AirTag helps victim, police take down man accused of selling cars, then stealing them back
EAGAN, Minn. — Eagan police say they caught a crook swindling unsuspecting car buyers.
He's charged with selling cars, stealing them back, and selling them again.
Ron Vasquez says he found a truck he was interested in on Facebook Marketplace.
"It seemed like a really good deal," Vasquez said.
Vasquez and the seller met in an Eagan parking lot, and he admits there were some red flags before and after the sale. The seller only gave him one fresh-cut key; the title paper didn't seem original; the VIN number didn't show up; and then Vasquez's wife's phone caught on to something.
"My phone is picking up an Apple device around here," he said.
The truck could be tracked.
"The AirTag kind of just ... everything clicked in my brain and it started making sense," he said.
Vasquez called police and turned over everything, eventually helping to stop the seller who's accused of selling his own car and friends' cars, then stealing them back.
Eagan Police Det. Sgt. Mark Kritzeck says this new plan is harder to spot.
"Obviously the last one he didn't get away with, but the victims would drive their car home, leave for work, go in the house, whatever the case is, and sometimes in a matter of hours they'd come back out and find the car was just missing," Kritzeck said.
He offers some advice for those in the market for a big purchase.
"As much as you can try to trust your source, do your homework. But I think the biggest thing in this case is if something seems fishy, just trust that gut," he said.
Vasquez is glad the 20-year-old suspect was caught, and hopes he learns from the theft-by-swindle charge.
"I'm so glad, I was praying every night, I was like I really hope they catch him," Vasquez said. "It wasn't just for me but other people."
Police say the suspect confessed to seven cases in Minnesota and two more in Illinois. He'll be back in court later this month.