LAWRENCE — One woman bought her laptop for $200 in a store parking lot. Another man made a deal with a guy named "Shorty," paying $100 for a Dell Inspiron 1501 laptop that legally retails around $800.

But neither resident, until police knocked on their doors, knew the devices were equipped with Lojack for laptops. And now they are facing charges of receiving stolen property.

Many folks are familiar with Lojack technology, which is installed in motor vehicles to trace and recover them if they are stolen.

Laptop computers today can also be equipped with similar protection. In the recent Lawrence cases, Computrace Lojack for Laptops, a patented computer theft recovery software, was used to pinpoint and recover stolen laptops being used around the city.

The investigations, in fact, were so successful, city Detectives Kevin Nighosian and Claudio Camacho recently received a letter of praise from Absolute Software, the Canadian developer of Computrace Lojack.

"We have helped law enforcement recover over 5,000 stolen computers," wrote Lyle Singular, a vice president for Absolute Software, which is based in Vancouver.

Computrace comes with "geolocation tracking," which is the ability to see in the "real world" where a stolen laptop computer is. The software allows both the company and police to track the computer within a 33-foot radius, according to information posted on the company Web site.

In one recent case, the software helped Nighosian and Camacho find a stolen Dell Inspiron laptop at a Bodwell Street home.

Detectives questioned a 28-year-old woman about the stolen laptop and she admitted to police she bought the computer in a South Lawrence parking lot. A man was selling several computers and movies out of a black trash bag, according to a police report.

Migdaliz Diaz of 26 Bodwell St., second floor, was issued a summons for receiving stolen property. Once the case is resolved, police will return the laptop to its rightful owner, a Myrtle Street man who reported it stolen in October, according to the report.

In another case, a laptop reported stolen by a Park Street resident was recovered at a Saratoga Street home. A 37-year-old man questioned by police said he bought the computer from a man named "Shorty" and "was unaware it had been stolen."

Justo Morales, of 34 Saratoga St., No. 2, was also issued a summons for receiving stolen property, according to a police report.

Police Chief John Romero described the laptop Lojack software as "amazing." The technology helps computer companies to protect their product and police departments to close theft cases.

According to the Computrace Web site, the protection costs about $40 for one year and $90 for three years.

ÔÇæÔÇæÔÇæ

Join the discussion. To comment on stories and see what others are saying, log on to eagletribune.com.