A Nest video screen grab of a November 22 burglary led to one teen’s arrest—and the online hunt for others. (credit: @BaconisFruit)

On November 22, 2015, a group of teenagers broke into the house of a Baltimore man, stealing his bicycle and finding a spare key to his Jeep Renegade. They then took off, stealing the Jeep and taking it for a multiday joyride before abandoning it with an empty gas tank and some minor damage.

In Baltimore (as I can sadly say from personal experience), the story would usually end there with an insurance claim and a shrug. But the group of young men involved in the burglary and theft were all captured on a Nest camera as they rifled through drawers. And some of them left more potential digital evidence when they paired their phones over Bluetooth with the Jeep’s UConnect system.

One of the thieves was identified from a head shot from the camera footage a few weeks later by a school police officer and has already pleaded guilty in juvenile court. But the apprehended youth wouldn’t give police the identities of the others involved in the theft. Because he’s a juvenile, he’ll likely be released soon.