Smartphone too clever for thieving nightclubber

A smartphone outsmarted whoever stole it from a handbag on Saturday night..

After a dance at an inner-city Dunedin nightclub, Lisa Parata, 23, went to her handbag to find the iPhone 4 she bought two months ago was gone.

"I was upset ... It was the first expensive phone I had ever bought."

After an early-morning search with friends failed to find the phone, Ms Parata returned home to track it herself, using her laptop.

She had registered the phone on Apple's MobileMe service, so was able to pinpoint its whereabouts using the phone's inbuilt global positioning system.

The service was able to show the iPhone's location, including an image of the home.

Ms Parata gave the details to the police, with her proof of purchase, and was able to track its return in the hands of the law to Dunedin Central police station on Sunday afternoon.

Senior Sergeant Mel Aitken said that thanks to the technology, police executed a warrant and found the phone.

A 23-year-old unemployed man is expected to appear in Dunedin District Court on Friday charged with theft.

Mr Aitken said that if people were able, they should use the technology for their own phones, as it would act as a deterrent to opportunistic thefts.

"We just can't praise this technology enough. It led us straight to our guy."

- Otago Daily Times