Owners locate stolen vehicle

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JOLIET, Ill., April 17 (UPI) -- An Illinois couple played detective and located their stolen SUV by tracing cell phone calls made by a youth who took the vehicle, authorities say.

When Lindsey and Mike Ryan of Joliet realized that Mike had left his cell phone in their missing Nissan Pathfinder, they went online to see if the thief had made any calls, the Joliet (Ill.) Herald-News reported Friday.

"I clicked on call details and there it was!" said Lindsey Ryan. "He was calling all his friends and family members."

The couple then began a reverse search of those numbers online, obtaining addresses and calling the landlines.

Their detective work revealed that the thief who stole their car was a 14-year-old boy and the vehicle was parked on Bellarmine Drive.

The couple called the Tri-County Auto Task Force and agents located the vehicle.

"They recovered drugs and a knife along with my husband's cell phone," Ryan told the newspaper.

A warrant has been issued for the juvenile suspect.