A Tennessee woman's quick thinking and a concealed Apple AirTag turned what could have been an irrecoverable loss into a testament to modern tracking technology. Zaliyah Hughes, three months pregnant, miraculously located her stolen car after a harrowing carjacking experience using the device hidden in a most sanctified of spots—a Bible. She was en route to a barbecue restaurant in Memphis when a collision initiated a series of distressing events, leading to her victimization.
Hughes described the shocking encounter, detailing that as she traversed the intersection of Summer and Holmes, a light-colored Nissan, running the light, collided with her Hyundai Sonata. In a statement obtained by WKRN, she recalled the impending sense of doom as she noticed the assailant, shrouded in a black mask, already brandishing a gun. Despite attempting an escape to a nearby firehouse safety, her efforts were thwarted as the attackers cornered her car and pointed their guns aggressively, all while three firefighters stood as accidental spectators to the crime, reported the New York Post.
In an ordeal where each moment held the weight of uncertainty, the foresight to use an Apple AirTag—stashed within the pages of a Bible—provided Hughes a beacon to reclaim what was taken from her. The digital tracker guided her to the location of her vehicle and potentially key evidence in apprehending those responsible for the crime. "I was going through the light, and they were supposed to stop, they were speeding and hit me," Zaliyah Hughes vividly recounted to WKRN.
Her car was discovered after police were alerted, demonstrating a small victory against the rising incidents of carjackings in the Memphis area. However, the suspects remain at large, their identities obscured by haste and their masks, as law enforcement continues investigating the incident. Authorities advocate for the public's assistance in peeling back the layers of anonymity provided by the chaos, their guns, and their vehicle, "once they hit me, the man who had a black mask on already had his gun pointed out the car," she told WREG.
