When posting goes wrong: Barrie man charged after sharing dangerous driving video online

A Barrie man, 36, has been charged after allegedly posting his own dangerous driving on Instagram. (Barrie Police)

A Barrie man has been charged after allegedly posting his own dangerous driving online, giving police the evidence they needed to make an arrest.

According to officers, the 36-year-old man shared an Instagram video showing himself speeding through a residential area, hitting more than 135 kilometres an hour in a 50 km/h zone along Leacock Drive.

Police say the footage, recorded around 3:30 a.m. on Feb. 20, also shows the driver using a cellphone behind the wheel and running a stop sign at Letitia Street.

Officers say what makes this case stand out is how it all revealed itself.

On Sunday, an officer had pulled the man over for poor driving. After the video surfaced online, the officer recognized the driver’s tattoos and the vehicle and connected it back to the same suspect from earlier in the day.

Police say they confirmed the location using landmarks visible in the video, like a nearby plaza and Barrie’s skyline. While no other vehicles or people appeared in the clip, police say the behaviour depicted “reckless and alarming driving.”

The driver now faces a criminal charge of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, along with several offences under the Highway Traffic Act, including stunt driving, using a handheld device while driving, and failing to stop at a stop sign.

Police are reminding people that what gets posted online doesn’t just disappear; it can come back as evidence.