AirTag helps London couple recover stolen car after police refuse to act

3 weeks ago 3

A London couple was able to locate and reclaim their Jaguar E-Pace this week using Apple’s AirTag, after local police chose not to take immediate action, even with real-time location data in hand.

As reported by BBC News, the £46,000 stolen vehicle was taken from outside the couple’s home in Brook Green, Hammersmith, on June 3.

The car had an AirTag hidden inside, which allowed the owners to track its precise location to a nearby neighborhood in Chiswick.

The couple contacted the Metropolitan Police and shared the AirTag location. However, after receiving what they described as a vague response, they informed police of their intention to go to the scene themselves.

As the couple told BBC News:

“I wanted to act quite quickly as my fear was that we would find the AirTag and not the car when it was discarded on to the street without the car, so I told them that we were planning to head to the location.”

Surprisingly, the officers just acknowledged the dicey plan and advised them to call again if help was needed.

They found the car parked on a residential street, and after some quibbles with remote security systems, were able to have the vehicle remotely unlocked and recovered.

In a statement to the BBC, the Met Police said that “this investigation is ongoing and officers met the victim on Tuesday, 10 June as part of their inquiries”.

Word or caution

While this story had a happy ending, it’s obviously not advisable for victims to confront car thieves or recover stolen property without police support.

Apple also makes it clear that AirTag is not designed or marketed as an anti-theft device.

Still, this case adds to the growing number of real-world examples where AirTags have helped locate stolen property—sometimes faster than law enforcement is able (or willing) to act.

Via MacMagazine

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