tonight on "nightline" -- it's one of the fastest growing crimes nationwide, and now a cellphone crackdown. photos, passwords, even bank info, if someone steals your phone, it's personal. tonight, the new way you can stop it from happening to you. the jesus discovery. first they claim they found jesus' bones. now meet the modern-day tomb raiders who say they have incredible new evidence that could re-write the history of christianity. man down. he said it was a campaign of miracles, but tonight rick santorum, the ultimate underdog, on what finally made him step aside and what it means for obama now that romney is the one. >> announcer: from the global resources of abc news, with terry moran, cynthia mcfadden,

bill weir and tonight juju chang in new york city, this is "nightline," april 10, 2012. good evening. i'm juju chang. tonight it's the age of the super smartphone, where one little device can carry your private e-mails, your passwords and even act as your credit card. but, while having your phone inside and out makes life more convenient, it also makes theft a graver danger. today there's a whole new way to fight back and make your smartphone less tempting for thieves. >> reporter: in los angeles, a thief sneaks up on his victim, knocks her over, punching her. she fights back. he slams her against the wall and beats her down, all this to steal her cellphone. >> it could happen to anybody. you just need to be careful. >> reporter: in san francisco, this unsuspecting woman has her cellphone snatched right out of her hand. in baltimore, thieves knock this victim out.

among the items stolen, his cellphone. they even strip him naked as onlookers revel at the inhumanity. sometimes thieves are desperate enough to walk into a cell phone store and take phones at gunpoint. >> this has become such a money-maker for the criminals and they're using all types of violence to get these phones. we had a woman pushing a baby stroller, middle of the day, capitol hill, nice neighborhood. suspect comes up, punches her in the face, essentially knocks her out, breaks her jaw, and takes the phone. >> reporter: even has as the overall crime rate has been falling, phone theft has been rising. according to the fcc, over the last year, roughly one out of every three robberies nationwide have involved the theft of a cell phone. are we talking hundreds of cell phones, thousands? >> thousands, nationwide. i just tried surveying other major city chiefs around the

country, and the numbers are really staggering. >> reporter: in the last four years in washington, d.c. alone, 6,611 cellphones have been reported stolen. the numbers last year jumped 54% compared to 2007. thieves love stealing cellphones because they can be quickly resold on the street. to be blunt, when thieves see your cellphone, they see dollars. >> you see someone walking down the street with someone holding $500, $600 cash in your hand. >> you walk around and don't think anything of showing it to anyone, but would you walk down the street with a wad of 20s right up by your face? i don't think so. >> reporter: police say stolen cell phones are being sold out of the trunks of cars, on pawnshops or on services like craigslist for $50 to $600 a pop. "nightline" spent a week with portland oregon property theft detectives and they say the internet is providing a new

gatew gateway to fence stolen items, including cell phones. >> the majority of people are legitimate and people are trying to buy and sell, but it's given the criminal element a pawn shop where they can poach things and it's anonymous. then they arrange to meet you somewhere in a parking lot somewhere. >> reporter: today the fcc, along with major carriers, verizon, sprint, t-mobile, and at&t, announced plans to slow the epidemic. they plan to create a national database to track cell phone thefts and then to block they're reactivation. the plan is to make stolen cell phones junk. >> what we're announcing here today will make a stolen cellphone about as worthless as an empty wallet. >> reporter: but will the database really work? >> the idea that the cellphone companies can remotely brick a phone that's been stolen, that's huge in deterring the crime of cellphone theft that's growing rapidly. >> reporter: you'll still have to buy a new phone if yours is stolen.

the idea is that thieves will eventually quit robbing people of their phones if they become inoperable. authorities warn that your smartphone is a treasure trove for identity theft because all kinds of personal information is on it. there are things you can do to protect yourself and your phone. >> three main things you want to do. number one, you want to have a pass code to unlock your screen. that will slow down the thieve. next, you want to install an app before you lose the phone that allows you to track it remotely via gps and most importantly erase all of the sensitive data on there if it falls into the wrong hands. >> reporter: remember, you and your phone are a target. you don't want this to happen to you. for "nightline," i'm pierre thomas in washington. >> cell phone thifz beware. up next -- the discovery that could change the way we view the most important event in christian history. >> announcer: abc news

"nightline" brought to you by bp.

>> announcer: "nightline" continues from new york city with juju chang. on the heels of easter weekend, we bring you a controversial claim that challenges what most historians believe happened after jesus' death. it's "indiana jones" meets "the da vinci code" with the help of csi forensics, this team believes they've discovered something in an ancient burial tomb in the holy land that could change our central pillar of understanding of christianity. this our series "faith matters." >> reporter: these folks look like they're just fixing

plumbing. but what they're actually doing could change what we know about the birth of christianity. >> this is where we're going. it's cryptic. >> reporter: there is an archaeology cal dig in jerusalem. >> right where he thinks we can put our probe. >> reporter: a filmmaker who made headlines five years ago. >> this is very much the talk of jerusalem. >> reporter: with his controversial claims that he discovered jesus' bones in a tomb 200 feet from where they're digging now. >> we'll have to carry this at the end of three or four meter arm. >> reporter: the team designed this robotic arm to mount a tiny camera that could snake through the floor of this apartment building in order to protect the sanctity of the site. >> we're basically there but not there. we're there at the controls. we're watching. we're looking. and yet we're not touching anything. >> reporter: biblical scholar james tabor and the team watch anxiously. >> all right! we have image. >> reporter: as the lens travels back centuries to the time of

jesus. whether they're hoping to unearth another startling find as seen here in a new documentary for the discovery channel. >> i haven't seen anything look similar to this. >> reporter: what they're looking at is an ancient burial tomb, full of limestone boxes that contain human bones. >> it's almost like a moonscape feeling of something eerie. these people died 2,000 years ago, and now we are investigating how they buried their dead, what they left behind. and in the excitement of, well, will there be something we findb or will we just find another jewish tomb? >> look here very carefully. >> yeah, yeah, yeah! it's a whale. it's a whale! it's jonah! >> reporter: they think what they're seeing could change our views of early christianity. >> that is a symbol of christian resurrection. >> reporter: i met up with james tabor at the dead sea scrolls exhibit in new york city. he showed me a replica of the

artwork they saw on their latest treasure. >> what we're understanding, is the jonah image, the tale, the body of the fish and this funny human stick figure coming out with the sea weed wrapped around his head -- >> reporter: for many christians, the story of jonah and the whale has come to symbolize the resurrection of jesus. but if it's in fact the case, this is the earliest christian symbol of resurrection ever found. >> it would be the earliest symbol, you're looking at it right now. >> reporter: or maybe you're not. many scholars don't see that as well. >> when is a fish not a fish? the answer i provide to that is, when it has handles. >> reporter: mark of duke university says there are other far more likely explanations of what that image is. >> it's a vessel, it's a vase that lookses like many of what you'll find in this early roman period. >> wow. >> reporter: goodacres says this could simply be the power of

suggestion. take a look. do you see a vase, or do you see that fish? threaten's this. >> whoa, stop! that's an inscription. >> reporter: sixka and his colleagues also believe that these greek letters on another stone found a few feet away refer to resurrection. >> i would guess, from the dead. >> whether they were saying he rose or he would rise, we could argue about it. but the finds themselves are hard archaeology that show -- shed new light on the big bang of christianity. >> reporter: but religious scholars say it's more like the big bust. >> he is seeing things that simply aren't there. his head is so full of things like the da vinci code that he sees full fufillment for his ow

desires. >> reporter: simka has been criticized before. five years ago he made the claim he'd found jesus' family tomb, holding the bones of jesus, his mother, mary mag da lean and jesus' love child, as in "the da vinci code" 0. >> that's jesus, son of joseph. >> this says mara, meaning the lourdes or the female for lord. >> reporter: now they believe these two tombs are related and book about mbs are related and it "the jesus discovery." by extrapolation, you're saying that the bones traveling in that osary are the bones of jesus christ. >> that's right. that's right. we have one tomb that has the bones of jesus, and 200 feet away people celebrating his resurrection, they're able to put this together in a way that maybe people today haven't considered. >> there's no question in my mind that this tomb has nothing

to do with early christians, nor does the tomb next door have anything to do with jesus' family. >> can you drop down a bit? >> the finds are the finds. i think we're being distracted by some scholars who are in theological trauma. to start talking about what's not important. what's important is what light do these finds shed on the origins of christianity? >> there! >> where? >> you're right. the cross. >> oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. >> these finds take us back into the time of jesus and put it back into historical context of judea, jerusalem, where he lived. >> reporter: what it all means could be debated for the next 2,000 years. >> separating historical fact friction, see for yourself the resurrection dum mitomb mystery april 12th on discovery. just ahead, one candidate

bowed out after nearly stealing the show. why he thinks mitt romney is the worst republican in the country to run against president obama. could you please taste car insurance y? this one is much more expensive. ugh. it's really bad. let's see what you picked. oh, geico! over their competitor. you are a magician right? no., oh. you're not?, no., oh, well, give it a shot. i am so, so sorry. it was this close. .. economically, it seems like a good choice now. we need environmental protection. we've got more than 100 years worth of energy, right here. [announcer:] who's right? they all are. visit powerincooperation.com.

. it's official. rick santorum, the unexpected

star of the gop primary that no one saw coming, quit the race today. which means that barring a political earthquake, mitt romney will be running against president obama. so how did this man even get this far? abc's jonathan karl brings us a brief history of his surprising success. >> reporter: today rick santorum pulled the plug on what he called a campaign of miracles. >> miracle after miracle, this race was as improbable as any race you'll see for president. >> reporter: improbable? more like impossible. it all started last year with an announcement on "good morning america." >> we're going to be in this race and we're in it to win. >> reporter: yeah, right. he was the underdog, rick. nobody thought he had a chance. afterall, this was the guy who in 2006, lost his pennsylvania senate seat by a staggering 17-plus points. nobody paying much attention as he waged a lonely but tireless

campaign around iowa. his top aide, his oldest daughter. >> make sure he gets rest and isn't working. he'll stay up and do e-mails and keep working. >> reporter: it was the ultimate no-frills campaign. >> you're in the middle of a speech, but please feel free to come on in. >> reporter: with his signature sweater vest and a heart-felt appeal to evangelicals, he caught fire. becoming miracle rick. it was like david versus gol ith. santorum was outspent and outorganized by romney who savaged him with attack ad in state after state. >> rick santorum is called the ultimate washington insider. >> reporter: santorum never got his own campaign bus. sometimes events were so badly lit but against all odds, he won

iowa. >> game on. >> reporter: and went on to win nine other states throughout the heartland. as he gained steam, he often looked like pious rick, forced to explain his personal opposition to birth control. not exactly the most popular position. >> i don't think it works. i think it's harmful to women and our society. >> reporter: and the way he described john kennedy's famous speech on church and state. >> i believe that america and neither cat lick, profit assistant or jewish. >> i had the opportunity to read the speech and i almost threw up. >> to say people have no roll, you bet that makes you throw up. >> reporter: he continued to win a handful of states, but it was becoming clear that romney had a lock on the nomination. enter, angry rick. >> he is the worst republican in the country to put up against barack obama.

angry at a "new york times" reporter who dared ask him why he said that. >> is that true? >> what speech did you listen to? stop lying. quit distorting my words. if i see it, it's bull [ bleep ]. >> reporter: his passion drove his campaign further than anybody expected, but today with ailing 3-year-old daughter bella just out of the hospital, facing a possible embarrassing loss in his home state under a barrage of attack ads. >> we fired him as senator. why promote him to president? >> reporter: today it was goodbye, rick. though he leaves the race with one of the most conservative voices in the country and the guy who gave mitt romney and the republican establishment, a real scare. our thanks to jon