A hit-and-run case was unexpectedly cracked thanks to a tiny bit of modern technology—an AirPod. Earlier this year, a 15-year-old from Florida named Lachlan Nichol was riding his bike to get ice cream in Jensen Beach when he was struck by a vehicle. The impact was so severe that Lachlan was thrown into the passenger window, breaking his nose, cheekbone, and eye socket. The driver didn’t stop, leaving the injured teen without even catching a glimpse of the license plate.
In a surprising turn of events, Lachlan later noticed that one of his AirPods was missing from the crash scene. This small clue led the police right to the doorstep of the suspect. When the police examined the scene of the accident, they found only one of Lachlan’s AirPods. The other had traveled with the hit-and-run driver, found later wedged under a car mat in a damaged vehicle at a nearby address.
The owner of the vehicle, 49-year-old Peter Swing, was then questioned by police. Swing, overwhelmed by panic, admitted to fleeing the scene, a decision influenced by his past experiences in prison on drug charges. He was charged with leaving the scene of a crash and causing significant bodily harm.
Martin County Sheriff William Snyder commented on the arrest, saying, “I think the family will undoubtedly feel some measure of justice, but we can’t undo what happened and I think the real sting here is that he left an unconscious child in a dark parking lot and drove away.”
Lachyan’s recovery was difficult, but once home, he and his family made a special appearance on Inside Edition to express their gratitude, directly thanking Apple for the tracking technology that played a pivotal role in solving the case.
The incident highlights the increasing role of technology in solving crimes, akin to an intriguing discovery on Google Street View. Netizens found a scene where it seems a man on a motorbike was hit by the Street View car, prompting discussions about its accidental upload and visibility on the platform. The digital age continues to offer unforeseen aids in law enforcement and personal safety, sometimes in the smallest forms like an AirPod.