Instagram influencer Eva Lopez has sued the NYPD for $30 million after the department used her sexy photo for their "wanted" poster, even though she was not guilty of any crime, the New York Post reported.
Lopez first found out that she was "wanted" in August when she received a text from a friend, but refused to believe it was real.
“I thought it was something fake. I really couldn’t believe the police would put me on a wanted poster”, she said, cited by the NY Post.
She continued to downplay the matter until her boss convinced her to contact a detective whose name was mentioned on the poster, Kevin Dwyer, only for him to tell Lopez that he was already aware of the mistake before she called.
The detective said that the poster had already been taken down from the police department's social media at the time, noting that a real perpetrator had a sleeve tattoo - something Lopez did not have.
However, it was a bit too late.
“It was already spread around on social media. … It was still being passed around, still being talked about, still making me look like a thief and a prostitute”, Lopez, who has over 800,000 followers on Instagram, lamented to the NY Post. According to her, the "wanted" poster had been shared thousands of times before it was taken down.
The real thieving prostitute whom the NYPD was looking for was suspected of stealing a $13,000 Rolex and Chase credit card from the roommate of a man who had hired her as an escort. The incident occurred in East Village on 3 August.
Lopez took to her Instagram page to proclaim her innocence - only to have people doubt her honesty.
“People didn’t think I was being honest. It was just really, really embarrassing, not only for me but for my family as well", she said. "I just really want people to know that’s not me, in any way, shape or form. The girl has nothing to do with me".
The New York Police Department has not commented on the matter.