MILWAUKEE — Court records show a pair of AirPods helped Milwaukee police track down a stolen car — but not before it was crushed at a scrapyard.
Now a Milwaukee tow truck driver is charged with felony theft of movable property. Prosecutors say he's accused of making quick cash to have the car destroyed.
30-year-old Derrick D. Hutchins faces up to 3.5 years in prison and fines up to $10,000 if convicted.
The victim, Teon Thomas, says he hopes his case exposes how tow truck drivers can junk cars with just a handwritten note.
"It's very hard for me still to this day," Thomas said.
Thomas hit a pothole in Milwaukee on May 1 and got a flat tire.
Watch: Milwaukee tow truck driver charged after stolen car crushed at scrapyard; victim's AirPods crack case
"My tire came off the rim. I came back that same afternoon, to my car being gone, and I called around, haven't found it," Thomas said.
Hours later, Thomas realized he had left his AirPods in the car. The GPS traceable device led him to Milwaukee Iron and Metal, a scrapyard on Green Bay Avenue — where he found his gold car crushed in a pile of junked vehicles.
"I can barely get to work. I can barely get around. It's hard," Thomas said.
When asked whether the police would ever have been able to track down the car without the AirPods, Thomas said they would not have.
"With high rates of crime, it probably would have been at the bottom of the list," Thomas said.
A criminal complaint shows how police identified Hutchins as the suspect. According to the complaint: "{Hutchins} filled out and signed a form affirming that he has the legal right to sell the vehicle and had to present an ID when scrapping the vehicle."
Court records show the vehicle was scrapped within a few hours of Teon realizing it was stolen.
Police provided Thomas with a still image showing the tow truck in question driving away.
No one answered the door when TMJ4 stopped by Hutchins' listed address.
Thomas learned from police that Hutchins sold the stolen car for a few hundred dollars.
Milwaukee Iron and Metal said it is not required to check with the police to determine whether cars were reported stolen before accepting them. There is no statewide database tracking that information.
"I hope he can afford to pay me back for what he did, what he has caused," Thomas said.
Milwaukee Iron and Metal said Hutchins is no longer allowed to bring cars to the facility.
Thomas said he reached out to share his story to raise awareness.
"I wanted to do it just to open other people's eyes just in case they don't know what happened to their cars when it was gone or stolen," Thomas said.
After Thomas' story aired, several other victims contacted TMJ4 to share that the exact same thing happened to them. They are all calling for stronger state laws that would force scrapyards to require more proof that sellers legally own a vehicle.
"They need to have the title, the key, more documents, legal documents at that. Not just something they can hand write and do themselves and print off," Thomas said.
Hutchins is scheduled to make his first court appearance on June 18, court records show.
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