Thief kept stealing 300-year-old stones from a village wall, but police couldn’t help — until the mayor planted an AirTag in his next target
Installing the CCTV cameras was too expensive and 'Smile, you're on camera' signs didn't work
Matt Smith, a crafty mayor-turned-detective, utilized the thief’s own interest to collar him. Locals were miffed after noticing that the culprit was dismantling their prized 18th-century wall and stealing one stone after the other. Everything they tried fell in vain, including a sign that said, “Smile, you’re on camera.” The rambunctious thief kept on stealing the historic capstones until Smith decided to take matters into his own hands. With a clever strategy, he lodged an Apple AirTag deep into one of the loose stones to track the culprit’s location. After tracking him down with the police, he raided a yard full of antique capstones and restored them to their original place, according to a November 5, 2026 report by the BBC.
A series of uncanny thefts
The first theft happened in May, followed by two more in June and October, respectively. Around 30 stones went missing along a half-a-mile stretch of the road, connecting the towns of Holmeswood and Rufford, Lancashire. “The audacity of him to steal from the community for his own personal gain,” said the 43-year-old Smith. “That isn’t what we stand for.” At first, he reached out to the Lancashire Police, but they were unable to help as the area had no CCTV footage or “forensic opportunities.” Residents even put up “Smile, you’re on camera” signs, but it didn’t deter the criminal from the mischief. They also thought about installing their own CCTV cameras, but it was too expensive for an establishment so small.
A clever strategy
After the third theft on October 4, Smith decided to take decisive action. Smith, who’s also a landscaping contractor at M. Smith Gardens & Landscapes, took permission from the wall owner, an outdoor maintenance company, Green Belt, asking if he could take a loose stone from the wall. After getting permission, he cleverly planted an Apple AirTag inside, hoping that the GPS tracker in it would take them to the thief’s location in case he tried to pester with the stone. “We were hoping the stone would be taken and lead us to the exact address of the person taking them,” Smith said, per CBS 19 News.
Stones worth more than $9,000
Within four weeks, his phone was buzzing with notifications and information from the tracker. Smith contacted the police. After investigating the tracker’s records, the police were led to the backyard of a 41-year-old Manchester man named Craig Barker. The South Rural Task Force from Lancashire Police found a “substantial amount” of coping stones from the wall worth approximately £7,000 ($9365.58) in his yard.
Smith claimed that Barker also had stolen dozens of other stones from across the country, making the estimated total value up to £40,000 ($53,524.20). Barker, a resident of Tan House Drive, Wigan, was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment, suspended for 22 months. He was also fined £587 ($790) for court costs during his sentencing at Wigan Magistrates’ Court.
Restoring the piece of prized history
On the same day when the stones were discovered, four local farmers visited the yard, collected the stones, and hauled them to the police headquarters. With Smith’s help, they reinstalled them alongside Anthony James Construction in December last year, which he said was a “great Christmas present for the villages.” Smith said it was a “great feeling” that they stood up for the injustice and got the man arrested instead of simply tolerating the pain.
The wall in question was built around 1730 for the historic Grade II-listed Rufford New Hall. In the 1900s, it was converted into a hospital. In the 80s, when the hospital was closed, it was renovated and split in half. Since then, it has been turned into luxury apartments. No one could have thought that a coin-sized device, the Apple AirTag, would one day help save this historic wall.
A coin-sized device solved the mystery
According to Statista, an AirTag is a tracking device developed by Apple that helps its users monitor their personal belongings. It uses the Find My network feature, which has approximately 1.8 million users. This feature allows users to track Apple devices, third-party items, and accessories, as well as GPS location. Additionally, aviation-tech company SITA reported that bags using AirTag/Find My location sharing through its WorldTracer system were 90% less likely to become “truly lost.”
Protecting the heritage
After catching the thief through this AirTag, Smith remarked that it was “very satisfying” to have Barker arrested and justice served. He noted that the community’s effort was well “worth it.” PC Sean Dalby, of the South Rural Task Force, said, "This type of crime has a significant impact on rural communities, both financially and emotionally." He thanked the local community for their collective effort in catching the suspect.
“The successful return of these historic coping stones demonstrates the important contribution that local communities and the police can make to safeguard our heritage,” said Mark Harrison, Head of Heritage Crime at Historic England. “Traditional stone walls are an intrinsic part of the Lancashire landscape, and their protection helps to maintain its distinctive character for future generations.”
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