These must have been the gen 1 AirPods. The 2nd Gen Pros (maybe others) now have a speaker and makes a pretty loud noise from the case. The reason she could no

These must have been the gen 1 AirPods. The 2nd Gen Pros (maybe others) now have a speaker and makes a pretty loud noise from the case. The reason she could not track down these AirPods in crowded areas is because the location reported is actually that of any nearby iPhone, and there can be a significant delay sometimes. That explains why they appeared to be in a trash can for some time. They were pinged by someone's iPhone who happened to be at the trash can, and then the AirPods got in a car and moved. I know of a few folks who have successfully tracked down their stolen items, and it involved knocking on a door or approaching people in less crowded areas where you can be more certain who has them. In all cases, the thief (or unsuspecting buyer of stolen items) just coughs them right up. This was fun read, and I really don't see why it is such a big deal to try and recover stolen goods. You need to have some street smarts. If the item was lost (versus mugged from you), why not investigate where they could be? Use good judgement. Don't go banging on the door of a dilapidated crack-house. I dont think this is the dangerous mission people make it out to be. There were similar cautions around getting in a car with a stranger (uber, lyft), talking to and meeting internet people (dating apps) etc.