Social media leads to capture of wrongly released Santa Clara inmate

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (KGO) -- David Lopez was sentenced to eight years in state prison on Sept. 28 for armed robbery. Later that same day, the Santa Clara County Department of Corrections released him from custody.

A clerical error freed Lopez as he was given "time served" for grand theft.

A civilian clerk made a mistake with the paperwork involving the two cases from two jurisdictions and only processed the "time served" case.

No one discovered the error until Wednesday, Oct. 4, meaning Lopez was a free man for six days.

It appears he made the most of his time.

Lopez took to Instagram -- posting selfies along with purchases from Eastridge Mall including new shoes and a backpack.

He also posted a photo of a sunset with the caption "life's crazy but it's not how you start it's how you finish." Once the error was realized, sheriff's deputies worked overtime to find Lopez... and they did find him just over 24 hours later with the help of his social media.

Lopez was taken back into custody Thursday at 11:45am at a golf course in east San Jose.

It's not clear if Lopez committed any crimes while he was free or if he'll face any additional charges. The Santa Clara Co. Sheriff's Department spokesperson said they're working to put new measures into place to ensure this doesn't happen again.