California Woman Outsmarts Alleged Thieves with Apple AirTag, Police Give Standing Ovation

Well, well, well, look who's putting the "proactive" in "progressive"! A California woman just schooled some alleged thieves with a brilliant idea to mail herself a package with an Apple AirTag inside. slow clap

Santa Barbara County sheriff's deputies responded to a call around 7:17 a.m. on Aug. 19 about mail theft at the Los Alamos Post Office. Turns out, our hero had recently had items stolen from her P.O. box, so she decided to take matters into her own hands.

For those not in the know, Apple AirTags are nifty little tracking devices you can use to find stuff, like your car keys or, apparently, stolen mail. They're only $29 – a small price to pay for sweet, sweet justice.

Once her bait package was stolen that morning, she called the cops. Lo and behold, two suspects – Virginia Franchessca Lara, 27, from Santa Maria, and Donald Ashton Terry, 37, from Riverside – were found in Santa Maria with the woman's stolen mail. Mic drop.

USA TODAY reached out to the Santa Barbara County Public Defender's Office, but they haven't gotten back to us yet. Maybe they're too busy facepalming.

plot twist: More stolen mail found with suspects

As if this story couldn't get any better, Lara and Terry were also found with items believed to be stolen from over a dozen other victims. facepalm

Lara was booked for a bunch of charges, including identity theft and conspiracy, with a $50,000 bond. Terry, on the other hand, was booked for similar charges, along with several theft-related warrants from Riverside County, and is being held on a $460,000 bond. Oh, snap!

"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. Translation: "YAAAAAS, QUEEN! 👑💥"

Deputies are still working on the case, including contacting additional victims. Stay tuned! 🍿🎬