Biker boss Nick Martin’s murder at a speedway in Perth, Australia, left police a trove of evidence that led them to the culprit: a thrill-seeker turned gun-for-hire. But they wanted more.
The coronavirus pandemic provided it in the form of an electronic dragnet: QR code check-in data from contact tracing apps of 2,439 fans who attended the December 2020 race. A government order requiring people to provide contact tracing information in case of a COVID-19 outbreak meant that anyone who checked in at the raceway that day left their name, phone number and arrival time through the SafeWA COVID-19 app or on paper. Police issued an “order to produce” the information to the state Health Department two days after Martin was shot and killed.
