MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WREG) — A man whose car was stolen while he dined at an East Memphis restaurant knows where it is thanks to an Apple AirTag, but he says that still hasn’t helped police find his car.
The driver asked us not to identify him. The thieves still have his car and possibly his personal information.
When he came back from dinner, he found only broken glass, and his car was gone.
WREG told you how Apple AirTags can send a signal to your phone or computer so you can see the location of your belongings.
The car owner had one in his vehicle and sure enough, he was able to locate the car. He called police who he say told him they tracked the car for a while, but couldn’t corner it or give chase.
The victim says the tag was popping up at other shopping centers and restaurants. He even went to one location and says he saw the thieves in his car, but he played it safe and didn’t confront them.
He says police still haven’t found his car, which has him frustrated and others like Raymond Moses scratching their heads.
“We buy those things because we want to protect ourselves and, you know, if an instance like that happens, we expect people to do something about it. So makes you feel kind of makes you feel useless,” Moses said.
Those who patronize the area like Cindy Katz said it’s a sign of the times, but it shouldn’t be.
“You feel like you should be able to go into an environment like this and feel safe and not have to look over your shoulder or park your car and feel like it wasn’t going to be there when you came out,” Katz said.
Some say one thing about this car theft and others show is Memphis needs to do better.
“I feel like we just need to step up our game in Memphis, you know, I’m not from here, but I’ve been here a long time. I go other places, and I don’t feel that same fear, like I do here. So I’d like to step up its game and make it make us feel safer,” Katz said.
The victim still hopes to get his car back and he’s talking with city leaders about addressing the growing crime.
We asked Memphis Police about the stolen car and the AirTag tracking. They said investigators assigned to this case are aware of the AirTag and are working with the victim on this case.