One Pennsylvania man knew he didn’t have a new nose, but someone else was apparently aiming to improve his appearance because the victim’s stolen identity and subsequent fraudulent credit card paid for a $6,000 nose job. Cops were able to locate the suspect because the medical practice that did his nose had taken photos of the patient before the procedure. Oh, vanity! You are a cruel mistress.

According to PhillyBurbs.com, the victim told cops in June 2009 that a bank kept asking him for $6,000 that he claimed never to have rung up. Instead, someone had swiped his personal information and opened up a credit card in his name.

Law enforcement checked into the charges, and found that they stemmed from costs related to cosmetic surgery done on the suspect’s nose. The medical practice that did the job is in the custom of taking before photos for patients, so all cops had to do was run a facial recognition program to compare the nose photos to state drivers’ license photos.

A computer bleep bloop noise here, a whirring of metaphorical gears and voila! Police had all the info they needed to pick up the suspect on an arrest warrant. He pleaded guilty last week to felony charges of forgery and theft of service, and will serve five years probation.

And while the law can’t make him give back that new nose (as if anyone would want it, eww), he’ll have to hand over the $6,000 he stole from the victim. Quite a price to pay for a perfect schnoz.

Cops match nose-job photos with PennDOT license photos to nab ID thief [PhillyBurbs.com]

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