DELIVERING JUSTICE
Sleuth, 14, uses Ring doorbell to snare parcel thief after secretly placing GPS tracker on package
A TALENTED teenager used a $30 tracking device and a Ring doorbell camera to sensationally catch a porch thief.
Justin Bankhead, from Utah, decided to offer a $500 reward to anyone who could catch the criminal snatching parcels from his front door.
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His son Cody, 14, decided to claim the money for himself by placing a box outside the home with an activated GPS tracker inside.
The device was an Apple AirTag which retails at $30 and allows people to track their belongings via their smartphone.
Then, on early Monday morning, a masked thief drove up to their house and snatched a cardboard box before driving off.
The theft was filmed on the family's Ring doorbell camera.
Once they reviewed the footage, the Bankheads used the tracking information on their smartphone to find the suspect's car and call the cops.
The man was then arrested by police.
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Father Justin said he believes the thief had no idea there was a tracking device hidden in the package.
He told CNN: “I don’t think he had any clue that he had this coming.
“If you’re going out there, you are going to get caught. People are smarting up."
On catching the crook and getting the reward money from his dad, Cody said: "Pretty happy. I felt pretty cool."
Speaking about having parcels routinely stolen, dad Justin said: "It’s not just the stuff that disappears. It’s the feeling that I don’t dare order stuff for my front porch.
";Everyone has these frustrations of these guys running around neighborhoods having a free for all."
Police have warned any homeowners trying to catch porch thieves to be careful and not to put themselves in danger.
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