If the suspected carjacker hadn't been Facebook friends with his alleged victim, he might never have been charged in the case.
A Douglas County judge on Friday ordered Markus D. Dupree, 17, to stand trial on a robbery charge after testimony from an Omaha police officer.
Two teenagers told police someone they recognized from high school was involved in a carjacking last month in north Omaha. The passenger in the vehicle said he was even Facebook friends with him.
The teens told police they were driving north on John A. Creighton Boulevard near Maple Street when they saw Dupree in the street, slumped over, about 7 p.m. Jan. 7.
They pulled up, and Dupree asked for a ride. Then another man walked up to the vehicle with a handgun, said Officer Michael Curd of the Omaha Police Department.
The gunman ordered the teens from the car; Dupree took the driver's cellphone and car keys; Dupree and the gunman sped away.
The victims walked to nearby Adams Park and called police.
The driver and his passenger said they had been in several classes with Dupree at Burke High School, Curd said.
When no government photo of Dupree was available for use in a lineup, police copied an image of Dupree from his own Facebook page.
Dupree did not have the stolen vehicle or pilfered cellphone when he was arrested. His lawyer said the victims could have pinned a made-up crime on Dupree.
However, the judge ruled there was probable cause and sent the case to District Court for trial.
If convicted, Dupree faces a punishment of one to 50 years in prison for the robbery felony. The gunman in the carjacking is unknown and has not been found, Curd said.
Contact the writer:
402-444-3131, sam.womack@owh.com
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