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Odessa Couple Terrorized in Home Invasion Tracked by AirTag
ODESSA, FL – A Florida couple endured a terrifying home invasion last August, held at gunpoint by armed thieves who allegedly used an Apple AirTag to track them back to their Odessa residence. Authorities have now released footage of the harrowing incident.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office reported that the incident unfolded on August 19. Suspects Luis Charles, 26, and Odardy Maldonado-Rodriguez, 32, are accused of placing the small tracking device under the couple’s SUV, following them home.
“Suspects forced the victims into their garage at gunpoint before fleeing when an alarm was triggered,” the sheriff’s office detailed in a social media post. “Detectives later discovered an AirTag tracking device taped beneath the victim’s vehicle.”
Charles and Maldonado-Rodriguez now face a litany of charges, including armed burglary, two counts of armed kidnapping, robbery with a firearm, false imprisonment, and illegal installation of a tracking device.
Sheriff Chad Chronister expressed the community’s shock, stating, “To be ambushed at gunpoint in the very place you should feel safest is every family’s worst nightmare. Thanks to the work of our detectives, these dangerous criminals are now behind bars where they belong, and the victims, along with our community, can rest a little easier.”
The released footage shows the chilling moments as the couple exited their vehicle in their driveway, only to be confronted by the two suspects who rushed from either side of the SUV. The pair then forced the victims into their home. Fortunately, an activated alarm quickly sent the suspects fleeing the scene.
Charles was apprehended on October 8 in Tampa. Following his booking, law enforcement notified Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
He also faces an additional charge of sexual battery. Maldonado-Rodriguez was taken into custody on October 10 in Pasco County.