MAKE SURE YOUR DOORS ARE LOCKED!

[neohic]

So... I got home from work expecting to go out in my shop for a few hours until the wife got home. I walked through the door in instantly thought, "Hu... it's cold in here..." (I've got in-floor heat). I turn on the light and find my back door wide open. Snow was piling in, I had footprints around and in the fresh snow, and a few things were missing. The first thing I did was run over to my Eliminator to find the passenger door open, the glove box and the console open, and a few fresh scratches around the door handle. I've also got my brother's '87 VW Rabbit in my shop... that had the car cover half pulled off but nothing missing. I had several tools out and on my bench but they were all there. My toolbox was riffled through but nothing was missing from there either. What was missing was a tool bag full of about $280 worth of stuff that was sitting in the box of my MJ. Another thing missing was a junk copper radiator. Why only a tool bag and a radiator? I have no idea... there is easily $15,000 worth of stuff out there.

 

I was instantly pissed with the thought of, "SOMEONE TOUCHED MY TRUCK WITHOUT ME KNOWING!".

 

A police officer stopped by and took a report but it came down to an unlocked door. Why was my back door unlocked? I haven't any idea... ever forget to lock a door?... yeah me too. The only thing I figure is that I left my door unlocked.

 

Moral of the story? Make sure your doors are locked. :fs2:

[Pete M]

sure they didn't just pick the lock?

[neohic]

Pick a lock and only grab a tool bag and scrap copper? :hmm: I dunno... didn't find anything that seemed tampered with on the lock.

[Pete M]

someone broke into my garage (I'm on the corner and so the garage is right on the street) and stole the compressor and snowblower. nothing else. thieves are interested in items that are easy to steal, easy to pawn off, and whatever gets them out of there as fast as possible.

 

 

do you have a newer garage door opener with the revolving codes or the older ones with a single set code?

[neohic]

The openers are the newer style and I keep the garage doors manually locked from the inside.

 

Hopefully things will turn up. I put together a list of missing items to the police. They stay in touch with local pawn shops for anything that can be identified. Fingers crossed anyhow.

[kyleag89]

I wish you luck, I was in the same situation last year and even knew who did it. Stupid pigs could give two Sh**s about finding petty thieves.

[jvd]

Keep an eye on craigslist, in my area lots of theives advertise one day only sales between certain hours for tools in sketchy areas, makes you wonder. Working as a medic in bad areas around philly I get to hear the police talking about the guys trying to sell hot items and the excuses they come up with why they have certain items.

[MJCARENA]

That really sucks, sorry to hear this. Thanks for letting us know to remind us. I have had stuff stolen from my yard and it really gets to you. :fs1:

[btm24]

I am also very sorry to here this. Get a dead bolt for the back door. Hope every thing works out ok

 

Brandon

[ryno56]

Crappy. I had my '02 cummins stolen from a hotel parking lot on my wedding night. It ended up being a write-off. When I reported it to the police the first thing they say to me is "you know, a club is only like 50 bucks". I said "thanks for the info, can I speak to someone who cares?". Funny thing is, a remote starter/alarm was my wedding gift from my wife. If you find that kind of thing funny.

 

Makes you feel pretty helpless though, I hope you find who did it.

[dakal]

we have the bicycle thiefs here. they just ride around on their bikes looking for stuff laying around. i always watch them eye to eye when they come down my street. i aint smiling either.

 

get a job and earn it like us!

[glundblad]

Locking a door doesnt help. The lock typically is connected to the door jam which is a 1" thick piece of yellow pine. I locked myself out of my garage and needed to kick it in. It didnt take much.

 

When I got robbed, I left my garage door unlocked. That way, I only needed to replace stuff and not the door.

[500 MJ]

Are you in town or out of town in the country? With all the crap I'm bound to have laying around at my future place, I'm thinking I've gotta be out of town and in the woods somewhere...

[JeepcoMJ]

put a no tresspassing sign up. then, even if it's unlocked, the poliece have to respond.

 

 

I live on 7 mile road near 7 mile fair here in WI. it's a bunch of broke mexicans pawning stolen sh*t off. so far, from my place, they've stoeln a pile of sheet metal scrap (worth about $40...they saved me some trouble loading it), and they stole my old upstairs neighbor's chickens (you read correctly).

 

 

You really can't stop them if they want something you have. they'll steal whatever they can...i've been lucky, and my barn hasn't been broken into yet.

[neohic]

I live in a well lit neighborhood in the middle of town. Granted, I've got the biggest shop in my yard in the whole area, but I've always thought of my area as "a good neighborhood".

 

Word sure spread quickly too. I called my dad as soon as I figured out what was happening since he's he only other person with a key... yeah, not even the wife. He told my brothers and they told people... now my wife's Facebook is lighting up. Hu... I'll wait for a few days to really go out and get new tools, but the plan was for some Christmas shopping today. I'll get just what I need to keep working and keep my fingers crossed.

 

New sign is definitely going up.

[terrawombat]

I've been extremely lucky with my shop as I've had no thievery yet, but it's incredibly easy to get in, get what you want and get out without anyone ever seeing you. I'm eventually going to put up some networked cameras in the barn so I can keep good surveillance on it when I'm away. The only people that would even know what is it in my shop are friends or friends of friends so I'd most likely be able to identify the person doing the robbing and give them a good old fashioned beat down and retrieve my stolen goods.

 

My parents farm was robbed about 8 or 9 years ago by a bunch of kids that were living in one of those 'halfway homes' for kids in need of reform (didn't seem to work too well). They attempted to steal three of our ATVs, but were only able to get two since they couldn't start my Yamaha because the carb was gummed up. It actually worked out to our advantage in a sense because the insurance company was very generous with the value of the ATVs (they were both less than a year old) and actually gave us close to what we paid for them.

 

About six months later, the police responded to a call at the halfway house and found our ATVs along with about two dozen other ATVs and dirtbikes. Both of our ATVs had been run pretty hard and one wouldn't even start at all. The police returned them to us and when the insurance agent came out to see them, he appraised them really low due to their problems and offered us the chance to buy them back at $400 for both - so we did. Turned out there were some blown fuses on one ATV and the other needed the carb cleaned and they've been running well ever since.

 

On one of the ATVs, the thieves removed the Honda badging and replaced it with a "Cash Rules" logo. Idiots...

[Dirteatr717]

My dads a locksmith so my garage is like a secret lab... There's like 4 locks on the front door and a design my dads working on to deadbolt all the way thru the door to both sides.. Plus an alarm and 3/8 angle iron across all the windows ;) my garage has been broken into 6 times in the past 3 years or so because all the hoodlems about a block over in a not so good town have seen me riding my dirtbikes and quads and many other toys so even if they broke in somehow there not getting much out :)

[loi]

the notion that thieves, not thiefs, have the ability or desire to steal everything is baffling to me. also the notion that thieves don't care is baffling. most thieves give a $#!&, they don't want to steal everything you own, or they would. they clearly don't. most times something is stolen its only a few items. i have had people pass up tons of VERY expensive things i own to steal $#!& that is literally worthless. its just how people are.