had to move out of his home because he fears he'll be targeted.
"The streets think this is a joke, and it's fun and games that this is what they're doing. And it's really not," the man said. "I don't see how justice is serving. I'm helping the county and Tacoma put people away who are doing the wrong thing. Most people wouldn't step up to the plate and tell about what happened."
Other than a hundred dollars here and there and some gas money, the man said he gets no help from police for helping them. After this latest incident, he now says he regrets working with the police.
"I did what I did to stay free, not to live my life in fear," he said.
A Tacoma police source confirms the essence of the man's story, and Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist said he expects a report on the incident from police. But both cautioned that there's a fine line between free speech on Facebook and criminal witness intimidation.
As for the Tacoma Snitches Facebook page, the administrator took it down after KOMO's original story, but the page is back up.
Sorry it's savetacomastreets1@gmail.com
I am the person who's car was on burnt down if any body would like to help me or give me some good Advice please email me at savetacomastreets@gmail.com
It does seem ill advised to testify against thugs in a hug a thug city. Sure your testimony will help secure a guilty verdict, but we all know the revolving doors of our jails are well lubed and spinning fast. Thug will be back to get you very soon.
Is there a place where we can donate to help this man repair or replace his car. Are the police even looking for the brute beasts that torched his car?
This will go on until either Facebook bans this kind of behavior or someone gets killed and Facebook gets sued. Make your choice Mr. Zuckerberg.Â
@I Like Meat So I wonder what this does for their stock?
 @DDG  @I If the nearly 7400 fans of that page were smart enough to read and had money to buy stock, it might actually go up!  But a quick glance implies none of that may be true.
Take down the authors of the web snitches site. They are directly responsible.
Time for a lawsuit against Facebook. It's their irresponsibility at the root of this.
i googled tacoma snitches but cant find it
 @deeznutz Go look for it on facebook.  It's there.
I can't believe all of these comments about wanting Facebook to bring down the page. What happen to protecting freedom of speech? I don't have a Facebook account and don't use it so I haven't seen the site; but if all it is doing is identify someone whose actions are already a part of public record, which testimony in a court of law, then what is the problem?
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I think a much better solution is for LOE to monitor the site and use the postings on it as evidence for prosecuting people for witness intimidation, if that is in fact what is happening.
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Also I think someone that works with the LOE to roll over on his fellow criminals to avoid imprisonment is by definition a snitcher. The same as a non-union laborer that crosses a picket line is a scab.
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snitch -
verb (used without object)
1. to turn informer; tattle.
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On another note, why are there two news story about facebook pages? I mean there must be a ton of facebook pages that would offend the majority of people if they got the publicity that these two pages are, how about reducing the influcence of these pages by simply not discussing them?
 @Justaguy Freedom of speech does not extend to yelling "fire" in a crowded theater. Nor to inciting to riot nor inciting the commission of a crime. This is not a freedom of speech issue. it is a criminal matter.
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You right there are limits to our freedoms, however so far posting public records is within those limits. I fail to see the criminal issue with doing that unless you can show where actual intimidation has occurred.
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The fact is that this law was put on the books and violated several times way before Facebook was even thought possible. Just because the site exists and this personâs car was vandalized does not prove a direct or even an indirect correlation between the two. Given the limited facts presented in this article to assume as such is pure speculation at best.
 @Justaguy What do you mean what happened to protecting freedom of speech?  Private companies can censor whatever they want and they do it all the time.  Not to mention there are laws against witness intimidation and by allowing this site to exist Facebook is taking on some responsibility for damages.
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No actually Facebook is not taking any responsibility for damages, you just wish they would.
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You are correct private companies can censor whatever they want as long as they do it equally across the board and don't discriminate against a single user or community. If Facebook was to band this user what precedent would it be setting and how would that have a negative impact to them as a company and their potential consumer base?
 @Justaguy If someone puts up a site dedicated to having other people hurt, then that is like making a threat against someone else. I think it should be removed.
As I stated I haven't seen the page and perhaps it is dedicated to having other people hurt, in which case yes I see your point. Or perhaps it is no different than a website posting pictures of persons arrested for DUI, or the names of men that have been arrested for solicatation.
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My point is that simply posting public records on a public website should not be enough for facebook to discriminate against the user.
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If the page was taken offline then I have to wonder why was it brought back up again. I assume that it was because Facebook review the content of the page and determined that it did not violate their T&Cs
I have absolutely no respect for snitches, but I do feel bad for the car.
 @IslandAtheist I'll remember that when I see some thugs thumping your skull for twenty bucks. Or stealing your car. Busting into your house. Nope..I saw nothing.
 @I Like Meat For a pork chop you'd probably rat out your own mother.   Ya weaselÂ
 @IslandAtheist I think informants are brave to come forward and expose thugs who use fear and intimidation to try to control other people.
I just went to the facebook page to see what all the fuss was about. Some highly intelligent and well spoken people there. (insert rolling eyeball emoticon here)
Behind every rat trap there's free cheese..... The police were the rat trap and provided Mr. Felon with cheese and the trap sprang shut..... The cops will always abandon you, lie and could truly give a rip if you're killed Mr. Felon.... You should know the golden rule... snitches always get stitches and everyone else is just.... figure it out.
Facebook is complicit in this crime. They could easily block this page, but they choose not to. Why, I have no idea. Perhaps they feel that the ad revenue it generates outweighs any legal or public safety concerns. Just one more reason I will never be using Facebook.
This is a valid excuse for law enforcement to ask Facebook to shut down that "ant-snitch" user group.
Okay, I agree that being labelled a 'snitch' for folding up on drug dealers and thieves in your neighborhood is pretty buggered up. We all work hard for our property, we work hard for our homes and we want them protected. This guy is someone to look up to, not down at.
But why do we call black and latino gangs who punish informants 'thugs' and yet somehow 'respect' mafiosi and Asian gangs who do the exact same thing because they have some sort of 'code of behavior'? A thug is a thug and all thugs belong in the joint.
 @svensson Well I don't know about anyone else, but I have the same respect for the mafiosos and the asian gang snitch punishers as I do the rest: That would be zero. Anyone working to bust the bad guys is good, period. Anyone who is involved in crime, especially violent crime, is bad, regardless of race. The mafia thugs are no better, no worse.
That page is the ultimate in irony. "Don't become a snitch, or we'll tell everyone!" Wait- they'll snitch on snitching? Aha! Let's just promote negativity and hatred on every single possible level... That'll make the world a better place.
 @OozingSarcasm Did you see that quite a few people made the same observation?  Too funny, but of course the irony went right over most heads there.
I don't think I'll ever be able to relate to the criminal mindset. Â If you got caught and went to jail for doing a crime, the mistake that was made was doing the crime which you never should have done. Â Correcting your own behavior is the way to fix the problem, not blaming it on a snitch. Â This is like the sleazeball who cheats on his wife all the time, and when her best friend finds out and reports him, he thinks his marriage was ruined by her friend, not HIS cheating. Accountability is obviously not part of many parents teachings these days.Â
Sounds like the guy got religion to save his azz by becoming a narc. Shouldn't have been in the drug rackets to begin with, no sympathy here.
@Reality Control Really?
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Who cares about his past - he is making efforts to be a responsible part of society. Your use of the word "narc" in the negative sense worries me more than what this guy did in his past (which this particular story doesn't say, in fact, it doesn't even mention drugs) Most people I know who call others "narcs" have someting to hide. Maybe YOU should be investigated?Â
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You seem not to appreciate citizens doing what they can to reduce crime. I'd much rather trust the "narc" than someone who makes comments like you. He gets my sympathy vote.
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@commonHuskyfan His motivation wasn't altruistic. It was avoiding prison for the two fellonies the story mentions. Let's not kid ourselves, anybody who has seen a crime movie should know this, you don't have to be a druggie to read between the lines.
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Police should use everything in their power to destroy the drug afflicition on society and I don't condone what happened, but portraying him as a sympathetic figure is a stretch.
@commonHuskyfan I am basing my assumption on the obvious. The guy was  doing it to avoid prison for the felonies mentioned, regardless of what was said after the deal with authorities was made. Nobody can 'parachute' into the drug rackets and start bringing down kingpins or the cops would have elliminated the problem long ago.
@Reality Control I am not on FB so I wouldn't know what the transcript says to verify what you are saying, so you may well be correct that he was avoiding prosecution in exhange for testimony. The KOMO story does not mention this.
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Even so, it gives no right for anyone else to torch his car because he testified. In fact, it takes a pretty brave person to do the right thing in the face of knowledge that something could go wrong. This person has been a part of the "system" - and he knows what a good deal of other felons think of "narcs" - and yet he still did the right thing. Assess his motives later - a right act is a right act.
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Your comment: "anybody who has seen a crime movie should know this, you don't have to be a druggie to read between the lines." Are you basing your logic on crime movies? Sorry, I don't watch crime movies, and I believe the logic that I wouldn't trust would be any sort of inference or assumption by a "druggie."
He needs to file suit against Facebook and also name the owner of the site for the cost of relocating to Hawaii or some faraway place like that for making public his identity and putting his life in jeopardy. If you hit a company in the bank account they will take notice. This type of posting is not what Facebook is about and should not be used this way. If the payout is big enough they will not let them post this stuff.
This Facebook page is just wrong. I just reported it to the Facebook admin as it promotes violence. I also sent a message to the admin while reporting it with a link to this story. Hopefully they will take this seriously and remove the page.
Who knew people would be targeted after Komo did the story about the Facebook snitch page? ME!
I don't think Facebook should be used in this way. They have placed perimeters on Craigslist, Facebook should not be used for criminal purposes.
Are you kidding me?? WTF??
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Well, I don't condone vigilante justice for all of my jokes in the past, but I'm thinking that we citizens aren't going to have much choice if our trusted powers that be won't do anything to stop thugs from intimidating and attacking people who turn them in - including witnesses to crimes.
@Smokin Bear It isn't 'the powers that be' that's endorsing and enabling the problem, it's the allmighty facebook. The site should have been pulled a long time ago and I sincerely hope that there is some money grubbing, bottom feeding lawyer that sees a payday for helping the victim of this car bbq in going after facebook for facillitating the attack on his car.
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This is all part of the grander story. Â Entering into a life of crime has consequences. Â You may not be a criminal all your life, you may choose to become something better than you are. Â However, no matter where you go...there you are.I wish I could feel sorry for this man, I don't. Â I wish I could feel proud of him for helping, I don't. Â Yes everyone deserves a second chance and his helping goes a long way to healing but for those he wronged, there is a security and peace they may never get back. Â You reap what you sow.
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As for the Facebook page... Â You don't need fuel added to fire. Â I would agree Facebook needs to take this page down. Â It won't solve the problem, but it will slow the process down.
 @John Eugene No tears... agreed. You choose the life... you live by the rules....
@Funky-Munky @John Eugene And what rules are those? There are no rules, you follow the LAW. Do you walk on water Funky?
 @DDG I grew up in L.A. ! I was raised much different and learned to keep my yap shut. You wouldn't have the first clue about thugs or gang culture. So until you do keep your yap shut. Just because Mr. Felon decided to become a rat fink doesn't mean his pals will forget the blood oath. (just a thought)
@John Eugene See this isn't just scumbag turned good that is in potential danger, it's anyone and everyone who cooperates with a police investigation. That could mean you, me, or anyone else who just happens to witness something by simply being in the wrong place at the right time. The site promotes pointing out and publically naming anyone and everyone who assists in police investigations. Calling individuals out publically, makes it very easy for criminals to seek revenge. That's what happened here.
 @John Eugene We don't know what exactly his felony convictions were for or if there was any specific victim or person who suffered as a result of his prior actions. You don't need to feel sorry for him or proud of him but please don't judge him or say he reaped this because he sowed that. You don't know the details, and neither do I, but if he's served his time and moved past his convictions he doesn't deserve to be punished for doing the right thing now.
Since the bottom line is always the real issue, then the real message here is don't bother trying to help by snitching, because you can't trust anyone to not be motivated by the $$$$, especially in the current economy. Â Money passes back and forth between not only snitches and police ..but bad guys and police. Â There is a really subculture of mob mentality in the big cities...in USA and around the world...you pay for protection, you pay for revenge kills, you pay...no matter which way you turn...you pay...
a hundred dollars here and there and gas money? Â Â
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Do people not realize how dangerous it is when police are handing out money here and there for telling on people. Â
Hellooooo? Â We used the same tactic in Iraq and Afghanistan which led to THOUSANDS of innocent people being turned in for money. Â Â
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Are our local police all really this stupid?????? Â Â
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When human filth gets a badge EVERYONE PAYS!!!
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 @Andrew Bush He said he didn't do it for the money. Thats a bit of an over-reaction. He started over in his life and committed to helping prevent crime, that's commendable.
 @IlBrutto13 Say that when you are turned in by a "former felon" for nothing more than money.  Â
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"He said he didn't do it for the money"  really?  That's comforting.  If he is so committed then why is he taking cash? Â
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There is NO reason officers should be handing out cash for telling on people. Â That is not the way our justice system is supposed to be. Â
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For Christs sake we have more people locked up than any other country in the world.
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Our justice system is creating criminals on both sides of the law. Â
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Such stupidity in modern America. Â
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 @Andrew Bush  @IlBrutto13 Well, if a certain group of people would start co-operating with LEO then they wouldn't have to pay those folks money for helping them lock away criminals.Â
@Andrew Bush @IlBrutto13 Think of all the ads you've seen and heard asking the public for help and offering a reward should your info bring a conviction.
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You just hate law enforcement. I get it. Your comments about police clearly show a pattern. Funny how you trash LEO's here but I bet you'd run crying to them should you ever have a problem claiming they are your hero.
 @Andrew Bush  @IlBrutto13 Andrew, sorry to tell you, but this is common all over the place, from the local to the state to the federal level.  I have a friend who's a retired narcotics officer in the southwest and they had informants.  I have a friend here at the federal level and they do too.  They seem to think the end result is worth whatever they dole out.
 @Andrew Bush They didn't say that the money was for telling on people, it could have been for expenses in investigations and stings. My point is that you're claiming outrage and disdain towards an individual you don't know, without knowing the facts.