With their support, San Mateo County investigators were able to locate a 70-year-old man trapped in his vehicle after a terrible accident in the mountains, reports hawkanalytics.com.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Bartonville, TX)—On Wednesday, November 21, 2018, around 5 pm, a 70-year-old man left his home in Cupertino, CA for a drive to the mountains looking for a place to go on a walk, which was quite common for him. Two hours after leaving his home, he called his family and told them that he was lost somewhere in Woodside, CA. After not hearing from him again and repeated calls to his cell phone going to his voicemail, the family used the “Find My iPhone” app which showed geo-locations in two separate areas in Woodside, CA. The family drove to those locations but did not find their loved one. Fearing the worst, at 9:45 pm, the family contacted the San Mateo County (CA) Sheriff’s Office to report him missing and seek law enforcement’s help.
The San Mateo County 9-1-1 communications center began pinging the man’s cell phone through Verizon Wireless trying to determine his exact whereabouts. Investigators also attempted to use the “Find my iPhone” app, which showed the same geo-locations the family had previously viewed. However, the locations were not changing, leading investigators to believe he may have been involved in a traffic accident or something worse. The continuous pings from Verizon also showed consistent geo-locations throughout the night, and they too were not moving. Patrol deputies, with the assistance of their fixed-wing aircraft, searched throughout the night into the early morning hours using the pings and apps but were unable to locate the missing man.
The next morning on November 22nd (Thanksgiving Day), investigators reached out to the exigent support department at Hawk Analytics, a software company specializing in analyzing and mapping cell service provider call detail records (CDR) involving investigations such as critical missing persons cases or violent crimes. A critical response team from Hawk Analytics was immediately activated to analyze these records to see if a specific search area could be identified. The Investigators, along with the Hawk team, knew the clock was ticking and if a traffic accident did occur, the missing man could still be alive.
Exigent requests were made to the man’s cell phone provider who promptly provided CDRs and specialized location records. These records contained historical cell activity such as phone calls, text messages, and data connection usage events. These records provide details such as which cell towers and sectors (antennas) were being used with a date and time stamp. The specialized location records, known as RTT, contained even more detailed information such as distance from the tower and an estimated location of the handset.
By analyzing the records in CellHawk, Hawk Analytics’ CDR Mapping software…
Read more about this case HERE
