SAN FRANCISCO—A handsome mug shot of a California man arrested on felony weapons charges has gone viral on social media, attracting more than 81,000 “likes” and drawing comments praising his high cheek bones, chiseled face and striking blue eyes.
Jeremy Meeks, 30, a convicted felon, was arrested Wednesday on five weapons charges and one gang charge, according to Officer Joseph Silva, a spokesman for the Stockton Police Department.
Silva declined to say what Meeks was previously convicted of, saying the department does not routinely release information about a suspect’s criminal history.
No previous arrest photo has garnered so much positive attention since the department set up the Facebook page in March 2012, Silva told The Associated Press.
“I have not seen that many likes for a photo before,” he said.
By Saturday afternoon (Manila time), Meeks’ arrest photo had garnered more than 81,000 “likes,” and 23,000 comments, and had been shared more than 10,000 times. Other postings on the site generally receive hundreds of “likes.”
“OMGGG superrrrrr Delicious,” commented Adjutha Lambertina, while Michelle Asher Morales asked: “Can we be handcuffed together….lordy!!”
Amanda Sullivan sung the praises of “the most attractive looking mug shot I’ve ever seen!”
“It just proves that most people never rise to their true potential. And, that most of us are fooled by a pretty smile and nice eyes lol,” she added.
Meeks was one of four men taken into custody during Operation Ceasefire, a multiagency mission to curb a recent increase in shootings and robberies in the Weston Ranch area of Stockton, a Northern California city of about 300,000.
Four firearms were confiscated during a sweep Wednesday involving the Stockton police gang unit, the FBI, the US Marshals Task Force and other agencies.
Silva called Meeks “one of the most violent criminals in the Stockton area,” though he declined to provide any details on the crimes that Meeks is believed to have been involved in.
Meeks, who is being held in lieu of $900,000 bail, is scheduled to be arraigned Friday afternoon.
Silva did not know whether he had retained a lawyer. With Agence France-Presse
Originally posted:9:05 am | Friday, June 20st, 2014
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