Apple AirTag leads to arrest of man accused of stealing Jeep from gas station
By Carson Zorn, Kennedy Mason
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CAPE CORAL, Florida (WBBH) — A Cape Coral man is accused of stealing a car from a gas station after an Apple AirTag led to his arrest Monday.
According to the Cape Coral Police Department, officers responded to the Mobil gas station on Del Prado Boulevard North after a report of a stolen black Jeep Wrangler.
The victim told officers that while he was inside the store, his vehicle was stolen, and that an Apple AirTag attached to his keys later pinged at a residence in the 1800 block of Northeast 20th Terrace, the CCPD said.
Officers responded to the area and located the stolen Jeep in the backyard of a home in the 1800 block of Northeast 21st Street, the CCPD said.
Officers canvassed the neighborhood and obtained multiple home security videos showing a man in a light gray hooded sweatshirt park the Jeep, walk toward the Northeast 20th Terrace home, lift a garbage can lid and enter the front lanai, the CCPD said.
Security footage from the gas station showed a similarly dressed man enter the victim’s Jeep and drive away, according to the CCPD.
Officers then searched the property connected with the AirTag. They found a gray hooded sweatshirt in the lanai that looked similar to the one seen in security footage. Using the AirTag’s alert feature, officers located the AirTag and car keys concealed inside storage bins in the garage, the CCPD said.
Jose Almaguer, who lives nearby, saw about 8 officers searching the backyard of an abandoned home on NE 21st Terrace Monday night. Gulf Coast News watched as a tow truck towed away the black jeep from that home Tuesday.
“They were talking, I think to a neighbor,” Almaguer said. “They wanted to ask him a couple questions.”
He added, “I think technology is helping police out.”
The suspect in the theft was then detained after exiting the residence with a dog and was found wearing beige pants and shoes consistent with what were seen in security footage.
The suspect was identified as Daniel Patrick Sullivan, 47.
Sullivan was arrested and faces charges of burglary of an unoccupied conveyance, grand theft of a motor vehicle and petit theft.
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