Photo: Google Streetview
Authorities in Spain arrested two people in connection with a missing persons case thanks to the help of Google Maps. The Spanish National Police said the investigation began last year when a relative reported a man missing. The relative said that the man, who was a Cuban national living in Spain, told them he was moving to another part of the country and getting rid of his phone.
The relative was concerned because the two were in regular contact.
"This made the complainant suspect that the messages had not been sent by the missing person and led him to report it to police," officials said in a statement.
A Street View image captured in October 2024 showed a red car parked on the side of a street in the small Spanish village of Tajueco. One angle shows a person loading a large object covered in a white sheet into the trunk of the vehicle.
Authorities used the image to track down two suspects in the case. The police arrested the missing man's former girlfriend and another man who was previously in a relationship with the woman.
Investigators later tracked down a badly decomposed torso that was buried at a nearby cemetery. They believe it is the corpse of the missing man.
Officials said that the case remains under investigation.