63-Year-Old Man's Stalking Bid Foiled By Apple AirTags. Know Everything

A man from the US state of Iowa was arrested and charged with stalking and alleged misuse of GPS to follow and track a victim using AirTags.

A man named Carl Steven Shawver from the US state of Iowa was arrested and charged with stalking and alleged misuse of GPS to follow and track a victim using Apple AirTags. According to authorities, the 63-year-old man was arrested for positioning Apple AirTags on the victim's car to track and follow, says a report by publication ABC 8News.

Apple AirTag is a small iPhone accessory that aids in the tracking of items using Apple's Find My app. In the Find My Network, a secure Bluetooth signal is sent from this to detect nearby devices. 

The court records stated that the victim placed an AirTag placed on the top of the spare tyre on December 5, which was discovered by the victim after their phone alerted that their travel was being tracked with a GPS device, the report added. After the incident, the West Des Moines Police took hold of the AirTag and kept it as evidence at the station. The accused reached the West Des Moines Police Station the next day, looking for the victim. As per an affidavit in the case, he claimed that he was married to the person he was accused of stalking.

Even though the man told the police that he was married to the victim, the two were never in any kind of relationship. It was also revealed that the victim had blocked the man from calling and messaging. Currently, the accused is lodged in the Polk County Jail on a bond of $3,000. The hearing will start on December 19.

The man informed the police that he put the AirTag on the car of the victim as he believed the victim was having an affair at the station. Meanwhile, a second AirTag was spotted on the victim's car on December 7, which was discovered after the victim's phone alerted. The police officers detected the AirgTags inside a wallet and in a plastic bag on the spare tyre's top.

The victim took the vehicle to a mechanic shop to find out the tracking device using a car lift after finding a second AirTag only to learn that a third AirTag was found on the sub-frame of the car around the front passenger tyre folded inside plastic.

The police have kept all the AirTags in the evidence box, the report added. Upon further investigation, the police learned that Shawver and the victim had agreed to meet at the station.