Councillor uses an AirTag to catch thief stealing 300-year-old stones from an ancient wall

Published: 20:13 EDT, 3 November 2026 | Updated: 21:10 EDT, 3 November 2026 It was the kind of trap any modern-day Sherlock Holmes would be proud of.Parish councillor Matt Smith used the technology to catch a culprit who had been stealing 300-year-old coping stones from an ancient wall.He hid an Apple AirTag tracking device inside one of the valuable stones after about 30 of them started to disappear from the wall between the villages of Holmeswood and Rufford in Lancashire.When police said there were no CCTV leads or forensic opportunities, Mr Smith, 43, refused to accept the losses and devised his own plan to catch the culprit.The father-of-two put an AirTag inside one of the already loose stones, hoping it would eventually be taken and reveal the thief's whereabouts.The tracker led police to the Wigan home of Craig Barker, 41, where a large quantity of stolen stonework was recovered.He was given a suspended 12-month prison sentence last month at Wigan Magistrates' Court after admitting theft and handling stolen goods offences.Mr Smith, from Holmeswood, said: 'The audacity of him to steal from the community for his own personal gain. That's not what we stand for. Matt Smith, a parish councillor, used an AirTag to track a thief who stole £7,000 worth of 300-year-old coping stones Police recovered the stones, which had formed the wall, after saying there were no leads and prompting Mr Smith to hatch his plan The wall from which the stones were stolen is believed to have been built around 1730'It would have been nice for him to have been imprisoned for the impact he has had on the community. But getting the stones returned to where they belong was the main aim.'The wall is believed to have been built in about 1730 as part of the estate surrounding Grade II-listed Rufford New Hall.Residents first noticed stones disappearing in May last year with further raids in June and October.After exploring options – including warning signs and CCTV – Mr Smith sought permission from landowner Green Belt to place an AirTag inside a loose stone.The breakthrough came last October when Mr Smith woke to alerts on his phone showing the tracker had moved overnight.Lancashire Police's South Rural Task Force traced the signal and recovered a substantial quantity of coping stones from Barker's property.Mr Smith claimed other stonework believed to have been stolen from sites across the country was also found and valued at as much as £40,000.The stolen historic stones, worth up to £7,000, were later reinstalled with the help of contractors and farmers.Mr Smith added: 'It was a great feeling to know we had found the man responsible for causing the community so much pain.'I'm glad we stood up and didn't just tolerate it.'