Adonis Carcamo from Lewisville had precious items stolen from his car more than two weeks ago and as a result the theft prompted him to take matters into his own hands.
"It's just awesome to catch the bad guy instead of being the bad guy for once," Adonis said.
The most expensive item taken from was his $750 drone he uses to make videos for his production company.
"It was just a major bummer to have that taken away from you," Adonis said.
Police tell WFAA there have been a series of burglaries in Old Town Lewisville. Carcamo searched online in case it popped up on a buy-sell website. He got two notifications from OfferUp and LetGo for a drone and realized quickly that it was his quad-copter drone. He knew it was his because he installed unique red propellors.
Adonis dispatched his brother and his wife to meet the seller. Adonis didnt go himself because his identity was compromised after the wallet was stolen too. The ploy even went so far they printed fake money. The seller was offering the drone for $200 more than it was purchased for.
"I told her don't turn around for anything, just keep walking," said Agni Carcamo, Adonis' brother.
They called police before making the exchange. Adonis says he told police that they were going to engage in an amateur sting.
"It's sort of a risk versus reward approach is the way I would look at it," said Captain Mike Lane with Lewisville Police. Officers arrived toward the tail-end of the transaction and a man by the name of Trenton Carter was arrested and handcuffed.
Carter was arrested for a parole violation and is now in the Denton County Detention Center. Police tell WFAA say they are still investigating what connection Carter has to other stolen items that were found.
"Detectives are trying to link those items with other burglaries within our jurisdiction," said Captain Lane.
Adonis is happy to have his stuff back. On Monday he flew his drone for the first time since it was taken.
"I'm not gonna be the victim this time. I'm gonna get my s--- back," Adonis said.
Lewisville Police stresses that people not do what the Carcamos did. A spokesman for the department says to call the police department. It's also why three years ago the department installed "Exchange Zones" in the parking lot right in front of the police building. This is where buyers and sellers can meet. The spokesperson says if one party does not want to meet there then that should be a red flag.