When Christopher “CJ” Precopia was wrongfully accused of a vicious attack against his ex-girlfriend, he was thrust into the middle of a nightmare. However, his mother’s casual selfie served as the crucial piece of evidence that cleared the young man’s name and saved him from a life sentence in prison.
Christopher “CJ” Precopia began what appeared to be a typical workday at a lumber yard in Georgetown, Texas, on the morning of September 22, 2017. When police officers showed up at his place of employment and brought him into custody, his life ultimately took a terrible turn.
The 21-year-old man was unable to determine why he was facing a potential 99-year prison sentence.
“Handcuffs put on, I’m just spun around,” CJ said to ABC News affiliate KVUE. “I was lost and didn’t know who had accused me of this or why it was all happening.”
Then he found out that the leader of the movement was his high school ex, Faith Cox, whom he hadn’t seen in years.
Erin, the suspect’s mother, claims that CJ and the girl dated for roughly six weeks while she was a sophomore in high school and her son was a senior, aged 17. The split was not cordial, she said ABC News.
“Assault involving weapons”
Cox reportedly stated that her ex-high school sweetheart broke into her Temple house at approximately 7:20 p.m. on September 20, 2017, and then brutally assaulted her.
The accused victim told the Temple Police Department that CJ “came towards her in an aggressive manner and pushed her to the ground, punched her in the face, and cut her with a box cutter” after they responded to “a report of an assault with weapons,” according to ABC.
The reporting officer said that he saw cuts and injuries on the Cox’s hands and face, which he said were probably caused by a box cutter, which the adolescent claimed CJ used to cut her face and carve a “X” into her chest.
In a handwritten statement to police, the Cox said, “I could hear the slices being made.”
99 issues
CJ was arrested and charged with first-degree criminal burglary of a residence with intent to conduct other offenses, which carries a maximum sentence of 99 years in prison if found guilty, according to Flores, even though there was no tangible evidence linking him to the crime.
“I was always afraid of what might occur the following day. I was going to bed in the hopes of not waking up. “Just to escape it,” a tearful CJ told ABC.
The man was transferred to the Williamson County Jail, where his parents were able to obtain his release by posting a $150,000 bond, but his freedom was still in jeopardy. What came next was an unrelenting campaign to establish his innocence, one that would eventually depend on an unexpected piece of evidence.
A selfie that changes the game
CJ spent the next nine months living in constant fear of being imprisoned for the rest of his life, even though he knew he was innocent: “That’s what I was scared of most, just going to prison for no reason,” the guy stated.
Then, a piece of unrelated evidence—a selfie that his mother had taken—turned the case around.
Erin, CJ, and a group of friends were pictured at the Renaissance Austin Hotel, almost 70 miles from Cox’s house, on the same day that Erin’s son was charged with the savage attack.
Additionally, she posted the digital footprint with the essential timing and geolocation information on Facebook at 7:02 p.m., just eighteen minutes prior to the claimed attack. This provided unquestionable evidence that CJ was not capable of committing the crime.
“This is fantastic. By God’s grace, [the ex-girlfriend] was able to tell me exactly where he was on that day,” Erin remarked.
Prosecutors were shown the evidence nine months after CJ was arrested, and they later dropped the charge “in the interest of justice.”
In order to justify reporting the alleged assault, the accuser told the police that she and CJ had a tumultuous relationship throughout their high school romance.
Justice was done.
Cox was then accused of making a fake report in December 2018.
I started crying as soon as I saw her mugshot. CJ told Fox News, “I was hit by a wave of emotions.” “I couldn’t really control myself because I was so happy that she was finally being held accountable.”
“It’s a struggle to go about your daily life knowing that anything could happen, just by somebody saying anything, can just ruin your life in an instant,” says CJ, who enlisted in the military after graduating from college.
The power of social media, the shortcomings of the legal system, and how digital footprints can turn into vital evidence in court cases are all highlighted in this amazing tale.
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