The victim said in the court documents that she was contacted by an Apple representative, who told her that there was an unknown device in her vehicle. — Photo by Daniel Romero on Unsplash
A Houston man was arrested Tuesday after a woman was alerted about an unknown Apple AirTag installed into her vehicle.
Erick Narit Cardenas, 30, was charged with unlawfully, knowingly installing an electronic tracking device in connection with an AirTag being found inside a car, a misdemeanor, and violation of a protective order, a felony.
The victim said in the court documents that she was contacted by an Apple representative, who told her that there was an unknown device in her vehicle.
She told investigators Cardenas came to her workplace to speak with her. Before Cardenas left, she saw him lean into her vehicle's window on the same side where the suspected tracking device had been dropped inside.
AirTags are quarter-sized Bluetooth trackers that Apple produced to help people keep tabs on their valuable items – keys, wallets, backpacks, headphones, fanny packs, and more. Apple has asked people to not use AirTags for tracking another person; however, there were still alleged cases of people using the trackers to stalk someone.
In 2022, a Texas woman claimed her husband was using an AirTag inside of her vehicle during their divorce proceedings. Although she believed he was tracking down her every move, the vehicle belonged to both parties, which made it legal to place an AirTag inside of the vehicle, under Texas law.
AirTags relies on Bluetooth technology with the Find My iPhone app from a smartphone mobile device to pinpoint its location. AirTags can be found in two ways, a beeping noise or precision finding (only works with all mobile devices after iPhone 11). The AirTag must be around 33 feet (10 meters) from an iPhone for the Bluetooth signal to register.
Cardenas received a personal recognizance bond for the misdemeanor charge and bond was set at US$40,000 (about RM187,280) for the felony charge. He was released after making bond. – Houston Chronicle/Tribune News Service
