How can I locate a lost iPad and can others disable "Find My" on stolen device

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Locate a device in Find My on iPad - Apple Support

Here is Apple’s advice for lost or stolen devices:

If your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch is lost or stolen – Apple Support

Use the Find My app to locate a lost or stolen device – Apple Support

If the Find My iPad feature was enabled prior to it being “misplaced”, then if active, you would stand a good chance of locating it. 

However, if the feature was not activated prior to being misplaced - or the iPad has been inactive without an active network connection for more than 24 hours, the last known location will not be available - and the opportunity to use technical means to recover the iPad may have been lost.

At the very least, contact the Bus Company for assistance with recovery from the last known location.

For iOS/iPadOS releases 15.x and later, Apple’s Find My services are now not entirely reliant upon devices themselves having a direct network connection. Apple now also uses its network of millions of iPhone’s to detect Bluetooth beacon transmissions from Apple devices - and AirTag.

Assuming iPadOS 15.x or later has been installed on your iPad, devices without WiFi or Cellular network connection can still be detected by other “passing” iPhones that are in close proximity (~30m/100').

As a background system process, fortuitous device detections are anonymously communicated back to Apple’s back-end servers - along with the location of the “detecting” device. As such, while devices remain powered, they can often be located via the Find My service.

A static location might imply that the device is either where you left it - or it is now in the possession of a lost property department.

To reiterate, contact the Bus Company - and/or the associated Lost Property department.

1) The beacon can only be detected by iPhone devices that come within ~30m of device that is still able to broadcast its beacon signal.

2) If the iPad is manually powered-off, if the Find My Network feature was enabled in settings - the iPad will continue to broadcast is beacon signal - and can still be detected by other devices that are (a) within range - and (b) are themselves enrolled in the Find My Network.

3) If the iPad's battery has fully discharged, there will be insufficient power to maintain the BTLE radio. If still turned-on, the iPad will automatically shut-down and power-off before the battery is fully discharged. In this state, the BTLE radio will remain active for as long as the battery retains some level of charge.

Note. The beacon can only be detected and the location reported by another device that is within range - and only while the beacon remains active.

Given that you have seen no reported location for four days - and neither the Bus Company nor local Police Department have your iPad - you might reasonably conclude that the iPad is now lost and unrecoverable.

Whether the iPad is simply sitting in a puddle or ditch - or has been taken by somebody from where it was left - is impossible to determine with the information that you have.

Lost and Stolen are defined by action or intent. Just because you have lost something doesn't necessarily imply that it has been, or will subsequently be, stolen.

Apple's Find My servers will, insofar as available information confirms, provide last location information for detections within the last 24hrs. If the location cannot be updated after 24hrs, the last known location will not be available.

If you won't contact the Bus Company and its Lost Property department, perhaps contact your local Police Department - as your iPad may already have been handed-in.

If Find My Network was enabled, you cannot fully shut-down the iPad. If the iPad is powered-off, the BTLE radio remains active - silently broadcasting beacon its signals.

You seem to focus on all the reasons why you shouldn't be able to locate and recover your iPad - instead of those that might actually reunite you with the iPad...

You're very welcome. I'm sorry that I cannot offer anything more concrete.