A tracking program on a stolen laptop computer led police to a thief in Surrey.
The laptop was stolen from the home of an employee of the Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows school district in Surrey during a break-and-enter.
What the thief didn’t know is all computers in the school district have tracking software, which sends a signal to pinpoints the location of the stolen property.
After the laptop was stolen, a police officer with the Ridge Meadows RCMP’s Street Enforcement Unit received an alert.
The Ridge investigator contacted Surrey RCMP’s Property Crime Target Team, which resulted in a search warrant being executed and led to the arrest of a man. Police also found a firearm during the subsequent search.
“This case fully illustrates how all police agencies, RCMP and Municipal Police Forces, are interconnected in the Lower Mainland,” said Cpl. Alanna Dunlop.
“Even though the theft and recovery occurred in Surrey, the IT department at School District 42 notified Ridge Meadows RCMP, who then alerted Surrey RCMP to the location of the property.”
Ridge Meadows RCMP had a similar case in 2012 where police were able to recover four laptop computers that had been stolen from schools in the Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows.