Burglary lessons

[Colorado Redneck]

Two wonderful people I am close to were out of town for a few days. They came home to a house that had been ransacked. Guns and jewelry and televisions and computer gone. Little safe broken open and contents--titles and important papers gone. A real shame.

Lessons:
1) Lock the heck out of your house. Dead bolts all around. Lock the doors into your garage. Get rid of doors that have windows. Cover windows on the garage.
2) Take pictures of everything you have that is valuable.
3) Keep valuables in a safe deposit box, unless you have a safe that is adequate to withstand a prolonged break in. Then the safe will probably get the living snot beat out of it.
4) Pictures and serial numbers of everything you have that can be carried out the door. Guns are especially important. Most dirt bags will pawn guns so they are an easy item to trace.
5) Consider a security system.

This is an unhappy experience, and people that have been burglarized feel violated and often never recover the "safe feeling" they enjoyed in the house they lived in. Most of the guns were family heirlooms and have a deeper value to the family than replacement value.

[EdInk]

Very true and good advice. Firearms insurance and jewelry insurance are often overlooked by people.

[BlueTrain]

Do you suppose any of the bad guys read this forum?

[Salmoneye]

I'd say it was obvious that 'someone' knew they'd be away...

[kilimanjaro]

Rule No. 1 is to not tell folks you are going on a trip unless they need to know. At the office, just tell 'em you're taking a couple of weeks off, and just one or two trusted neighbors so they can watch your house. Do tell the police you would like extra patrols during your absence.

Rule No. 2, as you note, have serial numbers, descriptions, and photos of everything you own. Keep a copy at the office or a friends' house.

Rule No. 3, have good insurance, with replacement value coverage.

[Merad]

I'd say it was obvious that 'someone' knew they'd be away...

Yep, and that's more and more common as people put "out of the office" messages on their work (or even personal) emails, post on facebook about going on vacation, etc.

[Colorado Redneck]

Probably these people were not careful to limit conversations about their whereabouts. This was also a crime of opportunity, as they made some mistakes with home security.

Now my wife is paranoid, and woke me up cause she "heard something" at 4:00 this morning. Had to go traipsing thru the house in my skivvies looking in every room. Cats thought I was nuts. At least she went back to sleep.

This brings up the subject of gun safes. Mine is pretty basic, and could likely be broken into with tools from my garage. It is a safe, not a cabinet, like Stack-On security cabinets. (Nothing wrong with them for certain applications, they just ain't safes.) But valuables like jewelry and titles and other items that we would hate to lose might oughta go in the bank safety deposit box. A safe is a lightening rod for burglars so if they knew they could stay in the house for a few hours, a lot of effort could go into tearing up the wall and floor and cutting/prying open the door.

[Bisquitlips]

In the middle of the afternoon on a Saturday our home was broken into and burglarized while we spent a couple of hours at the mall. The front door was deadlocked and the intruder mule kicked the solid core door so hard that we found pieces of it 15 feet into our living room. When we arrived home (through the garage and that entry door) I actually thought that some of the crown molding had fallen down as the pieces of wood were so far into our living room.

The alarm was on and by the time the police were engaged the burglar was gone with guns and jewelry. The police said that he was in, out, and gone within 7 minutes.

My point is that any determined scum will get in regardless of the "typical" and well thought out protective security measures.

Fortunately we were well insured with riders on anything of high value.

My suggestion is that you get your gun collection appraised and insured as that is the only real protection you have. It was a trivial satisfaction to go shopping with the insurance check in an attempt to replace what was stolen. Of course many of the lesser items were sentimental and irreplaceable, but still the insurance was our saving grace.

Our riders cost us about $200.00 per year for $60,000.00 in protection.

Just sayin'.....

[Oysterboy]

What we need is secret compartments. In the closets, in the beds, etc.

[SIGSHR]

Securing longarms in a locking rack-shades of the Arms Room!-sems like a good idea. Or securing them with a heavy chain and locks.

[Salmoneye]

Locks are for honest people...

[Yung.gunr]

I have heard too many times about "friends" from social media finding out people are out of town and ransacking their place. If I ever needed a reason to not join Facebook and that nonsense that is enough for me.

One big thing to keep an eye (ear) out for is for your yound kids (those who have em). Kids love to tell their friends all about a trip they are taking. I don't know about you, but some of these parents are not to be trusted with overheard information. We always stress to our son that he is never to talk about any of our guns and he is never to talk about trips we are planning.

[rickyrick]

Dogs, leave a dog at home.

I was burglarized once I took my dogs with me. They emptied everything of value out of my house. When I say value I mean any value $.25cents on up; meat from the freezer, alarm clocks, razors, dishes ect. Also trash cans and bed linens, most likely to pack and haul stuff with.

Aside from assaults and stuff, this is pretty traumatic, moreso than most people think. It took ten years to re-aquire replacement items, and some items could never be replaced.

Then you have the constant fear of it happening again, can't enjoy vacations without stress and worry.

At the time the cops said it was probably someone we knew, coworker ect.

Now I have several dogs that can have 360 access to my house.

Obviously, when you take time off from work people will know. I always say I'm gonna get some work done around the house.

Number one thing after the dogs, never brag about big ticket items to coworkers or friends. Don't post pics inside your house on social media.
Those of you that hunt, would you go to a spot where you know the trophy is or would you take your chances on a spot that you think there is nothing?

My incident was Several years ago but I know the original bait was a new computer that was a week old, the rest was made easy pickings by them knowing that I was going out of town for xdays and lack of lighting or other security measures.
I constantly keep things changing now, I have cameras and such, but they only make it easier to see what the dogs are fussing about.

On a side note, I have another vacant house that regularly got broken into and ransacked... I taped a spent .45 shell to the door and it hasn't been bothered in a long time now, may be inappropriate... But it worked LOL

[Redhawk5.5+P+]

If I go out of town, I bring my guns, mainly the valuable ones, they can have my Rossi, and my CZ52. I'd miss the CZ though, so I bring the chromed one over.

I see a big safe in my future. I'm lucky to have good neighbors too.

[Stressfire]

If I go out of town, I bring my guns

Actually spent the last week house- & dog-sitting for my mother while she was out of town. Took my most valuable ones with me, only left the Marlin 795 behind.

Stopped in every now and again to pick up extra clothes and things, but told no one.

The day before we came back home, I stopped by to vent the house from a bug bomb I had set off and my downstairs neighbors called me over to chat - they thought we were moving out and basically offered to help us with our rent if that was why we were moving guess they had had some real winners prior to my wife and I.

But my neighbor's wife brought up a good point during our talk - neighbors (good ones anyways) watch out for each other - It's nice to live by an older couple that still recalled the good old days when neighborhoods (and people) were like that

[rickyrick]

I have a friend I would trust my life to, so it's no problem leaving my rifles at his house while out of town. The pistols travel with me.

I am truly sorry for what happened to the OP's friend, I've been there and I can't describe how bad it sucks. And the suck won't go away soon, sorry to say.

[Colorado Redneck]

Retired folks are great neighbors. Often out in the open during the day, and it is obvious they are home at night, as the lights are on till 9 or so and go off. Dogs are great. In another thread about home defense, the consensus was there are several things that can help, but number one is a big dog. Or as one of the posters put it: A BFD.

Thanks for sharing stories and ideas. Insurance is a great idea. Having a rider for valuables helps a lot. The people I know that just got ripped off only had $2500 for valuables and guns. Easily lost 5 times that much.

[skeeter]

When I used to live at home while mom and dad were alive we had a big German Sherpard. One day we came home and the house felt very cold and the dog did not gret us. We went into the living room and see our dog just looking at where the whole window frame and window had been removed (this was a fixed in place window). He obviously did not allow anyone into the house. Every since i have been a big fan of large dogs, and they always stay home. If we go on vacation someone feeds and walks them. We were also lucky no one poisoned them. Now the dogs have been trained not to eat food except if we feed them.

[Very Texas]

It is ashame we now live in an America where we have to worry about "Our" Property when we are away. I am from a small town in East Texas and remember when no one locked their doors. Now, even there, if a house is left vacant too long, thieves will get in. Just a few weeks ago, some one broke into my cousins vacant trailer out in our pasture and stole all the copper. Pretty risky move since all my family living around the pasture "Clings to their guns"--couldnt resist the dig...

Keeping guns safe while away is tricky-I know my bank doesn't allow guns in the safe deposit boxes. But That is okay since I take them on driving trips anyways.

[Stressfire]

some one broke into my cousins vacant trailer out in our pasture and stole all the copper.

Ouch, friend of mine lost her pipes and her hot water tank. From the looks of it, he-she-they attempted to get the fridge as well but found it too heavy

While she is not sure and cannot prove - she's pretty certain it was her neighbors

Really is sad what people have come to

[SerenityNetworks]

I don't know that statistics on catching BGs when there are cameras available, but I feel more comfortable that if/when we are broken into that we have a higher probability of catching the BGs. Camera systems are relatively cheap. I have multiple sets and all record 24x7x365 and flag motion detections (to make it easier to find 'events' within the huge volume of recordings). One set is a standard DVR type and the cameras are visible to anyone that pays any attention. When we are gone, this unit texts us a message if given cameras detect motion. Other sets consists of IP cameras. They are not readily visible, they record sound, they detect motion, they email/text us if they detect motion, and they immediately upload video to a web host.

We do have an alarm system, but if we are away from home then I'm more interested in catching the scum than getting back our possessions. The alarm system is more to alert us of an intruder if we are at home.

NRA Life Member
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"There are some ideas so preposterous that only an intellectual will believe them." - Malcolm Muggeridge

[gorin]

Last year I did a research on safes and it turned out most safes on the market are just expensive furniture - youtube is full with videos of safes being open. A screwdriver, a knife and a hammer usually are enough to open one like a can of sardines. I've had to open one and it took about 2 minutes with a reciprocating saw to cut it open. A regular circular saw also will cut right trough a regular safe.
Only burglary rated safes can offer resistance - and even they will hold for 10-30 minutes against a determined man. Unless there is an alarm and the police is on the way, it will not save your belongings.
Somebody said that a safe should cost about 1/4 of the stuff its guarding.
Hiding your stuff will be more effective.

[Skans]

A decent gun-safe out-of-sight in your house will generally work. It's not that easy for your run-of-the-mill burglar to break into a decent gun safe. I've seen the videos too - usually done by people who own safe manufacturing companies. If someone is carrying a saw capable of cutting through even 10 gauge steel around with them, they aren't your run-of-the-mill burglar. Lots of time and noise for your Joe-average burglar; if they have tools and know a little bit about what they are doing. If someone wants to mess with my safe, they are going to have to move a 1000 safe out of a closet to start smashing and sawing on it.

I can see hiding a few guns; but beyond that, you are going to quickly run out of good hiding places.

[woodye85741]

Had a friend explaine that when pressed, being asked regarding that said BG come into my house,caused me to be " in fear for my life".I could dispatch deadly force to BG.But if perp fell outside,best drag the perp back over door threshold onto your property.
"Darn dem' cameras !"

[scrubcedar]

+1 on the dog answer. Had a standard (full size)poodle who was very protective of us.
Came home to find the house broken into and the dog locked in the bathroom with blood all over the sink and tub. Scared to death we rushed the dog to the vet. He examines the dog closely and starts laughing while we look at him like he's nuts. He then informs us that not one drop of the blood came from the dog! Very little was taken from the house for some reason
P.S. We kept the dog trimmed in that old school french poodle style( like on a poodle skirt). Imagine having to admit that you were savagely run out of the house by Jacques, (his name I swear) the french poodle!