A Volusia Sheriff’s Office part-time prisoner transport deputy was arrested and then fired for stalking his ex-girlfriend using AirTags to track her whereabouts, the agency said in a Facebook post on March 26.
Apple AirTags are small quarter-size Bluetooth tracking devices designed to help locate misplaced items like keys or luggage. Apple devices receive a secure signal from the tracker showing a location on a map without needing GPS or cellular data.
Authorities: DeLand deputy began stalking ex-girlfriend after breakup
James Kleeman, 65, of DeLand, was booked into the Volusia County Branch Jail at 3:30 a.m. on March 26 and remained jailed without bail on charges of stalking and installing/using tracking devices/apps illegally.
Kleeman, who has been with the sheriff’s office since November 2012, was suspended without pay March 25 and then fired on March 26, the Facebook post said.
The victim broke up with Kleeman in February after a three-year relationship. The woman told deputies she found AirTags on her vehicle and her adult daughter’s vehicle dating back to 2025, the sheriff’s office said.
After their breakup, the victim said she found an additional AirTag on her vehicle and found Ring video of Kleeman crawling underneath her daughter’s vehicle at her home, the social media release states.
Kleeman also used his Volusia Sheriff’s Office vehicle to locate the woman on multiple occasions, according to the Facebook post.
Accused Volusia deputy shows up at scene where woman was making report to police
On March 25, while the victim was making a report to Volusia deputies in DeLand, Kleeman showed up in the parking lot and pulled up behind the victim’s vehicle, according to the sheriff’s office Facebook post.
Investigating deputies found AirTags on vehicles of the victim and daughter, the sheriff’s office said.
Kleeman admitted placing the AirTags on the vehicles but denied he followed the victim, the sheriff’s office said.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Volusia deputy jailed for allegedly stalking ex-girlfriend
Reporting by Patricio G. Balona, Daytona Beach News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
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