A suspected member of a Russian smuggling network used an Apple AirTag to stalk his wife, who (probably illegally ) was taken to the USA.
The federal authorities of the USA charged a man named Ibodullo Muhiddinov Numanovych with stalking his ex-wife. To commit the crime, the man used seven AirTag devices from Apple, 404 Media and Court Watch report.
According to federal prosecutors, the man allegedly smuggled his now-ex-wife into the United States through the Russian people-trafficking network he works for. Numanovich placed seven AirTags on the woman's car over several weeks in March and April. A woman found one of them on her own, and investigators found six more. The law enforcement officers claim that they were hidden all over the vehicle (under the front bumper, inside the frame, in the housing of the side mirrors, etc.).
«Shortly after the marriage, the defendant began physically and emotionally abusing S.K. and recorded several videos of an overtly sexual nature. The defendant threatened to release the images and videos if S.K. will not fulfill the requirements of the defendant. At the time of her marriage, S.K. recently arrived from Tajikistan via Mexico to the USA, where she had no other relatives or support, — it is stated in the case materials.
When the investigators found out that Numanovych was constantly pasting tags on the woman's car, they used them to watch the man himself. In one case, the FBI disabled the AirTag he installed. After that, the man started calling the woman and looking for her. He came to the car wash, where the woman was, knocked on the windows of the car and demanded to answer his calls. Investigators also obtained records from Apple that linked Numanovych's account to those AirTags. He was charged in May. During the search, investigators found a folder with approximately 140 sexual photos and videos of S.K. in his phone.
In the government's request for preliminary incarceration, it was noted that the man « ;has access to significant financial resources and is believed to be involved in a large-scale human smuggling network and a connection with a transnational organized crime network». The judge granted the request. Numanovych did not admit his guilt. A jury trial is scheduled to begin on June 8.
This case — one of the many in which AirTag and similar trackers, designed to find lost items and track pets, have become tools for committing crimes. There were several cases when, after being harassed with an AirTag, the perpetrators resorted to violence. In at least two known cases, this led to the killing of the tracked people.