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Twitter Used to Catch Boston Subway Flasher

by Amar Toor on August 9, 2010 at 04:40 PM

boston subwayWhere do you go if you want to report a flasher in a flash? Under most circumstances, you'd probably call the police. Under more pressing circumstances, though, you might want to take a page from Nay Khun's book, and go straight to Twitter.

Khun, you see, was riding Boston's underground transit system on Wednesday afternoon, when he noticed a strange looking man seated near him. The man, as it turns out, was far from your garden variety subway crazy. According to the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority, Kuhn happened to catch the rider while he was in the middle of "fidgeting with his crotch area with his zipper open and his penis exposed." Instead of watching in awe, though, Khun raced to Twitter, where he posted a photo of the exhibitionist, along with the caption, "pervert on the 2nd car of the red line ... help me report him." Eventually, word got around to the Boston police, who identified the man as Lawrence McGuire, a known offender. By Friday, MBTA officials tracked down, and arrested McGuire on the charges of "open and gross lewdness."

MBTA Police Chief Joseph O'Connor praised Khun's vigilance, and thanked the tweeter for doing his part to keep Boston free of gross lewdness. The ever humble (and probably scarred) Khun, on the other hand, would have none of the limelight. In a follow-up tweet, he reminded all of his followers that "the [MBTA police] are the real heroes here. Swift work by their finest." [From: WHDH, via: CNN]

Tags: boston, crime, exhibitionist, flashers, police, sexoffenders, socialnetworking, top, twitter, web

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