Cops Use Xbox Live to Nab Christmas Crook

Here's a piece of advice for thieves this holiday season: if you steal a game console, don't go online to play games with your crooked friends. Doing just that helped cops find a stolen Xbox 360 over the weekend.

Twenty-two-year-old Jeremiah Gilliam is facing huge larceny charges this morning after cops found a veritable pile of stolen electronics in his Bronx home. According to police, Gilliam had an incredible collection of global positioning systems (GPS), video game consoles, laptop computers, cellphones and other electronic devices in his home.

Usually these kinds of repeated petty crimes are difficult for police to sniff out, but thanks to some very smart cops (who I think might be gamers themselves), a game console was used to help nab Gilliam. (Source: destructoid.com)

How did they find him?

When police were told an Xbox 360 had been stolen, they went to Microsoft (makers of the video game console) to ask if it had been taken online since its theft. Microsoft was able to determine that it had, and could pinpoint the precise location of where the Xbox had connected to Xbox Live, the game company's very popular online network.

That's just one rumor: The New York Post has stated that it wasn't the cops that found Gilliam online, but the original owner, who played on a friend's Xbox 360 and was surprised to see his original profile playing online. (Source: nypost.com)

Alleged Crook Broke Into Homes, Vehicles

It seems police were surprised by Gilliam's hoarding of so many electronic devices, with one report suggesting they "don't know where to start" in processing each item and then trying to find their rightful owners.

Thus far, it's believed Gilliam broke into victims' homes and cars in order to swipe the goods, rather than take them new from busy shopping centers. He was already under investigation for a series of thirteen cases where he allegedly ransacked unlocked cars, the Pelham, New York police recently stated.