An off-duty firefighter in Florida was shot to death after refusing to give robbers the passcode to his iPhone.

The killers had spared Chris Randazzo his life after robbing him of his iPhone and other belongings in Broward. The three men sped off in a car but quickly turned around to demand Randazoo provide the phone’s security code. They shot Randazzo when he refused, police said.

A tragic iPhone robbery

Randazzo, a Coral Springs firefighter, had just been out with friends and on his way to his girlfriend’s house in the early hours of Oct. 28 when the robbery occurred.

Police were able to track down the robbers with cellphone data and license plate readers, according to a report in the South Florida Sun Sentinel. License plate readers are cameras that scan plates on passing cars, alerting police in real-time if the readers detect any wanted cars.

Police arrested three men, ages 19, 20 and 32 they say were involved in Randazzo’s shooting. The alleged robbers are also being investigated for a shooting that occurred prior to the confrontation with Randazzo.

How to remote lock your iPhone

Victims of a robbery can take steps to lock down their iPhone if forced to relinquish their device to attackers.

Activating Find My iPhone can lock the device and prevent a thief from using the phone. A victim may also need to use iCloud to delete data over the web.

You can track your phone with Find My iPhone, however, police advise victims to avoid trying to recover it without police. Victims will also want to call their service carrier to suspect the account attached to the phone.

Source: South Florida Sun Sentinel