iPad theft suspect: using Find My iPhone is trespassing

An alleged Apple iPad thief has reportedly turned the tables on the device's owner after claiming in the ACT Magistrates Court that the act of tracing the stolen iPad back to his home using the Find My iPhone application constituted electronic trespassing.

Find My iPhone is an Apple application that helps users locate their lost or stolen iPhone or iPad using GPS.

The stolen iPad was tracked to the north Canberra home of Alden Harder, when the device owner used Find My iPhone and activated the alarm alert, according to The Canberra Times. The owner traced the sound to Harder's garage, and the police legally searched the property. The police found the iPad among a number of other suspected stolen goods. The suspect has a history of burglary offences.

In court on Tuesday, Harder fought an order by the police to surrender himself for fingerprinting, The Canberra Times said. His lawyer claimed that the evidence against Harder was obtained unlawfully, since the device's owner electronically trespassed on his property by setting off the iPad alarm.

The police has reportedly labelled the claim as "absurd", because if the claim is legitimate, then everybody who owns a router that transmits Wi-Fi signals into their neighbours' properties would be guilty.

The case is ongoing.