I was up late last night building another computer.  At about 3:30am I went outside to throw away some garbage away.  Then about 45 minutes later I went out again and noticed that the storage area doors in my carport were wide open!!  This is were I keep all of my reloading equipment and sometimes my ammo cans. After further inspection I saw that someone forced the door and the broke the lock!!  It was obvious that I interupped the thief in progress because a set of bolt cutters were found on the garbage can.

A neighbor was awake and said he saw a man walking away from my garage.  So I went back inside and got my fanny pack with my Sig P228 inside.  The neighbor and I started walking around trying to find the thief, but we didn't find him.

Now I have a question. I don't pretend to be a bad-ass, but I usually am calm in tense situations. I always thought I would be prepared in a situations like this, but I was quite nervous and shaky. I don't know what I would do if I had found the thief, but the idea of walking around in the complete dark looking for a possibly armed robber made me feel rather insecure.  Especial since I live in the same town were that Russian guy recently stabbed/killed five family members!!

I did end up calling the cops and filing a report.  But it was obvious to me that I need to take a handgun self defense class to make me feel more comfortable in these situations.

When I did a complete inspection I found missing two pounds of smokeless powder, two die sets, various items and [b]all four of my ammo cans!![/b]  Now I usually don't store my ammo (which was in the cans) in the garage, but after the last range trip I did because my back hurt to much to carry them all the way inside.  Inside the cans I had over 2000 rounds in various calibers. [b]So now this damn low-life knows I own guns!!  This has me worried!![/b]

This crap really pisses me off, this is the second time I have been ripped off in the last two years.

sgtar15

Edited due to incorrect terminology---thanks Waverunner [:D]

That sucks.
maybe you should think of moving to Folsom or Davis or just out of Sacto period.

Alex

lets just say i live next door to a section 8 project? cause the developer had to comply with some fed regs!"The only one in the city!"


I get Gunshots/ half sticks dyno?? " "sounds like!" and all kinds of miscreants jumpin my fense to use the pool!twice tonite it sounds like .308 fire,  next to my street "cause I feel the concussion!

Get a security camera or two Sgt. They come at all price levels black and white being cheaper. Also get a motion detector and spring a trap for the bastard!

No Slack!

Good idea----but I would rather go somewhere like Montana, Texas, or Arizona!!!  Maybe someday, but right now I am stuck here due to financial and other reasons.  But soon, real soon.

MatthewDaugherty, Camera is next on my shopping list, maybe with a high pitched alarm.

sgtar15

Those auto-sensor flood lights are good too. They go on when ever anyone walks by.

Might I also suggest a very large and aggressive dog. A snarling Rott will turn all but the most determined burglars away.

You got to be kidding!...This guy must got guts or armed.  Knowing that you own guns and still come in to rob you?...Got to be careful from now on, he may want to come back for the rest of your stuff with armed friends?...I hope you have a safe and be on the look out.

Man, thyat bites. I am glad no one was hurt.

You need to rethink your whole Security setup.
Layers Of Protection.
Auto Lights, Camera, Dog, Alarm, More\better Locks.
And Get a Flashlight Like the Surefire. You need to be able to Light someone up. Recognition is critical so you don't accidently shoot your neighbor or something.

Is there anyway this could have been an inside job by someone who knows you but not necesarily a friend.
Sounds like they knew what they wanted and got in and out.
A terrible thought but...
I too say that they will be back.

Be Carefull man,

Del

sgtar15 -

Based on the scenario you described I'd assume that the perp was someone you know or are somewhat acquainted with or at least knows someone you know or are well acquainted with.  That person may live in you community.  Not to say that it's one of your neighbors, but it could be a brother, or nephew who's being living with one of your neighbors.

If he took the thinks that you mentioned he'd either need an accomplice, have a car/truck nearby or have a house or place to stash close be.  It is also apparent that he had some intel and done recon because of the both cutters.

The previous advice about security systems are good, especially the motion sensor lights and cameras.  You can even get motion activated wireless cameras cheaply nowadays.  The can be connected to your TV set.  I have that kind of set up. I'd get some sort of audible alarm system for the storage room door because it is accessable from the street.

Being nervous, feeling insecure and vunerable while walking the streets at 4am looking for a perp is natural, even LEO's experience that.  If he was a a regular burglar he may not have had a gun.  IF he gets arrested will committing a felony, he gets big, big time, especially in CA.  But if he was just a young punk he very well may have had one.  Walking the streets looking is not the best way to find some one like that.

Anyway, its good that you or your family weren't hurt.  Call your insurance company and thank the Lord.

Big-Mike

Yes!  Motion sensor lights are an excellent idea.  I have some here, only real problem is animals walking by activate them also.  

Also consider bolt cutter resistant locks that are available.  Home Depot has those.

Well I know that it wasn't a friend or a family member because they are all upstanding/trustworthy people, that I know for a fact!!  However, I am sure that it was someone with intel on my place.  There were also 4 other units in my area that were hit in the same night, I just happened to be the last since I scared them away by coming outside at the right time. Also, two days bail a bondsman was by and he was looking for a know robber who's m.o. fits this situation, it could of been him.

I live in a condo type situation, without yards, were units are connected to each other, so a dog is out of the question.

I have been up all night thinking of ways to secure my family and home.  Plus I can't seem to get to sleep since I "feel" he will be back.  Hell, I have gone outside 6 or 7 times tonight just to check things out and I jump at ever sound.  It's not the loss of material items that bothers me, it's the loss security and the feeling of being violated that pisses me off!![:(!]  All in my home were one is always supposted to feel secure!![:(!]

Yes I want to add lights and alarms or something, but what I really want to do is rig something up were the mother f-ers would get hurt if they broke in again.  Something like mace or a board with nails that activates when they break open the storage door.[}:D][}:D]  But here in Cali [i]I would probably get sued for hurt the poor misunderstood fleabag for hurting him!![/i]  Still, there has got to be a way somehow....any ideas??

sgtar15

And BTW, the guns are locked up in a safe in the master bedroom.





Well..........All but one that is [}:D]

sgtar15

I had a buddy who kept getting his garage broken into. It was a seperate building from the house. He installed a motion detector with one of those bright ass flood lights right by the entrance. But under the light he installed a camera that was only activated when the light came on, so he was able to see the criminal and waste precious video tape. It ended up being his neighbor and he called the cops and showed them the tape and bam, his ass was in jail. The flood light stopped him from entering the garage for several minutes as he made sure no one was home. The light alone the cops said would have scared most would be robbers off. The camera was a bonus.

My buddy was getting his garage broken into several times. It was a seperate building from the house. He installed a motion detector with one of those bright ass flood lights. He also installed a video camera right under the light. The camera only came on when the light came on due to the motion detector. This was to save precious video tape. He caught the bastared who was breaking into his house. It was his neighbor. He called the police showed them the tape and his ass was in jail the next day. You could not see the camera because it was so small and the bright light made it hard to see as well. Just a thought. Plus you could install a monitor that came on in the house when the light and camera came on showinf what the camera see's so if you are awake you can greet them with the respect they require.

[heavy][heavy][heavy][heavy][heavy][heavy][heavy][heavy][heavy]

Definately get motion sensor lights.  Who cares if a dog/cat light them up.  If someone walking by minds his own business lights them up, no harm.  It is for the sneaky people.

Booby trap your shed/carport.  Nothing to harm the bastards, but to make noise and maybe temporarly distract them.

Hookup a few wires to the door to maybe engage some sort of loud pitch siren.  Also hookup maybe a strobe light pointing right at the door and maybe a can of mace or something.  Have it spray right where the door opens up.

Of course,  have all these hooked to one 'master' wire which you can disable each time you enter your own garage.

Just make sure you mount them high enough.  Sometimes burglars will come during the day and unscrew them enough so they won't turn on and then come back at night.

As far as a noise type boobie trap, lots of empty soda cans strung together on fishing line can make a lot of noise.

One more thing...you were not robbed, you were burgled.

Good luck...I hope you can somehow recover your losses.

Chimborazo

Actually, you were burglarized not robbed.  Unfortunately now that the bad guy knows you have firearms I would be extremely cautious. Motion-Sensor lights are a great idea, but what if the bad-guy decides to try a daytime visit? It's happens a lot more often because most burglars know that homeowners are working their 9-5 job.

Sounds like you have a suspect. Talk to the cops about the bail bondsmen's "customer".

Way ahead of you........but thanks.

sgtar15

Get a dog

Try some different locks, like those ones that look like a bull's ring? Circular and difficult to get bolt cutters on.

Put up a fence, and motion light

Get a dog

Did I mention to get a dog??
Even an ankle-biter can give you heads-up of unauthorized visitors. Fore-warned is fore-armed.
Also suggest that if this happens again, arm yourself and stay inside the house when you call the cops. Many states don't authorize deadly force to protect property.....

I know exactly how you feel. I've been a peace officer for 13 years and still get nervous searching for bad guys that I know are close. Carrying a gun in a situation where you might have to use it is a very heavy responsibility. No sensible person wants to have to shoot someone. It is nothing like fantasizing about SHTF scenarios when it's for real. Tactical training is a good idea. Staying put when you don't have to search is also a good idea. It is only property and can be replaced. If your life or the life of someone close to you is in danger, of course that's another story. Don't think that burglars and petty thieves don't pack heat. The last cop on my department to get killed was trying to arrest a guy who was stealing car stereos out of the city impound lot. This guy had TWO hand guns. Ask yourself two things 1) Is this worth taking someone's life and everything that goes with it? 2) Is this worth losing my life? Increase your security measures. A crime needs basically two things to occur; a person willing to commit the crime and the opportunity for him to do it. You can take measures to reduce the opportunity. I say reduce because it's damn near impossible take take it away completely, but you can make it much more difficult and maybe they will look for an easier target.

Why didn't you call the police first before grabbing a concealed handgun and going out into the darkness to hunt down somebody?  What were you going to do with that concealed SIG if you would've come across some suspicious looking kid?  How would you safely interact with the responding officers?

May I suggest taking Masaad Ayoob's LFI - 1 December 1-4, 2001 in San Bernardino.  Go to [url]www.ayoob.com[/url] for contact info.

Sure it's hard to take time off and sure, it's hard to come up with the cash - but defending yourself in criminal or civil case, even for a clearly justifiable self-defence situation, could run you in the neighborhood of $80K.  I've found that instead of buying newer and fancier hardware, I can better prepare myself to handle, and more importantly, avoid the use of deadly force by spending that money on quality training.  I'd say the price of a new gun is worth keeping my ass out of prison.

The shooting portion of the course (StressFire) gets a lot of criticism for being light on tactics, but in reality, it is a somewhat basic intro to handgun shooting for the professional and lawyer types that take the class, but it's still pretty good.  However, the real meat of the class is in the lecure portion.

Feel free to contact me if you have any specific questions.

That sucks man, im really sorry to that some low life scum bag has to go around and rob you...ez

The safe is the first thing you need and you have that.  The auto lights and cams are good passive defenses too. There are pepper spray canisters set off by motion detectors and the old reliable trip wire. You might want to get one of these sets and set it up in your shed. I would also holster your p228 and get a nice scatter gun.  An 870 with surefire or if you have the money a Benelli with a surefire light.

Someone already mentioned this, but it was a good point.

Your burglar/perp HAD to be in a vehicle because you yourself mentioned he stole 4 cans of ammo that was so heavy you yourself didn't want to carry them into the house.  So, walking around to find him probably was fruitless.

Yep, a dog is a good investment, and I would personally keep him INSIDE the house.  He'll still bark if anyone's outside.

If you were asking my advice I'd tell you to trash the booby trap idea.  It would just your luck that someone (a neighbor, friend or you kid)else would get hurt.  Then there's the liability issue.  Your insurance company would have a fit.

About 20 years ago I was home from college visiting my mother.  The neighborhood where she lived was great, kinda like the old days when everyone knew everyone else.  I guy was trying to break into a widow's house about 2-3am. She called the guy next door he called someone else and so on, and so on.  Within 5 minutes there were about 30 folks out in the street with guns, sticks, flashlights and dogs.  We caught the a-hole, he had a knife, some rope and  burgalry tools.  By the time the cops got there he need medical attention: some bruises, a few superficial lacerations and a couple of dog bites.  They later convicted him of some rapes too.

I'll always remember that as a time when people came together to protect themselves.

Really sucks... I would have to ditto ARDOC and go for the scattergun.  I couldn't afford the Benelli (excelent gun!), so I have a Mossberg M590 with a Scorpion light.  Holds 9 shotshells, with four extras in the stock.  Not very pretty, but mean looking, and short 20" barrel.  I have had to clear my house with it twice when the security system alarm went off in the night.  I was shaky too, but being able to bump that light off and on on that big old MFer gave me a lot of confidence.

Ditto too on the alarm system and the motion sensor lights.  I have the lights too, and sometimes dogs, etc. trigger 'em.  But I think they will usually surprise the perp.  Like someone else advised, be sure to mount the lights high enough so that they can't be disabled by a criminal during the day.  Every now and then I just run through my lights, just to see if they come on.  Good luck, buddy.  I hope he doesn't come back.  Bummer about the ammo too.  ARnSC

[b]Every cop basher should have to go through a situation like that[/b]

This is exactly the Bedford Falls type of response that should ALWAYS happen if the JBTs come to town to do a dynamic entry. It would have the happy ending of the hogs getting well fed and happy.

Not to offend anyone... But did you consider it may be the bail bondsman himself?  Did he look around your place at all?  BTW "Target" sells b&w cameras and monitor combo for about $100.  

Kiwi