Crime Report: Man Uses iPhone App to Track Down Stolen Phone; TV Stolen from Sam's Club

A man whose iPhone was stolen from was able to use one of the phone’s applications to track down the alleged thief and get his phone back, according to a police report.

According to the report, the man arrived at the Sports Club around 6 p.m. on Jan. 11 and stowed his phone and wallet in his pants in an unlocked locker. He returned at 8 p.m. to find his property missing and called the .

The man told police he could use the “Find my iPhone” app to track down his phone using a GPS system. The GPS first showed in the phone was located in the south parking lot of Brighton Hospital, the report said. Novi Dispatch called the Livingston County Sheriff’s Department to track down the suspect there. At 9:45 p.m., the phone owner called back to say that his phone was now located at an address on Northumberland in Novi, the report said.

The officer went to the residence and knocked on the door. According to the report, he asked a man and his son if they had been at the Sports Club that day, and the son said yes. The officer told him there was a problem because a phone and wallet had been stolen and that the GPS on the phone said it was in that house, the report said. The son said he had it and gave the property back to the police, the report said. The police officer arrested the son, who is in his 20s, on charges of larceny and brought him to the for processing.

According to the report, the arrested man said he was sorry and that he did not steal anything else. He said he was working at the Sports Club from 4-6 p.m., saw the phone owner put his belongings in an unlocked locker and said it was just too tempting to take them, the report said. The man said he had used one of the credit cards in the wallet to buy gas and was planning to use the phone for his personal use, the report said.

TV stolen from Sam’s Club

Police are investigating the theft of a 47-inch HD TV from at 3 p.m. Jan. 8, according to a police report. A greeter at Sam’s Club said he saw a male walk into the store pushing a shopping cart containing a TV box and asked the customer to stop to fill out a return slip, the report said. The customer was on his phone yelling at someone and said he did not have time to fill out a return slip and just had a question, the report said. The greeter then passed the man off to a worker in the store's electronics department, the report said. The greeter later saw the man leave the store pushing a cart with the TV box in it, according to the report.

Later, the electronics manager at the store found a TV box on the shelf stuffed with wood and toys, and the TV was missing from the box, the report said. Novi Police reviewed surveillance cameras from the store, which showed the man taking a TV box from the shelf, putting it in his cart and replacing it with the box he entered the store with, the report said. The suspect’s identity is currently unknown.

Phones stolen from AT&T Store

Two phones were reported stolen around 5:40 p.m. Jan. 6 from the on Novi Road. According to a police report, an employee at the store said she greeted a man as he entered the store, and he said he was just looking. The employee started helping another customer when a second man entered the store, the report said. The first man then grabbed two iPhones off of the front display and ran out the door with the second man, the report said. Novi Police have video surveillance of the suspects and have turned the case over to the Detective Bureau.

Condo burglarized

A South Lake Drive resident reported that his condominium was burglarized between 7 a.m.-8 p.m. Jan. 5. According to a police report, the resident arrived home at 8 p.m. Jan. 5 and attempted to use his key to open the door, but it would not open. A locksmith was called, who discovered that the interior lock was moved so that the door would not open, the police report said. The resident then went to his patio door and found it open, even though he had locked it before he left, the report said. The man entered his condo and found that the small window above his sink was open, and there dirt on the windowsill, making it appear that someone entered through there, the report said. The condo was ransacked, and a DVD player, two watches and a container filled with $400 worth of coins were stolen, the report said.

If you have questions about this blotter, contact Editor Rebecca Jaskot at rebecca.jaskot@patch.com.