Cell Phone Number Lookup Leads to a Rapist

What did we ever do before cell phones gave us the ability to follow their trail right to the criminals' doorstep? Now we hear on a daily basis, how one way or another, looking up the location of the cell phone owner helps solve crimes and locate perpetrators.

This story appeared in the New York Daily News on February 27, 2009. Apparently, that morning, as a 26-year-old woman walked home, a man grabbed her and dragged her behind a dumpster, where he choked her until she lost consciousness. Then he raped her. The victim came to as she was being raped and attempted to fight off her attacker. Amazingly, she succeeded, because he ran off taking her purse and cell phone, but leaving her alone. Well, not quite; he also left behind his own cell phone. Bingo!

When the police arrived, the young woman handed them the attacker's cell phone. It didn't take them long to trace the phone to its owner via a reverse cell phone lookup. It led them straight to Mr. Jonathan Salva's Brooklyn home, where the stunned villain was arrested and charged with rape, predatory sexual assault and robbery.

Now, isn't that remarkable. Never before in the history of mankind did we have such an accomplished crime-fighting tool at our disposal. Yea and hooray for reverse cell phone lookups!