In a judicial first, an Instagram photo of a steak and macaroni and cheese dinner at Morton’s has been cited as evidence in a federal felony complaint accusing a Georgia man of identity theft, according to court records.

The food porn photo, seen above, was snapped Monday evening by Nathaniel Troy Maye, 44, who later that night uploaded the mouthwatering image to his Instagram account (@troymaye). The picture was taken while Maye ate at the Fort Lauderdale steakhouse with his girlfriend, Tiwanna Thomason, and a third diner.

As detailed in a U.S. District Court complaint filed yesterday, Maye and Thomason, 39, were unaware that their dinner companion was working as a cooperating witness (CW) for the Internal Revenue Service. During the dinner meeting--which was recorded by IRS agents--Maye, Thomason, and the CW discussed an identity theft scheme.

Maye also reportedly gave the CW a flash drive containing the names, social security numbers, and dates of birth of 46 individuals whose stolen identities could be used for fraudulent purposes. The CW is a convicted felon who is cooperating with federal investigators in a bid for leniency in connection with a pending tax fraud case.

While initially unaware of Maye’s identity, federal agents found his name in the metadata of the flash drive turned over to the CW. IRS Agent Louis Babino then headed to Google and located Maye’s Instagram page, which contained a profile photo of Maye. When shown the profile photo, the CW confirmed that Maye (seen at right) was the man with whom he dined at Morton’s.

A further review of Maye’s Instagram page, Babino noted, revealed “a photo of a steak and macaroni and cheese meal containing the caption ‘Morton’s.’” The image--uploaded on January 7 at 11:24 PM--“appears to coincide” with the CW’s meeting at Morton’s, added Babino.

Maye and Thomason were arrested Tuesday evening. While Thomason was released yesterday on bond, Maye, whose lengthy rap sheet includes a federal wire fraud conviction, remains locked up in the Broward County jail in advance of a January 16 detention hearing at the federal courthouse in Fort Lauderdale.

Court filings do not reveal if the Morton’s trio went Dutch, or whether the dinner tab was picked up by Uncle Sam.