KY- Police Find Stolen Laptop Via Tracking Technology, Arrest 2

7-23-2008 Kentucky:

A stolen laptop was recovered Monday after local officials used a tracking system to locate it when a suspect logged onto the Internet.

On Tuesday, police arrested two men whom they say are connected to a June 18 theft in which a woman reported her laptop stolen from her vehicle while she was having lunch at Ruby Tuesday.

James Butler, 18, of the 2700 block of McFarland Avenue and Jermaine Johnson, 34, of the 700 block of Virginia Court were charged with receiving stolen property of more than $300 after Owensboro police Detective Mike Walker discovered the computer -- owned by Sunbridge Health -- had the LoJack tracking program on it.

LoJack is a tracking and recovery company that contacts an agent each time the computer is logged onto the Internet, according to its Web site.

When a computer is reported stolen, the company can locate the Internet address where the computer is being logged on.

It wasn't until July 2 that the local computer was identified as being online. Once Walker received the Internet Protocol address and linked it to an Owensboro Municipal Utilities server, he was able to obtain a search warrant for the Internet provider's home.

Officer Marian Cosgrove, OPD spokeswoman, said Johnson told police he had received the computer from other individuals in exchange for haircuts.

He told detectives he saw the Sunbridge Health information on the laptop and deleted it, but according to LoJack, the tracking system cannot be removed.

"You never know what electronics have software that's traceable," Cosgrove said. "In this day, everything from cell phones to dogs can be traced with microchips."

According to LoJack, the company can also delete sensitive information from the computer once it is reported stolen.

The site claims that more than 2 million laptops are reported stolen each year and boasts that 75 percent of the laptops it protects are recovered.

Police said additional charges may be pending following interviews Tuesday. ..News Source.. by Joanie Baker, Messenger-Inquirer