Inset left: Brynn Gifford (Volusia County Correctional Facility). Inset right: Surveillance footage allegedly showing Gifford (Flagler County Sheriff”s Office). Background: A nail salon where a theft occurred in Palm Coast, Fla. (Google Maps).
A Florida woman found herself in handcuffs after inadvertently revealing her identity as a suspected thief through an online post, according to Sunshine State law enforcement officials.
Brynn Gifford, 19, faces charges of fraudulent use of personal identification information of an individual aged 60 or older, unauthorized credit card use exceeding two instances within six months, and petit theft, as reported by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
The investigation began on August 9, when deputies launched a probe into a fraud case linked to an event at Palm Nails, a nail salon in Palm Coast. This quaint city is located approximately 60 miles southeast of Jacksonville.
The alleged victim recounted her visit to the salon on August 6, only to discover three days later that her credit card was missing.
Upon reviewing her card activity, she detected “10 unauthorized transactions” made between August 6 and August 9, totaling over $500 at various establishments throughout Palm Coast, according to a press release.
The investigation led detectives to secure surveillance footage from multiple locations where the card was utilized. The suspect was described by authorities as a white woman with “long dark hair,” dressed in a “white camouflage jacket.”
Otherwise, however, investigators had little to go on.
But that little bit allegedly proved to be just enough.
On Sept. 23, the sheriff’s office posted an “attempt to identify” request on Facebook featuring a low-resolution photo of a woman wearing a white hoodie.
As it turns out, Gifford herself reached out about the post.
“Later that day, detectives were notified that a woman had called the Flagler County Emergency Communications Center and advised that she was the individual in the photo and asked to speak with detectives working on the case,” the press release reads.
Detectives then met with the defendant for an interview.
Initially, Gifford said she had not done anything wrong, according to the sheriff’s office.
The surveillance footage was then brought to bear again.
“However, when detectives showed Gifford images of the suspect taken from the surveillance footage — one of which showed the suspect in Walmart using the credit card to purchase items including notebooks and pens — she acknowledged that it was her in the photographs,” the press release goes on. “Later during the interview, Gifford showed detectives the contents of her backpack, which contained notebooks and pens appearing to be the same ones purchased at Walmart.”
The defendant was later found to have been employed at the nail salon in question as a receptionist at the time the victim’s credit card was stolen, the sheriff’s department claims.
On Oct. 15, a warrant was issued for Gifford’s arrest and she was taken into custody the next day, according to law enforcement.
On Oct. 16, the defendant was arrested and booked into the Volusia County Correctional Facility in Daytona Beach.
Gifford was later released on a $4,000 bond.
“This case is a great example of the power of social media and how it can help law enforcement,” Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly said in a statement. “Less than a day after we posted the suspect’s photo looking for more information, she came forward to speak to our detectives. Of course, her bad decision landed her in jail on multiple felony charges, but at least she ultimately did the right thing, because our detectives would’ve caught her sooner or later.”
