California Woman's AirTag Idea Leads to Arrest of Suspected Mail Thieves

A California woman has been commended by local law enforcement for her clever idea to catch mail thieves using an Apple AirTag.

Santa Barbara County sheriff's deputies responded to a call around 7:17 a.m. on Aug. 19 regarding a report of mail theft at the Los Alamos Post Office, according to a news release. The woman had recently had items stolen from her post office box and decided to mail a package to herself with an Apple AirTag inside.

Once her mail, including the AirTag, was stolen again that morning, she contacted the police. The deputies located two suspects, Virginia Franchessca Lara, 27, from Santa Maria, and Donald Ashton Terry, 37, from Riverside, in Santa Maria with the woman's stolen mail.

USA TODAY reached out to the Santa Barbara County Public Defender's Office, which is representing Lara and Terry, but has not received a response.

Stolen Mail from Over a Dozen Others Found with Suspects

In addition to the woman's package, Lara and Terry had items believed to be stolen from over a dozen additional victims, according to the release.

Lara was booked at the Northern Branch Jail for possession of checks with intent to commit fraud, fictitious checks, identity theft, credit card theft, and conspiracy. She is being held on a $50,000 bond.

Terry was booked at the Northern Branch Jail for burglary, possession of checks with intent to commit fraud, credit card theft, identity theft, and conspiracy. He was also booked on several theft-related warrants from Riverside County and is being held on a $460,000 bond.

"The Sheriff’s Office would like to commend the victim for her proactive solution, while highlighting that she also exercised appropriate caution by contacting law enforcement to safely and successfully apprehend the suspects," the release said. "Deputies are continuing work on this case including contacting additional victims."