Burglar Caught after Using Victim’s Netflix Account

A northern California man was jailed on burglary charges this week after police traced the victim’s active Netflix account to the thief’s home.

On March 4, a woman returned home to find that a thief had nabbed her 65-inch smart TV, Blu-Ray player, surround sound system, and laptop, Mariposa County police told local NBC affiliate KCRA.

Three days later, the woman reportedly noticed that someone had been viewing movies on her Netflix account. The woman told police that her television and Blu-Ray player were both linked to her Netflix account.

The woman then contacted police, who in turn contacted Netflix to retrieve the IP address of the Wi-Fi signal being used.

Authorities obtained a search warrant for a home in Mariposa County, but when they arrived at the home, they could not find the stolen items. The homeowner reportedly told police they had allowed their next door neighbor, Bobby Alexander, to use their Wi-Fi signal.

Authorities visited Alexander’s home, but he was not there. Police told KCRA that a deputy searched the man’s house and found the stolen items.

Alexander, 20, surrendered to the Mariposa County Sheriff’s Office a few hours later. He was charged with burglary and is being held on $75,000 bail.

It is unclear which movie the man was watching on his victim’s account.