EcoATM Returns Stolen iPhone To Rightful Owner In Mission Viejo

MISSION VIEJO, CA —Losing your cell phone can be disarming. To find it miles away and recycled inside an ecoATM? This resident went straight to the Orange County Sheriff's Department.

Earlier this week, a woman and her family were beating the heat at Thousand Steps Beach in Laguna Beach. Mistakenly, she left her iPhone behind. Using the "Find My iPhone" application, she discovered it was nowhere near the beach, but was at The Shops at Mission Viejo.

"She followed the phone to an ecoATM machine," Mission Viejo Police Services Lt. Quyen Vuong said over social media.

Upon arrival, the OCSD deputies contacted the ecoATM customer service representatives through the camera and microphone on the "teller style" machine.

The representative verified that the phone was inside, traded for $65 cash," he said.

Fortunately for the phone's rightful owner, the representative remotely unlocked the ATM and allowed them to retrieve the stolen phone.

"We wanted to thank ecoATM for their help," Vuong said. "It is also of key importance to have the Find My iPhone feature turned on, and always use a passcode to lock your phone."
Remember, if you find lost property, you must attempt to give it back.

"As California Penal Code 485 states," if you don't make reasonable efforts to find the owner and restore the property, you are guilty of theft," Vuong said.

According to an ecoATM spokesperson, the company is committed to working with and assisting law enforcement agencies across the country.

"It was a pleasure working with local law enforcement to return this iPhone to its rightful owner," Chase Freeman, an ecoATM spokesperson told Patch. "We make detailed information available to law enforcement about every transaction that occurs at our kiosk.”