House was burgularized on Thursday
DaggoB
Posts: 333 ✭✭
We live on three acres in the High Desert of S. California. We bought the property and had the house built nine years ago. Not a lot of people and not a lot of traffic. My wife left the house to visit our daughter who is in the hospital. Our daughter is permanently disabled from a car accident. She lives with us and her two children.
When my wife arrived home @ approximately 1:15 pm she pulled into the garage and decided to clean up the debris from a big wind storm which we had on Wednesday of this week. She heard the dogs barking but paid no attention to it because they are always barking at the rabbits and squirrels. After about fifteen minutes she decided to go into the house to go through the back door to see what they were barking at. She could not just walk around to look because we have fencing and gates which are locked all around the side and back of the house so the dogs can't get out. This is when she realized that while she was outside someone was in the house . We have a 75 foot driveway which approaches the three car garage from the left side of the house so you cannot see if someone is parked in the dirt on the right side of the house. Needless to say she did not set the alarm system because she was in a hurry. The intruders broke a double pain tempered glass window which is next to the front door. The window is 10x57 inches. They reached in and unlocked the dead bolt and the handle lock. Also a safety latch which is at the top of the door. They ransacked our bedroom and took a ten month old 42 inch LCD tv. They did not touch the 50 inch which is in the family room. On the head board were the 5 P ATB 2010 Pucks and four 2011 w ASEs which we give to the grandchildren. They also took an M&M can full of quarters and half dollars and a Marine Corps watch which was given to me by our other daughter. What pi---d her off was that they took a drawer off the headboard of the bed room set which she has had for only three months and probably used it to put the ATB pucks and the ASEs in it. On the way out they also took my 12 year old grandsons safe which was in his bedroom near the front door. The safe contained two PCGS boxes of graded coins. Nothing expensive. One belonged to him and one to my grandaughter. The safe also contained a raw Morgan, two ASEs a Silver Panda a vial of gold flakes a pouch containing 165 dollars of shredded money from the Denver Federal reserve, approximately twenty X box games and a track medal of his fathers who was killed when my grandson was three years old. This pi--ed me off! There were also three rings which belong to my daughter. The irony of this whole story is. My wife went to the safe deposit box a few weeks ago to get coins out for Todd to photograph. She brought eight boxes home because she was not sure what i was sending to Todd and has not been back to the bank because of the problems with our daughter. They are now back at the bank. I decided to post this just to get it off my chest. Every thing is insured but our privacy was invaded. It is a good thing my wife stayed out side long enough to give them the time to get out and not walk in on them. The moral to the story is, set the alarm and put the dogs in the house when we leave. Sorry for rambling on.
When my wife arrived home @ approximately 1:15 pm she pulled into the garage and decided to clean up the debris from a big wind storm which we had on Wednesday of this week. She heard the dogs barking but paid no attention to it because they are always barking at the rabbits and squirrels. After about fifteen minutes she decided to go into the house to go through the back door to see what they were barking at. She could not just walk around to look because we have fencing and gates which are locked all around the side and back of the house so the dogs can't get out. This is when she realized that while she was outside someone was in the house . We have a 75 foot driveway which approaches the three car garage from the left side of the house so you cannot see if someone is parked in the dirt on the right side of the house. Needless to say she did not set the alarm system because she was in a hurry. The intruders broke a double pain tempered glass window which is next to the front door. The window is 10x57 inches. They reached in and unlocked the dead bolt and the handle lock. Also a safety latch which is at the top of the door. They ransacked our bedroom and took a ten month old 42 inch LCD tv. They did not touch the 50 inch which is in the family room. On the head board were the 5 P ATB 2010 Pucks and four 2011 w ASEs which we give to the grandchildren. They also took an M&M can full of quarters and half dollars and a Marine Corps watch which was given to me by our other daughter. What pi---d her off was that they took a drawer off the headboard of the bed room set which she has had for only three months and probably used it to put the ATB pucks and the ASEs in it. On the way out they also took my 12 year old grandsons safe which was in his bedroom near the front door. The safe contained two PCGS boxes of graded coins. Nothing expensive. One belonged to him and one to my grandaughter. The safe also contained a raw Morgan, two ASEs a Silver Panda a vial of gold flakes a pouch containing 165 dollars of shredded money from the Denver Federal reserve, approximately twenty X box games and a track medal of his fathers who was killed when my grandson was three years old. This pi--ed me off! There were also three rings which belong to my daughter. The irony of this whole story is. My wife went to the safe deposit box a few weeks ago to get coins out for Todd to photograph. She brought eight boxes home because she was not sure what i was sending to Todd and has not been back to the bank because of the problems with our daughter. They are now back at the bank. I decided to post this just to get it off my chest. Every thing is insured but our privacy was invaded. It is a good thing my wife stayed out side long enough to give them the time to get out and not walk in on them. The moral to the story is, set the alarm and put the dogs in the house when we leave. Sorry for rambling on.
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I hope the ***************** are caught somehow. After the police report make sure the pawn shops within 100 miles(AT LEAST) are notified and faxed a complete list.
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Now, only threads like yours remind me of it.
I say this just to say you will get over that awful, awful feeling you guys must have at the moment.
Hang in there.
"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso
--- Jack Handy
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<< <i>It is a good thing my wife stayed out side long enough to give them the time to get out and not walk in on them. >>
i agree 100%
from the dozens of articles i read/watch from around the country(world) people committing crimes are finding it easier to just beat senseless and/or kill the people they rob
it is good to get it off your mind/chest and i understand how shaken and vulnerable you feel after something like this
sounds like you have the resources at your disposal to further protect your family for the future and that is good to hear
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Best of luck.
Jim
When a man who is honestly mistaken hears the truth, he will either quit being mistaken or cease to be honest....Abraham Lincoln
Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.....Mark Twain
One thing remains a constant with these turds.....they all have at least 1 person ticked off at them that would love to rat them out.
Other suggestions, watch Craigslist and take it upon yourself to contact anywhere that someone might sell or get rid of the old medal.
So the suspect(s) must have entered your property on foot which means that they had someone waiting on them with a vehicle. I'd be checking with all of your neighbors, even though it sounds like it might be quite a distance, and seeing if they saw anyone or any vehicles, etc...
<< <i>Sorry to hear of this. Some folks will recall my house was burglarized last November one week after Thanksgiving, and then a second time last January 3rd. Be careful. They might come back to get what they forgot the first time. >>
Take this word of advice.
My house was broken into on Nov. 5th 2005
They returned 7 weeks to the day on Dec. 24th (yes, X-mas Eve!) 2005 to get what else they saw interested them.
Bas***ds!
I lost whatever they took for good.
Eventually they were caught but the feeling of security can never be replaced.
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Please keep that alarm on....
This is very upsetting bad glad nobody was hurt and the damage wasn't worse. I hate hearing this stories and hate it even more when it involves good people like yourself and your wife. The rest of us should take it as a reminder not to be to careful.
I glad you vented in the hopes it saves others when in a rush.
Todd.
Edit, If it makes you feel better your not the only one with problems. Kind of helps knowing I'm not alone.
aside from that the majority of house burglaries happen like this, badguy pulls into driveway of a house, knocks on door, if no one answers they go around back and break in. if someone answers they concoct some lie akin to is jimmy here? no jimmy lives here, oh i have wrong house sorry. that being said the chances that yours was the first house they stopped at are slim.
depending on how densely populated your street is, i would start about a mile away from your house and knock on peoples door, thell them you live in the neighborhood and were victimized, tell them the above mo and ask them if they had any similar visitors on the day you got hit.
<< <i>Sorry to hear it. Makes you wish you could've caught them in the act with a shotgun in your hands!!
i agree, i keep a taurus judge, it is a revolver(for easier carry) that shoots a .410 shotgun round or a .45 long colt shell
The grand children are 11,12 and 5. All of the houses are 2 and three acre lots. There are no other kids their age within two miles and the only kids who have been at the house are friends who go to a prep school with the oldest two and they live miles from here. If it was someone who knew what we had they would have found the other safe with all the good stuff. I would like to thank you and all the other board members for their comments. I just had to vent. I do have a 38 and i learned how to use it in the Marine Corps. From now on the alarm system is set and the dogs are in the house when we are not at home.
I would delete a portion of your post were it contains other info about your hiding spot and place all your coins of value in your safety deposit box and view as needed.
I have never been robbed and can only imagine what it would be like to have your home invaded.
Hoefully the police will catch this thieve(s)
and your property be returned.
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<< <i>You may want to delete the portion of your post that details the location of the items they missed!!!! >>
Well yeah!!!
Sorry to hear about your violation. Maybe they will brag and you'll get a lead?
Thank you
Everyone should have an alarm system at at minimum. The system should have a cell back up. While a bit more expensive, basement and first floor windows and doors should be filmed with Armorcoat or the like so that one can not just break the window/door and unlock it. A side bene of the film is that it is UV blocking so that it preserves the floors, furniture, etc. If someone falls into a plate glass door or window at the bottom of a stairwell they won't be injured and, if it's lightly tinted, it will pay for itself over time in decreased energy costs.
NEVER leave valuables where they are easy to spot from the outside nor where they are easy to grab. Crooks don't usually spend much time in a house.
I'm a HUGE proponent of being armed and trained but that's another subject....
I originally posted the below comments on a thread about a woman who was wiped out when burglars made away with her entire safe which contained $500K in coins, gold, etc.
For what it's worth, here are a few thoughts on security for those who keep high end coin collections (or any other high six or seven figure collectibles) at home...
How utterly sad to read about this.
The bottom line, if one does not want to keep such a collection in a SDB, many LAYERS of security are a MUST!!
If keeping this kind of $ in coins at home one should have good motion activated exterior lighting, well trimmed hedges w/no hiding places near the house, very solid doors, properly installed, commercial grade, highly pick resistant locks (Medico, Schlage primus, etc.), Armor Coat type film on all first floor, deck, etc. (i.e., possible entry point) windows, a tip tier, monitored security system w/cell back up, high-end day/night security cameras w/several weeks of storage on the system's DVR (depending on how long/often one is away, remote (i.e., P.C.) accessible in-home cameras (e.g., ADT Pulse, or the like), a very heavy, TOP quality safe, (e.g., large, top tier Fort Knox or the like) ideally w/it's own security zone so which can stay armed while the rest of the system is unarmed, ideally the safe is in a safe room w/poured concrete walls and ceiling and a very high quality vault door.
Consider a big, protective dog. Criminals are absolutely terrified of dogs. FBI studies have borne this out. Professional, hardened criminals consistently cite large dogs as the single thing that scares them most.
Most importantly keep quiet and be sure that your friends and family who know about your collection do the same. Keep the safe/safe room out of sight from anyone whom you don't specifically want to know about it - and that list should be very, very short.
If some dirt bag breaks in to your home he will not be in position to just haul off a 700 lb safe. Clearly the criminal know exactly what he was going for.
If one is not VERY serious about security then don't keep a half million in coins at home.
While perhaps not for everyone, I'm a big believer in being well armed and very well trained in addition to other security measures.
If you keep a very high end collection at home and have great security some dirt bag could decide to have you access the collection at gun point. Another great reason to learn some practical martial arts - great cardo w/a survival benefit which extends well beyond just the cardio value.
The SDB is a fantastic - likely the best - idea. Of course, as a forum member noted above, one of the greatest joys of collecting is being able to enjoy your collection at will. Everything is a trade-off. Be careful.
All of the above (excusive of a firearm, firearm and DT training - highly variable cost, certainly not for everyone) can be had for less than $60K for a 5000 square foot home. If you have high six figures or seven figures to spend on coins, this is a relatively small investment in security.
It can be made to look very nice as well - security does not have to be ugly. In fact there are lots of side benefits: one or one's family can retreat to a safe room if intruders enter. A poured concrete safe room is very cheap if done when one builds. A very high quality vault door (e.g.., Ft. Knox Executive series) is only a few grand (stainless steel package is a must, it's much harder to torch).
Get slightly tinted, 100% UV blocking security window film. It will substantially lower energy costs and dramatically decrease fading of furniture, floors, photos, artwork, etc. For deck doors and windows in stairwells, if one falls on the windows one will not be lacerated by broken glass.
Connect heat, smoke, water, carbon monoxide and gas detectors to your alarm system. These may save your home and your life.
Sorry to be long-winded. I've just seen so many people with tons of money in collectibles and no security. It amazes me. They're shocked when they're hit. They get serious about security after the fact. If I can spare even one collector the grief of being robbed then I'll be thrilled.
I feel so sorry for the victim. What a huge loss. Unfortunately, other then the safe it seems that she didn't have much security at all.
(Edited: please see comments on insurance below.)
<< Hmm. I do not have a big dog, but I do have a 28 inch tall teddy bear named Sidney
after my late father. Now Sidney can be a rather imposing fellow when he wants to be.
Seriously though, this is an excellent thread and well thought out. You are to be commended
for again bringing up the always important issue, of security for valuable coins in the home. This
topic can never be discussed or stressed enough. Especially in the economic hard times we now
fimd ourselves in. Well said indeed. >>
Thanks very much Bear.
Of course, of all of the security measures mentioned none has more side benefits then the pooch - joy, companionship and unconditional love - it's hard to beat that!
<< Farmers underwriter plan~ >>
I think that insurance is an absolute must. That said, I've spoken with some high-end collectors who've made substantial security investments who forgo the insurance thinking that robbery is very improbable given that security and because the insurance premiums are high. I disagree. I think that insurance is a key component no matter where the collection is kept.
Eric
Franklin-Lover's Forum
one way in and out, no one saw them. The back porch is enclosed, they went in, took a
towel used to block wind on the porch and broke the window, took every bit of jewelery
left out, a pitcher with 130 bucks in it, but funny enough did not touch one thing
in my bedroom.
Dealing with the insurence company Ive had for 30+ years was horrible, and in the
end only gave 30% of the claim.
House is surrounded by other houses which always have someone home that can name
when I come and go, burp fart or anything but no one saw anything.
go figure
Go BIG or GO HOME. ©Bill
U.S. Type Set
Sorry to hear about this, OP. However, as others have mentioned, I'm glad you wife stayed outside while the a-holes were inside. Things could have been much, much worse had she gone inside a few minutes earlier.
Best of luck with the recovery of your daughter in the hospital. Also, best of luck with the recovery of your stolen goods. Hopefully the local police force nabs these bast*rds.
<< <i>I too was robbed this past July. I posted here and to the NCIC website about it. The great people here helped me get back my stolen coins. If you have the PCGS certification numbers of the coins that were in your sons safe, post them here and at the NCIC board http://numismaticcrimes.org/ . Latelty, there seems to be a huge increase on robberies due to the big recession our Country is in. I wish you luck on getting these low-lifes. >>
...link linkified
Ten years later, when a neighbor got robbed when I was at home, I got an alarm system. Virtually any window which could be an entry point has a film which will trigger the alarm, and the alarm includes noise sensors. It's always on when I'm away, and when I'm asleep. Dogs inside are also a good idea.
I can relate to your sense of having your privacy violated. Be vigilant.
"Seu cabra da peste,
"Sou Mangueira......."
even if they are not so valuable, they may lead to catching the crooks.
<< <i>
<< <i>Sorry to hear it. Makes you wish you could've caught them in the act with a shotgun in your hands!!
i agree, i keep a taurus judge, it is a revolver(for easier carry) that shoots a .410 shotgun round or a .45 long colt shell >>
I am glad your wife was unharmed
I carry quite a bit but hope that i never come face to face with some stealing turds
NGC registry V-Nickel proof #6!!!!
working on proof shield nickels # 8 with a bullet!!!!
RIP "BEAR"
Hello,
Very good set of recommendations, Raufus.
One question for you please. Would you recommend the wireless (ADT) alarm system, or the hard-wired telephone line?
I see pros and cons for both. The hard line can be cut/burned. The wireless can drop the call or fail in peak demand.
What say you? Appreciate your opinion and anyone else also on the matter.
That said, I'm happy to hear that no one in your family was hurt. It could have been much worse!
Hang tough -
Dave
<< <i>Hello,
Very good set of recommendations, Raufus.
One question for you please. Would you recommend the wireless (ADT) alarm system, or the hard-wired telephone line?
I see pros and cons for both. The hard line can be cut/burned. The wireless can drop the call or fail in peak demand.
What say you? Appreciate your opinion and anyone else also on the matter. >>
Hi-
Both, without queston.
If they don't cut the phone lines (not all do) then it will work even if the cell connection is bad. In addition, beyond criminal activity, I recommend adding water sensors (protect from floods), heat sensors and CO detectors to the system. The land line will carry those as well in case of a bad cell connection.
As to the cell, if you have the cell back up installed and the signal is not very good they can run an antenna to the attic (assuming that the wiring is feasible) and you'll likely get a great signal. They should do this for no extra charge.
Hope this helps.
Wishing you and your family well--
Glad no one got hurt.
Hope they catch thoses SOB (s).
The alarm system has been upgraded and it is set when not here.
Did not have pictures of the Grand kids coins or even the slab numbers because they were only worth between $20 and $40 each. There were at least 25 graded coins. They also had raw silver bullion coins.When they are replaced pictures will be taken and all coins documented.
The dogs are in the house.
No pictures of the Grand Sons fathers medal. My wife has called the High School to see if they will be able track down a similarity.
Raufus---most of what you suggested is now functional.