A Saint Paul police officer was caught off guard Sunday night. He was giving sobriety tests to a woman he had pulled over, when a random stranger jumped into her car and stole it.
The woman, in turn, helped police track down the suspect using the Apple "Find My" app.
As part of the statewide "Toward Zero Deaths" enforcement focused on arresting impaired drivers, a Saint Paul Police officer pulled over a woman he says was speeding in her Lincoln Navigator near Jefferson Avenue and 7th St. at about 6 p.m. Sunday.
According to a criminal complaint, when the officer began field sobriety testing, a completely unrelated man who was sitting on a nearby bus stop bench got into the driver's seat of the woman's car.
Police say the man was 39-year-old Kyle Vanwert, who has a long history of minor crimes involving drugs and theft. Before the officer could stop him, court papers say Vanwert sped away in the woman's SUV.
After the thief took off in the Lincoln Navigator, the woman told police her iPhone and other electronics were still inside. Using the "Find My" app, they traced the iPhone to Apple Valley, where they found it -- apparently tossed out the window by the thief.
But little did he know, according to the criminal complaint, that the woman still had an Apple AirTag dangling from the keychain.
After notifying Richfield police that AirTag was pinging from the area of 77th Street and Nicollet Avenue, the complaint says they found the SUV, chased it, and finally arrested Vanwert.
In the end, the woman got her vehicle back -- intact -- and she was not charged with DWI. Saint Paul Police say she was not over the legal limit.
Vanwert, however, could get a DWI instead. Police say they believe he was high on drugs but they are waiting for the blood test to come back.