The first time his car was broken into, DeJuan Davidson chalked it up to bad luck. The second time, he installed cameras. By the third break-in, frustration turned into strategy.

Davidson owns several rental properties in a southeast Columbus, Ohio neighborhood that’s seen a sharp rise in car break-ins. He’s watched the pattern play out on doorbell footage. 

Smash-and-grabs. Doors pulled open. Firearms, wallets, debit cards, and credit cards disappearing from center consoles. (Why folks leave these items in their cars unattended is beyond me, but it’s what thieves find over and over.)

After three car break-ins in recent months, Davidson decided to flip the script

He left an iPhone inside his car, fully aware of what would happen next. “Set them up,” he told ABC 6. The phone wasn’t his primary means of communication, either. It was bait.

Just days before Christmas, thieves broke into the car and took the iPhone, right on schedule. 

Davidson immediately tracked the phone using its signal

He followed the suspects as they drove through the city in a stolen car, watching their movements in real time.

At one point, he said it looked like they were hunting for more cars. Then the pace changed. “I think they was on to me,” Davidson said. “That’s why they took off.”

The encounter ended quickly. Davidson caught up with them briefly before the suspects ran, jumped on a COTA bus, and disappeared. Davidson knew the risk, since one of his stolen guns was still out there.

Columbus police picked up the trail by pinging the iPhone themselves

Officers arrested the suspects on the bus. Police said 18-year-old Jacob Martin had Davidson’s stolen phone and a loaded handgun.

Martin and four juveniles, the youngest just 14, were charged with carrying concealed weapons, improper handling of a firearm, and tampering with evidence.

Davidson didn’t stop at the arrest. He took to social media, calling out the teens’ parents and asking to speak with them. He’s since had multiple conversations with Martin’s mother. “My heart goes out to her,” he said. “She’s been trying everything. She wants her son to do better.”

Now Davidson says his focus is on accountability. Not just policing streets, but closing the gaps that keep putting kids behind the wheel of stolen cars instead of on a better path. He believes there’s still time to interrupt that cycle, but only if someone steps in early and refuses to look away.