Thanks to features like its in-built ECG electrical heart sensor, the Apple Watch can likely take credit for saving a few people’s lives during its time on the market. A recent, terrifying incident showed one other way the Apple Watch has helped out its owner, however—by enabling a kidnap victim to call for help while trapped in the bed of a truck.
According to Fox San Antonio, a woman used her Apple Watch to call for help, revealing that she had been kidnapped, and that she was in trouble. Police in Selma, Alabama, were then able to use an “emergency cellular ping” to track the victim, and discover her location in a vehicle in a parking lot.
Apple Watch Played a Key Role in Rescue
The incident took place December 16. The alleged kidnapper, Adalberto Longoria, fled the scene on foot on that occasion. But while Longoria escaped, he was later arrested January 20, and faces charges of Aggravated Kidnapping.
The report notes that: “The victim told police she and Longoria were fighting, and Longoria had refused to give up the vehicle. He told her to get her things out of the bed of the truck. When she went to do this, Longoria allegedly got in the driver’s seat and drove away with her still in the bed of the truck. The victim told police he was allegedly drunk at the time.”
This isn’t the first time Apple tech has been used to help track people in dangerous situations. For example, in 2016, the Find My iPhone app on the iPhone helped a mother track down her kidnapped daughter. According to Business Insider, she had allegedly been taken against her will by an ex boyfriend. He was arrested on kidnapping charges.
Apple Watch for the Win
The Apple Watch has also helped identify people in precarious scenarios. In 2017, a kiteboarding filmmaker from California was stranded off the California coast in shark-infested waters. Fortunately, the Daily Mail reports that he was able to use his Apple Watch to call the coastguard, and then direct the rescue boat to his location.
Using the Apple Watch in this way isn’t one of the primary features Apple advertises when listing the big selling points of its breakout wearable device. However, based on incidents like these, maybe it should be.
While the police, the quick-thinking victim, and others clearly deserve the bulk of credit in incidents like the recent kidnapping, without the Apple Watch there’s a chance things could have turned out very differently. Good work all involved—Apple’s engineers very much included!
Image Credit: Simon Daoudi/Unsplash CC
