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Thread: Things a Burglar Won't Tell You

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  1. #1
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    Things a Burglar Won't Tell You

    Received this today and thought I'd share.

    1. Of course I look familiar. I was here just last week cleaning your carpets, painting your shutters, or delivering your new refrigerator.
    2. Hey, thanks for letting me use the bathroom when I was working in your yard last week. While I was in there, I unlatched the back window to make my return a little easier.
    3. Love those flowers. That tells me you have taste... and taste means there are nice things inside. Those yard toys your kids leave out always make me wonder what type of gaming system they have.
    4. Yes, I really do look for newspapers piled up on the driveway. And I might leave a pizza flyer in your front door to see how long it takes you to remove it..
    5. If it snows while you're out of town, get a neighbor to create car and foot tracks into the house. Virgin drifts in the driveway are a dead giveaway. I don't think we have to worry about this one.
    6. If decorative glass is part of your front entrance, don't let your alarm company install the control pad where I can see if it's set. That makes it too easy.
    7. A good security company alarms the window over the sink. And the windows on the second floor, which often access the master bedroom - and your jewelry. It's not a bad idea to put motion detectors up there too.
    8. It's raining, you're fumbling with your umbrella, and you forget to lock your door - understandable. But understand this: I don't take a day off because of bad weather.
    9. I always knock first. If you answer, I'll ask for directions somewhere or offer to clean your gutters. (Don't take me up on it.)
    10. Do you really think I won't look in your sock drawer? I always check dresser drawers, the bedside table, and the medicine cabinet.
    11. Here's a helpful hint: I almost never go into kids' rooms.
    12. You're right: I won't have enough time to break into that safe where you keep your valuables. But if it's not bolted down, I'll take it with me.
    13. A loud TV or radio can be a better deterrent than the best alarm system . If you're reluctant to leave your TV on while you're out of town, you can buy a $35 device that works on a timer and simulates the flickering glow of a real television. (Find it at
    http://www.faketv.com/)
    14. Sometimes, I carry a clipboard. Sometimes, I dress like a lawn guy and carry a rake. I do my best to never, ever look like a crook.
    15. The two things I hate most: loud dogs and nosy neighbor

    16. I'll break a window to get in, even if it makes a little noise. If your neighbor hears one loud sound, he'll stop what he's doing and wait to hear it again.. If he doesn't hear it again, he'll just go back to what he was doing. It's human nature.
    17. I'm not complaining, but why would you pay all that money for a fancy alarm system and leave your house without setting it?
    18. I love looking in your windows. I'm looking for signs that you're home, and for flat screen TVs or gaming systems I'd like. I'll drive or walk through your neighborhood at night, before you close the blinds, just to pick my targets.
    19. Avoid announcing your vacation on your Facebook page. It's easier than you think to look up your address.
    20. To you, leaving that window open just a crack during the day is a way to let in a little fresh air. To me, it's an invitation.
    21. If you don't answer when I knock, I try the door. Occasionally, I hit the jackpot and walk right in.


    Sources: Convicted burglars in North Carolina, Oregon, California, and Kentucky ; security consultant Chris McGoey, who runs http://www.crimedoctor.com/and Richard T. Wright, a criminology professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, who interviewed 105 burglars for his book Burglars on the Job

    “Life is not so short but that there is always time enough for courtesy and chivalry.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson

    Everybody knows what to do with the devil but them that has him. My Grandmother
    I had a guardian angel at one time, but my little devil got him drunk, tattooed, and left him penniless at a strip club. I have not had another angel assigned to me yet.
    I didn't change my mind, my mind changed me.
    Bella Terra

  2. #2
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    I get lists from Reader's Digest and that was one a few months ago. It is a great list. A lot of common sense stuff.

  3. #3
    Best way to steal a brand new TV.... Steal the old one and come back in a week. The TV will be new, the alarm system will not have been installed.
    .
    "I love the smell of sawdust in the morning".
    Robert Duval in "Apileachips Now". - almost.


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  4. #4
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    Smile Best way to . . .

    Best way to get rid of your old TV, put it in the box the new TV came in, put the box in the back of your truck & head to Walmart. Park, shop 15 minutes and your old TV will be gone . . .

    Also works for old cans of paint and anything else the garbage men won't pick-up.

    Steve
    Support the "CREEK" . . .

  5. #5
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    Unless the new TV is a flat screen, and the old one is a tube type. I don't think it would fit very well in the new TV's box, unless you smashed it and dumped the debris into the box, but that defeats the purpose.

    Colin
    Where's the beef.

  6. #6
    Good advice. The one missing thing is probably, "I'll be in and out in less than 5 minutes". Thus the reason why monitored alarm systems are a waste of money - even if the police came lights-and-sirens to your burglar alarm (which they won't....), will they be there in less than 5 minutes?

    The best alarm system is one that makes a lot of noise.

  7. #7
    i rather suspect that most monitored alarm systems are unarmed the majority of the time after you pay the police for responding to a false alarm 2-3 times in a week because the cat set off the alarm you tend to not arm it very often i'm also guessing that the crooks are well aware of this phenomenon too

  8. #8
    I know a fella that hooked his alarm system to a digital recorder and a smoke generator. I hope it never gets triggered, but if it did I'd love to see the look on the thieves' faces.

    "Warning. You have 1 minute to self destruct.... 50 seconds to self destruct.... 40 seconds......."

    Fun at parties.
    .
    "I love the smell of sawdust in the morning".
    Robert Duval in "Apileachips Now". - almost.


    Laserpro Spirit 60W laser, Corel X3
    Missionfurnishings, Mitchell Andrus Studios, NC

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Colin Giersberg View Post
    Unless the new TV is a flat screen, and the old one is a tube type. I don't think it would fit very well in the new TV's box, unless you smashed it and dumped the debris into the box, but that defeats the purpose.

    Colin
    By the time I'm finished with the old one it'll fit.
    Sent from the bathtub on my Samsung Galaxy(C)S5 with waterproof Lifeproof Case(C), and spell check turned off!

  10. #10
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    What a great idea! Wonder if my wife will let me buy a new TV.....

    Quote Originally Posted by Steven DeMars View Post
    Best way to get rid of your old TV, put it in the box the new TV came in, put the box in the back of your truck & head to Walmart. Park, shop 15 minutes and your old TV will be gone . . .

    Also works for old cans of paint and anything else the garbage men won't pick-up.

    Steve

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steven DeMars View Post
    Best way to get rid of your old TV, put it in the box the new TV came in, put the box in the back of your truck & head to Walmart. Park, shop 15 minutes and your old TV will be gone . . .

    Also works for old cans of paint and anything else the garbage men won't pick-up.

    Steve
    that's how one of my employees gets rid of torn up not-worth-fixing motorcycles. says he moves them halfway to the curb, then goes to the BBQ place up the street. guaranteed to be gone by the time he gets home.

  12. #12
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    I leave two 140lb Rottweilers in the house when we go out. They like to look out the windows and are visable. We don't get any extra visits.

    Dar

  13. #13
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    Neal,

    When we picked up a new lawnmower a couple of months back, we were stuck trying to decide what to do with the old one... it still ran fine, but could use some work on the wheels and such. I left it in the front yard for a week to see if the garbage men would take it, but they said 'no'. So I left it there for another week, and then another... before the end of the third week it had mysteriously disappeared. Solved my problem of where to take it.
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  14. #14
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    I disagree with #11 from my personal experience. The rest are very accurate.

    I would add that most (well in the 60% area) of residential break ins occur during the day time (6Am- 6PM).

    Locks keep honest people honest, someone who wants in will get in. The goal is to harden your target (your house) enough to make the bad guy go to the neighbors instead.

    Dogs, alarms and motion lights are the big three.

    Joe
    JC Custom WoodWorks

    For best results, try not to do anything stupid.

    "So this is how liberty dies...with thunderous applause." - Padmé Amidala "Star Wars III: The Revenge of the Sith"

  15. #15
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    Thanks for your professional input, Joe. Years ago the thing about a kid's room may have been true. These days kids have better stuff in their rooms than the adults have.
    Last edited by Belinda Barfield; 08-03-2010 at 7:19 AM.

    “Life is not so short but that there is always time enough for courtesy and chivalry.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson

    Everybody knows what to do with the devil but them that has him. My Grandmother
    I had a guardian angel at one time, but my little devil got him drunk, tattooed, and left him penniless at a strip club. I have not had another angel assigned to me yet.
    I didn't change my mind, my mind changed me.
    Bella Terra

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