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John-Anthony Disotto

An AirTag saves Christmas as stolen luggage tracked to thief's home in North Carolina

Airtag.

Another day, another AirTag rescue story as Apple's small tracking device helped one family find their stolen luggage and another stolen suitcase this holiday season.

The Gavino family, just like millions of other Americans over the festive period, had gone on vacation within the United States, but when their Miami flight landed in the Carolinas, their luggage was nowhere to be found. 

Catherine Gavino had purchased an AirTag earlier that week to ensure she could track it down in time for the holidays if her luggage was lost. So when the suitcase never appeared at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, she knew exactly what to do.

The AirTag's location in the Find My app showed her mother and father's luggage was heading towards Gastonia, North Carolina's most populous city.

Gavino told Queen City News, "I wanted Justice," so decided to continuously check the location of the AirTag throughout the trip despite the small tracking device disappearing intermittently from the app.

A Christmas miracle

On Christmas Day, Gavino checked the Find My app once more, and found the AirTag located at a house in Gastonia.  “I told my dad who was with me, ‘Look it’s only 20 minutes, let’s swing by,’”

After arriving at the destination, Gavino called the Gastonia Police Department who not only found the Gavino family's stolen luggage but also another victim's luggage lost at the same airport.

As reported by Queen City News, there wasn't much left in the suitcase after the thief raided all of the belongings inside. “These are my parents, coming to the mountains for a North Carolina view, so for this to happen made me sad, which was all the more reason to go after them…I wouldn’t have found them without this AirTag.”

The suspect has been arrested and charged with multiple thefts and is currently held on a $10,000 bond. While the luggage wasn't found intact, this AirTag Christmas miracle is a great advertisement for Apple's incredible tracking device.

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