I was Robbed

[ptmmatssc]

First off , this IS gun related .

Ok , here's the poop . Got home to find money not where I left it and my back door open . Thought the wife had grabbed the money and maybe hadn't closed the door tightly (has a hard time sometimes getting it to latch) . Nothing really seemed out of the ordinary other than that . A few things were disheveled , but have had that happen from the cats just being cats . So when the wife got home I asked her about the money and door , and she denied either . At that point we realized we were broken into . we started to look around and take stock in what was missing . The first thing I looked at was my gun collection (here's the gun related) . Everything was still there , although they broke into a safe and my briefcase (time for bigger and better) . no guns or any of my knives were taken . All they grabbed was money . They snagged all the change off of my dresser , my daughters piggybank (full) , all my silver coins (in safe) , my collection of odd coins(safe) , and a set of shot glasses .

I immediately called the police and they were at my home within 15 minutes . the consensus was that it was probably "kids" . Then this morning I found out a group of "kids" in my area just returned from a stint in "juvie" . The main concern of the officer was the guns , and if any were missing . Told him they were all there , and that I have my bound book for all the info IF any were missing .

Gotta say , the officer did as good a job as possible . Didn't seem to phase him that I was armed while he was there . Didn't do the "sit down while I look around " bit either . Very professional encounter .

i guess it's time to look over my security measures again . Funny thing is , this happened on the only day of the week that someone is not here during the day . I feel very fortunate that no guns were taken and now plan on upping my security for both the guns and the cash/coins . Actually installing video surveillance today and am going looking for a better steel door for replacement of the one that was kicked in .

All in all , although someone robbed me , I am lucky no one was here to be harmed and the things they took were mostly cash . Hopefully things pan out to catch the person/people who did this and put them where they belong .

 

[308win]

Maybe you arrived home while they were still there and scared them off or maybe something else caused them to leave without taking your firearms and other stuff. Thing is they know it is there and they probably know your habits. Not a good situation.

 

[Geno]

Glad all worked out in the end, most of all that nobody was injured, and second that the guns remained in home.

What kind of "safe" did you have, that they were able to gain access?

Doc2005

 

[xjchief]

Would you mind sharing what kind of safe it was that they broke into and how they got into it?

Sorry about the break-in, I've had the displeasure of experiencing a few of those myself and it really sucks.

 

[rust collector]

Technically, your home was burglarized

Robbery is committed upon a person through threat or violence. It's a violation of your space and trust either way, but the monetary things can be replaced.

You can upgrade locks, install motion detectors and generally ramp up security, but nosy neighbors and changing patterns of occupancy can be helpful as well.

I'm sorry they picked your home, but in the long term it may help you avert something worse if you take the necessary steps to protect yourselves and your belongings. Now hopefully the rest of us can learn something from your experience.

 

[skidmark]

although they broke into a safe

suggests you have more than one. Were the guns in a safe separate from where the coins were?

Seems rather odd that IF they saw any guns they did not take them. Also the taking of the daughter's piggybank without mention of the house looking more ransacked is a strange circumstance. Juveniles breaking in and not doing damage is also making my neck hair twitch.

I am NOT disputing your information. Just saying there are a lot of things that seem out of place. Makes me wonder, but ten I spend 20+ years working with criminals, so my antennae are tuned differently than the ordinary person's.

Get your video survellience set up ASAP. Make sure you have some cameras that are in places nobody would think about (fisheye in a wall clock or inside a book, peeking out the spine).

stay safe.

skidmark

 

[Dan Forrester]

Would also like to know what kind of safe you have and what they used to gain access.

Thanks, Dan

 

[SSN Vet]

teen age neighbor kid pulled a similar stunt burglarizing several houses on our quiet side street with his new friends from school....

then came accross long guns in one house and after handling them (leaving finger prints) they left them behind.....

not being the "hardened criminal type" I think they were either scared at the prospect of steeling guns or just didn't have a place to keep/hide them at home.

they were all busted...

AND....(best part of the story in my opinion)...

the neighbor kids mom marched him down the street the next day....and had him personaly apologize to each and every resident for not being a good neighbor.

No problems since then.....some two years gone by now....

Parenting! What a concept!

 

[REOIV]

They may not have taken the guns because they had no idea how to sell them or get rid of them.

Sometimes they just want money or small items they can get rid of discretely and carry on their person where as walking out of a house with long guns would raise too much suspicion.

Also I have seen thieves with a conscience where they take just what they need to get their next fix etc.

That said it wouldn't hurt getting the wall eye cameras etc as mentioned above since they now know about the guns etc and could mention them to others or come back some other time when they are more desperate.

 

[strat81]

In addition to the make and model of safe, please post pics of the defeated unit. Any idea what they used to breech it?

 

[RoadkingLarry]

Parenting! What a concept!

Isn't that illegal in most states now?

 

[romma]

I will have to say that maybe they opted to not steal the firearms was that they know it will up the ante in an investigation, or maybe if they were in a seperate place from the coins they didn't find them...

 

[cyclist]

although they broke into a safe

+1 on wanting to know more about this.

Could have been kids, could have been a druggie looking to take non-identifiable stuff to directly buy with (cash is cash). Could have been a friend of the family.

 

[WayneConrad]

Sometimes you go to carry the groceries, and there's too much for one trip. So you have to come back to get the rest.

If you think they saw the guns, expect return business. If not them, then an acquaintance.

 

[foghornl]

Set up your vid-cams NOW, and have them recorded somewhere not quickly accessible to person(s) looking to take the tape.

F'rinstance, have a VCR stashed in the floor joists, etc. YOU know where it is, other don't....Like putting the main panel for an alarm system in a false wall behind the clothes in kid's BR closet, etc.

 

[Gordon]

I wanta hear about breeching a 'safe'.

 

[66912]

There have been quite a few requests hear on the issue of the safe. Why no response? I as well wish too know the details of how the safe was defeated.

 

[Conqueror]

Why no response?

Keep yer shirt on, the thread is only 2hrs old. Maybe the OP had to go to work or something?

 

[ARK9mm]

I own a security systems company and see this aftermath all the time.

+1 on the cameras. DIY stuff will work fine and be cheap. Remoting the VCR somewhere is great advice.

My opinion (I know you didn't ask) is that it was kids. Kids don't know what to do with guns except shoot 'em. Pawning them or otherwise selling them is too major for petty thieves. But, depending on the age of your daughter, it may be someone you know. Considering the house wasn't totally ransacked yet they spent enough time to find quite a bit, makes it sound like they knew their way around. "only day no one was home" sounds like they are familiar with patterns or lucky.

Security systems are nice and usually reasonably priced. However, first things first. If the door in question has windows (and all doors) install dead bolts that are double-keyed (takes a key on both sides). That makes entry AND exit harder. Use 2.5 inch screws for the installs.

Hope this helps. You can secure your home and guns without a lot of money.

 

[armabill]

am going looking for a better steel door for replacement of the one that was kicked in .

It won't help unless you re-enforce the door jamb.

 

[Zundfolge]

For a criminal that is only interested in burglary, guns are not that useful ... selling them when they've never fenced a stolen gun is difficult and scary.

Several years ago my house was burglarized, they stole the crappy old TV, crappy old stereo and looked about the house for money but left thousands of dollars of guitars and related equipment completely untouched (I didn't own any guns at the time).

 

[ptmmatssc]

Quote:
although they broke into a safe
suggests you have more than one. Were the guns in a safe separate from where the coins were?

Seems rather odd that IF they saw any guns they did not take them. Also the taking of the daughter's piggybank without mention of the house looking more ransacked is a strange circumstance. Juveniles breaking in and not doing damage is also making my neck hair twitch.

I am NOT disputing your information. Just saying there are a lot of things that seem out of place. Makes me wonder, but ten I spend 20+ years working with criminals, so my antennae are tuned differently than the ordinary person's.

Get your video survellience set up ASAP. Make sure you have some cameras that are in places nobody would think about (fisheye in a wall clock or inside a book, peeking out the spine).

"a safe" because there was just "a safe" in my bedroom . It wasn't meant to be a "gun safe" but rather a safe just for documents and such . I keep all my expensive guns at another location secured in a Browning safe . The small safe they broke into was just an older first alert model (fire rated) model FRS 101 . I had a few pistols in there (CZ-52, Witness 45) and the rifles I have at home are just kept cased(locked cases) and a few loose in the closet . The rifles here at home were just a few of my mosins , a couple of .22s , and a sporterized SKS . The mosin's were the only ones out of cases . My Kel-Tec SUB2000 was in a briefcase . They actually broke one of the latches on the briefcase and you can see where they were prying it open , but apparently saw that it was a firearm and never finished opening it .

Not sure what was used to open the safe , but it was not meant to be a "high end " safe to begin with . Again , was meant for protection of documents against fire etc . The gun cases (excluding the briefcase) were never touched it seems .

without mention of the house looking more ransacked is a strange circumstance

Well , the things that were "out of place" were not extreme and , to me at the time , could have been caused by the cats roughhousing etc . It was simply some things knocked onto the floor which happens when my cats get frisky .

Juveniles breaking in and not doing damage is also making my neck hair twitch.

Although that HAS happened before in my area , as the officer told me last night , a lot of the break-ins around here usually end up like mine with just some money and a simple item or two taken .

Get your video surveillance set up ASAP

In the works right now . I have my FIL coming back over (came for my guns etc last night) and he's bringing a system that uses a small remote camera and receiver for a VCR . Also am putting in a new (better) door with several dead bolts .

Technically, your home was burglarized

True , but I still feel "robbed" . Not just of stuff , but also of my sense of security .

I feel fortunate that the firearms were left untouched and pretty much anything of value was left alone . I'm out some christmas money and my collection of coins , but this experience has woken me up to how unsecured my residence is . That being said , I will boost the security , but on the other hand , I don't want to imprison myself either .

 

[Eyesac]

I don't want to imprison myself either

I hear ya... What are you going to do, these things just happen no matter what you do. The only thing I would suggest is get a safe (the hard to break kind) for all your guns and valuables so they're not just in cases. I would be pretty upset if someone stole my guns, but my wife would be heartbroken if someone stole some of her jewelry. Get a big safe I say!

 

[ptmmatssc]

My opinion (I know you didn't ask) is that it was kids. Kids don't know what to do with guns except shoot 'em. Pawning them or otherwise selling them is too major for petty thieves. But, depending on the age of your daughter, it may be someone you know. Considering the house wasn't totally ransacked yet they spent enough time to find quite a bit, makes it sound like they knew their way around. "only day no one was home" sounds like they are familiar with patterns or lucky.

My daughter is only 4 so "friends" aren't a possibility . The wife and I have a very small circle of friends and we would never have reason to suspect them (they are better off than us) . Either these people or person have noticed that there are no vehicles in the yard on a certain day or were "lucky" and noticed it that particular day . Btw , it doesn't take much time to rifle through stuff and the fact they DID miss some old coins and another of my daughter's piggybanks means they were not as thorough or spent an extended amount of time in the house . It seemed they only looked through certain (obvious) areas for stuff .

 

[Cmdr. Gravez0r]

Your Daughter's piggy bank? That's sick and wrong on every imaginable level. Taking a kid's allowance savings or earned money. Disgusting.