Melbourne Police Use Apple's Find My App to Track Thieves During Fatal Car Chase

[MacRumors]

Apple's Find My app was used by police to track two wanted men during a car chase in Melbourne, Australia last month, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.

According to the report, the two men were being tracked from the air by helicopter after an iPad was stolen in an earlier home invasion. Driver Vaatoa Chang, 29, and passenger Jonas Montealegre, 36, carried the iPad with them as they switched stolen cars in an attempt to evade capture.

In the initial phase of the chase, the two fugitives were being tracked by following a stolen car, but when the police helicopter was called in, the two men switched cars, and that's when officers resorted to tracking them via iPad.

Initially, it was the victim of the theft that used the Find My app to ping his iPad and follow his stolen Mitsubishi Triton, but police eventually called him off and continued tracking the iPad themselves using the same method.

• How to Use the Find My App on a Friend's iPhone or iPad to Locate Your Missing Device

Police tracked the fugitives for two hours across Melbournes's suburbs using the Find My app, before the two men were killed in a 100km/h collision with a freight truck after running a red light.

Apple's Find My app is typically used for locating your Apple devices when you've misplaced them around the home or office, but the Sydney Morning Herald report is a striking example of how the app can be used by police in real time to trace suspects in cases of theft. The full story can be read here.

Article Link: Melbourne Police Use Apple's Find My App to Track Thieves During Fatal Car Chase

 

[SSD-GUY]

Did the guy get his ipad back tho?

 

[martyjmclean]

Running a red at 100km/h? Jesus wept.

 

[Jar Jar Abrams]

The world is going to be a lesser place without these two.

 

[rmariboe]

Haha I love that totally unrelated, climatic end to the story! That would make for a good side story to a movie 😃

 

[Reason077]

> “the two men were killed in a 100km/h collision with a freight truck after running a red light.”

This is a good argument for restraint in Police pursuits, especially when you have the ability to track them and catch up with them later.

Sure, you may not have much sympathy for these two, but they could just have easily hit and killed someone totally innocent.

 

[glowplug]

The world is going to be a lesser greater place without these two.

 

[Seanm87]

> “the two men were killed in a 100km/h collision with a freight truck after running a red light.”

This is a good argument for restraint in Police pursuits, especially when you have the ability to track them and catch up with them later.

Sure, you may not have much sympathy for these two, but they could just have easily hit and killed someone totally innocent.

Yeah why the didn’t just call off the chase and let them go to their safe house or whatever then arrest them there?

 

[BvizioN]

Police tracked the fugitives for two hours across Melbournes's suburbs using the Find My app, before the two men were killed in a 100km/h collision with a freight truck after running a red light.

Karma working overtime.

 

[Sandstorm]

Zero sympathy for the scum criminals. Hope the iPad survived.

I think criminals 100% must be chased, but to minimise danger to public - police must be authorised to use immediate lethal force.

 

[sterlingindigo]

Freight truck carrying...iPads. (Maybe)

 

[JosephAW]

Of course they had to give the authorities their Apple ID and password for the chase to commence.
I hope they have changed their password by now.

Too bad there wasn't a way when your iOS device is stolen to initiate a backup over cellular to make sure you have a latest backup and then wipe your device and brick it.

 

[SoundJudgment]

D-Did... did the iPad survive??

 

[haruhiko]

In contrary, London metropolitan police refused to track my stolen iPhone and said it was not their job to track stolen items. They also wouldn’t take any statements from me. All I got was a reference number over the phone.

 

[darkcompass]

In contrary, London metropolitan police refused to track my stolen iPhone and said it was not their job to track stolen items. They also wouldn’t take any statements from me. All I got was a reference number over the phone.

Burglaries and thefts are not a high priority. I was burgled, and the guy dropped his old phone when left. The police got him, but I never got my laptop or phone back.

 

[iGobbleoff]

Of course they had to give the authorities their Apple ID and password for the chase to commence.
I hope they have changed their password by now.

Too bad there wasn't a way when your iOS device is stolen to initiate a backup over cellular to make sure you have a latest backup and then wipe your device and brick it.

No they wouldn’t. They would just send their location to the cops phone. You can share your location for a time period or all the time. You don’t have to give them an ID or password.

 

[Janschi]

thats not true, to share the location from a different device you need to be in possession of that device.
I can’t set the share location from my iPhone SE when I only have my iPhone 11 in hands.

 

[kerr]

I live in Melbourne and this was big news, not so much the Find My aspect. Social media was pretty much unanimous in rejoicing that these vermin will no longer be a menace to society. The only problem is that the original car had 5 perps, but only 2 got in the second car.

 

[lazyrighteye]

Zero sympathy for the scum criminals. Hope the iPad survived.

I think criminals 100% must be chased, but to minimise danger to public - police must be authorised to use immediate lethal force.

I mean, iPads are cool and all, but authorization to end someone’s existence over a stolen car and an iPad is asinine.

 

[kerr]

I mean, iPads are cool and all, but authorization to end someone’s existence over a stolen car and an iPad is asinine.

maybe you are unaware of their crime spree that evening

 

[dontwalkhand]

Does every PD around the entire world learn from LA?

 

[Makosuke]

> “the two men were killed in a 100km/h collision with a freight truck after running a red light.”

This is a good argument for restraint in Police pursuits, especially when you have the ability to track them and catch up with them later.

Sure, you may not have much sympathy for these two, but they could just have easily hit and killed someone totally innocent.

I tend to agree with you, but reading the article it sounds like the police may have tried to back off for a while, until the people in question stole a second car, drove erratically enough to get noticed in it, stole gas, then attempted to carjack two other vehicles.

It's one thing to let a chase end to avoid collateral damage, but if the crime spree continues or escalates, I don't think the police are really in a position where they can just let it continue. At least if you're chasing them others might hear the sirens coming and have a little warning.

 

[nylonsteel]

nice job aussie police

 

[NightFox]

Zero sympathy for the scum criminals. Hope the iPad survived.

I think criminals 100% must be chased, but to minimise danger to public - police must be authorised to use immediate lethal force.

So failure to stop now carries the death penalty without trial?

 

[decafjava]

So failure to stop now carries the death penalty without trial?

Well, I agree but this started with a home invasion which is worse.