Apple AirTag helps Florida police recover stolen luggage items

Apple AirTag has gained mixed reactions from users. While some users heap praises on the tracking device, others have accused it of causing nothing but trouble. The Apple AirTag comes in handy for finding lost items. On the downside, the device can help users stalk people as well.

The AirTag has previously helped numerous users to locate their stolen luggage. Recently, an Apple AirTag has helped police to track an airport worker who stole luggage. Much to the subject's chagrin, the luggage had an AirTag.

Airline worker Giovanni De Luca is accused of stealing more than $16,000 worth of luggage. He works as an airline subcontractor at Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport.

The Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office, on August 11, offered a statement, charging the 19-year-old airline worker with two counts of grand theft. Per the statement, a traveller said her suitcase had been missing from her last destination in July. Notably, the suitcase contained over $1,600 worth of items. The traveller informed the police that her suitcase had an Apple AirTag, activated in Mary Esther, Florida, before being deactivated.

The statement also reveals that another traveller's luggage had gone missing. The luggage contained over $15,000 worth of items, including jewellery. With the help of the airline database, the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office crossed reference workers living near the address where the AirTag was active for the last time. The authorities made "consensual contact" with De Luca at his residence.

De Luca admitted that he removed the Apple AirTag from the July victim's suitcase. However, the traveller's items are still missing.

Sheriff Eric Aden attributes the arrest of the person behind these thefts to "excellent teamwork" by the police and the airport authorities. De Luca did not realize what an Apple AirTag could do. The Apple AirTags and FindMy app have been used to locate stolen or lost items multiple times. De Luca has been arrested on two counts of grand theft.