Tracked Down the Location Using a Photo of the Stolen Lamborghini Huracan Evo
SNS Message Leads to AI-Assisted Recovery Effort
A man in the United States who had his expensive Lamborghini stolen two years ago was able to recover the vehicle with the help of artificial intelligence (AI).
According to Carscoops and CBS 8 San Diego on August 26 (local time), Andrew Garcia, a resident of Orange County in Southern California, had his 2019 Lamborghini Huracan Evo stolen in the summer of 2023, two years ago. The purchase price of the vehicle was about $250,000 (approximately 347.47 million won).
2019 Lamborghini Huracan Evo vehicle recovered two years after being stolen. Screenshot from YouTube channel 'CBS 8 San Diego'
At the time, authorities identified the group that stole Garcia's supercar as a luxury car theft ring responsible for stealing vehicles worth millions of dollars. The group was accused of not returning about 20 luxury cars after renting them, instead stealing the vehicles and fleeing. Before reselling the cars, the group also manipulated documents to remove the original owners. While authorities were able to recover all the other stolen vehicles, Garcia's car remained missing.
Tracking the Vehicle's Whereabouts After Receiving an SNS Message
However, last month, Garcia received an unexpected message on Instagram. Someone sent him a photo of his car along with the question, "Did you sell this car by any chance?" It is believed that the sender found Garcia's business card inside the car and reached out to inquire about purchasing the vehicle.
Using the photo of the car he received, Garcia began investigating the location shown in the image. However, since the place in the photo did not appear to be in California, he needed to proceed cautiously. He used ChatGPT as a tool to help locate the vehicle. First, he uploaded the photo to ChatGPT and asked where the picture might have been taken. ChatGPT suggested several possibilities, and Garcia then used Google tools to confirm the precise latitude and longitude. Through this process, he determined that the location where his car was photographed was likely Denver, Colorado-a place more than 1,600 kilometers away from where he lived.
2019 Lamborghini Huracan Evo vehicle recovered two years after being stolen. Screenshot from YouTube channel 'CBS 8 San Diego'
After determining the vehicle's location, Garcia reported it to the police, who found the car and confirmed that it was Garcia's missing Huracan Evo. Garcia flew to Denver, and on his way home, he was able to drive his Huracan back.
The Vehicle Was Found 1,600 Kilometers from His Residence
Kale Gould, spokesperson for the Colorado Auto Theft Prevention Authority, praised Garcia's remarkable "self-investigation." He added, "Such proactive information gathering is extremely helpful in recovering stolen vehicles." Colorado police are continuing to investigate who possessed Garcia's vehicle and whether that person was involved in the theft.
The Lamborghini Huracan Evo is a supercar equipped with a 5.2-liter V10 engine, delivering 631 horsepower and a maximum torque of 600 Nm. Paired with a 7-speed DCT transmission, it achieves a top speed of 325 km/h and can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in just 2.9 seconds.
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