Florida thieves ambush couple at gunpoint after tracking them with AirTag, police say
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In a startling incident in Florida, law enforcement has shared video evidence of a home invasion where a couple was threatened at gunpoint by thieves who used an Apple AirTag to locate them.

This unsettling event, as reported by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, took place on August 19. The suspects, identified as 26-year-old Luis Charles and 32-year-old Odardy Maldonado-Rodriguez, allegedly attached an AirTag to the couple’s SUV, allowing them to trail the victims to their residence in Odessa, Florida.

According to a post by the sheriff’s office on Facebook, the assailants forced the couple into their garage at gunpoint. However, they fled the scene when an alarm was triggered. Upon investigation, detectives found the AirTag device securely taped beneath the victim’s vehicle.

Both Charles and Maldonado-Rodriguez face multiple charges, including armed burglary, two counts of armed kidnapping, robbery with a firearm, false imprisonment, and the unauthorized use of a tracking device.

Burglars kidnap a couple in Florida

Authorities have made public the footage that shows the harrowing moment the couple was confronted by the intruders on August 19, 2025. The video was released by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.

“To be ambushed at gunpoint in the very place you should feel safest is every family’s worst nightmare,” Sheriff Chad Chronister said in a statement. “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.”

Footage shows the couple beginning to exit their vehicle in the driveway as the two suspects run up to each side of the SUV.

They then force the couple inside the home, where an alarm soon triggered. Both suspects then fled the scene.

Booking photos for Luis Charles and Odardy Maldonado-Rodriguez

Police arrested Luis Charles, left, and Odardy Maldonado-Rodriguez for holding a couple at gunpoint in Odessa, Florida, on Aug. 19, 2025. (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office)

Police apprehended Charles on Oct. 8 in Tampa, Florida. Upon booking Charles, police placed a notification to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to the New York Post.

He was also hit with an additional charge of sexual battery by a familial or custodial authority on a person between the ages of 12 and 18.

Police talks to Louis Charles at a traffic stop

Florida police arrested Louis Charles during a traffic stop in Tampa on Oct. 8, 2025. (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office)

Police apprehended Maldonado-Rodriguez on Oct. 10 in Pasco County.

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