VENANGO CO., Pa. (EYT) — A photo inadvertently taken by an Oil City woman has led to her arrest for the theft of a cell phone.

According to court documents, the Oil City Police Department filed the following criminal charges against 56-year-old Gayle Marie O’Brien, of Oil City, on June 7:

– Theft by Unlawful Taking-Movable Property, Misdemeanor 1
– Receiving Stolen Property, Misdemeanor 1

The charges were filed after the victim found a photo on her cloud account that Gayle O’Brien had inadvertently taken of herself on the victim’s cell phone.

According to a criminal complaint filed by Senior Patrolman Culp, of the Oil City Police Department, around 11:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 11, Gayle O’Brien was present at a gathering with the victim, during which time O’Brien allegedly took the victim’s phone case, containing the victim’s phone and other property, totaling a replacement value of $274.92.

Around 4:57 a.m. on Sunday, May 12, “O’Brien was attempting to unlock the phone she had stolen, and during the attempt, inadvertently took a photograph of herself. Due to the victim’s phone settings, the photo saved to the victim’s cloud account,” the complaint states.

On June 2, the victim was going through the photos that had downloaded to the phone she purchased to replace the stolen one when she discovered the photograph of O’Brien and was able to identify her. The victim reported that she confronted O’Brien, who denied taking the phone, according to the complaint.

Based on the investigation, charges were filed in Magisterial District Judge Andrew F. Fish’s office on Friday, June 7.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, July 3, in Venango County Central Court with Judge Fish presiding.