What do you do when your car is stolen? Call the police. What do you do if the police are overextended and can’t get to it? You go ahead and steal back your own car. At least that’s what UK couple Mia Forbes and Mark Simpson figured.
According to a report from The Times, the West London pair woke up on June 4 to find their Jaguar E-Pace wasn’t where they parked it. The police later told them they weren’t sure when they were going to be able to start an investigation. Unfortunately for the thieves, and possibly the dignity of the London police force, the couple had installed some extra safety features on the car, including an Apple AirTag. Turns out this couple had actually had a car stolen before, so this time around, they were ready.
Once the AirTag updated, they realized it was only a short drive away, so they drove there. Sure enough, their steed was right there, and one of them just took it straight back home. There was some internal damage, since the thieves had apparently tried to cut their way into the wiring, but otherwise, the couple got their E-Pace back.
What went wrong for the thieves?
Beyond the Apple AirTag, the married couple had also installed a ghost immobilizer in the E-Pace. A ghost immobilizer is an aftermarket device that essentially adds an extra step to starting a car. Before you push the Start button (or turn the key, in dinosaur-speak), you have to input a passcode using the standard buttons on the center console. If you don’t input the correct code, the car simply won’t start. Because there’s no visible sign that such a device has been installed, a thief won’t even know there is one until the engine just refuses to fire up.
This might be why the E-Pace was just left parked on the street: The thieves couldn’t actually move it. Presumably, the theft itself was done with a tow truck; the neighbors apparently did report strange noises that night.
The police will sweep the car for prints and other evidence, but by the numbers, the odds of finding the criminals aren’t good. According to British political party the Liberal Democrats, the Metropolitan Police Service of London only solves 10% of car thefts. There’s no official word on how many of those just get stolen back instead. So if you wind up buying a car directly from a seller, best to check to see if it’s stolen first. Who knows, you might even be buying back your own car.
