69 Phones Stolen At Shaky Beats Festival Recovered

ATLANTA, GA — After a rash of cellphone thefts at the Shaky Beats music festival last weekend, Atlanta Police are working to get dozens of phones they've recovered back in the hands of their rightful owners.

At the festival, held at Renaissance Park and Central Park on May 12-13, officers responded to multiple calls about stolen cellphones. Their investigation resulted in the recovery of 69 phones, said police spokesman Officer Donald Hannah.

Anyone who believes their phone was stolen at the festival — or who may have lost or misplaced it — is asked to contact APD Detective S.N. Krieger at snkieger@atlantaga.gov. Anyone who calls should be prepared to give a detailed description of their mobile device and provide some evidence of ownership.

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As police were investigating the thefts, a victim came in to file a police report Monday and said she was able to use a mobile app to track her phone to a FedEx store on Piedmont Avenue. She went to the store and "pinged" her phone and it ran inside a box that had been dropped off there earlier that morning.

Police would later find the 69 phones in that box and another one also at the FedEx. Most of the phones had been put in airplane mode or had their SIM cards removed and taped to them.

Hannah said investigators are working to find the person or people who stole the phones and charge them in the crimes.

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