It seems that anyone thinking of borrowing the new BMW 550i without proper notice to its owner, should have second thoughts about doing so, otherwise they might end up being remotely locked inside the car.
This was the situation with a car thief in Seattle which was caught thanks to the car’s ability to have certain features like locking the doors remotely controlled. The car served as a temporary holding cell until the police reached the location of the stolen car to apprehend him.
This situation has been revealed thanks to a report from the Seattle Police Department posted on its blog. According to the post, the car thief found out that he had been remotely locked inside a stolen BMW only on Sunday morning, after waking up for sleeping inside the car.
The report also reveals that the thief found the unlocked BMW 550i in a parking garage. The owner of the car loaned the vehicle to a friend who apparently forgot the keys inside it. This scenario proved too hard to resist for the thief who took it out for a drive. Once the owner discovered that his car has been misplaced, being very likely that it was stolen, he contacted the local police.
The police also decided to contact BMW employees in order to get the location of the car. However, the BMW workers were able to do more than that as they remotely locked the thief inside the car, without even his knowledge.
When the police arrived at the car’s location in Ravenna neighborhood in Seattle, the thief was found sleeping inside it. According to their report, the thief was a 38-year-old man who was also carrying a small quantity of methamphetamine. The man was arrested and booked into the King County Jail for both auto theft and drug possession.
This seems to be one of the most useful scenarios where the smart systems and advanced technology of a car was able to prevent a major loss for the owner. The situation does seem to be good PR for BMW and their series 5 vehicles, despite the privacy concerns of some potential customers.
What do you think about this whole situation? Are you convinced that a smart car and connected car is necessary in this day and age?
Image source: Wikimedia
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