Just got burglarized, what do I do now?

[Richard Cranium]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

Most every thing has been said already, my only other thought is that any safe that you can carry into the home, the bad guys can carry out of the home. And if you watch storage wars, you know most of the cheap safes can be opened by dropping them on their corners. So get a good sized safe and anchor it down, and one that has lock pins in the door, instead of only hinges. Richie

 

[memphisnate]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

Meh, this can go either way. A friend of mine had an ADT sign in his yard during some break-ins in the neighborhood. While his was untouched, his two next-door neighbors were hit. And he had only the sign, not the system.

The "smash and grabs" are generally put off by simple signs, as they just don't want to chance it.

I have a sign and no security. It was left by the previous owner and I figured it would be better than nothing.

 

[jd_1138]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

Wow, that *****. Sorry to hear about that. Maybe rescue a Doberman, Rott, or German Shepard. Give them a home to protect. We have a 90 pound rough coat Collie (like Lassie) that has a ferocious bark. People who come here are afraid of him. Not really a security dog like a Dobie or German Shepard but could probably scare off a zombie (meth head). Dogs can take things to a different level when the ***** matter hits the fan. I've seen his power and speed playing around with him -- wouldn't want to piss him off.

My friend is rehabbing a house and had it down to bare studs in the hallway. I suggested a wall safe or even just a concealed box to place valuables into -- hidden behind a picture. He chuckled and said "that's extreme!". I said "not really, plus it'd be a cool feature when you go to sell the house" which he is planning on doing in a year or so.

 

[Bigplum]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

If your handy at woodwork , I've seen some neat ideas with drawers let into the staircase risers , if its done well no one could tell its been done and much less obvious than a safe.

A dog works , doesn't have to be a monster either , my old mutt kicked off one night and i cussed him for waking me up but our house was the only one in the row that did not get broken into , I always get up and hit the lights if the dogs stir in the night .

 

[ddawg16]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

About the only thing a monitored alarm system is good for is to let you know 'when' someone broke in.

I real dog is by far the best protection. Unless the dirt bags 'know' you have something they want, they just go to another house

Next step is CCTV to a DVR.

 

[rsanter]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

Do you have pictures of the ring?
If you do make flyers and give to pawn shops and gold buyers listing it as stolen

That will Likly be sold for the gold content...unfortunately

Bob

 

[Weekend_warrior]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

Yep, most has been said. The door armor posted a while back and window shield are both great along with a decent monitored alarm system. Doors and window sensors.

8 ft. fence with locked gates. Security lights and cameras on the entrances and exits with a hidden recorder box. The safe is a good idea as well. Just some anchor bolted in. At my last place it was anchored in the master closet. You could get it up if you wanted, but it would take a while.

Also, simple things like keeping the doors, windows, and gates locked as well arming the alarms will help with the violated feeling. Maybe a home defense gun.

Make it a PITA to access and steal and they will likely move onto another target. There are plenty of others.

 

[StevePgh]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

This month's Family Handyman has an article about building hiding places to store valuables. I'd imagine many of them are more secure than a safe yet easier to have frequent access to (aside from fire/water damage protection, of course).

Some ideas were empty paint cans, toe plates in cabinets, false bottom in a drawer, etc.

 

[CaminoKlng71]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

Here is a product that can be added to your current windows.
3m safety film

This is a really cool product I didn't know about. I've called around and it's a pretty cost effective product. I think after I get the window replaced I will have this installed on all the windows. Make the criminals earn it. Thank you for the advice.

 

[Halfdawg]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

That *****, thieves ****!

Get a dog, the best sucurity system still can't do what a good dog can do. Plus it protects your family 24/7 and there is zero chance of forgetting to arm it. I have had 2 female Rotts now and I believe them to be some of the most protective dogs without having to deal with any aggresive behaivor. I don't know how bad somebody would have to screw up a Rott puppy to make it mean, both have mine have been baby gentle. But when somebody gets to close to their house, car, or thier people they can put on a real mean act. Best visual detourent ever!

 

[Stuart in MN]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

About the only thing a monitored alarm system is good for is to let you know 'when' someone broke in.

I real dog is by far the best protection. Unless the dirt bags 'know' you have something they want, they just go to another house

Next step is CCTV to a DVR.

A monitored system can call the cops for you when you're not home, plus the loud alarm horns in the house will help scare off burglars. In addition, most systems these days have smoke and fire sensors, low temp alarms, flooding alarms, etc. that are arguably even more important than protecting against breakins.

Nothing wrong with owning a dog if you want, but if you bring the dog with you when you're not home he's not going to be able to do anything to protect the house.

While a video systems may be able to record images of burglars (if the picture quality is good enough, there's enough light, and they look into the camera) they aren't going to do anything to prevent a burglary either. Also, unless you have some sort of cloud based system the burglars can steal the recorder and then you're out of luck altogether.

The point is, there are multiple things a person should do to minimize the chances of burglaries - make the house less attractive to them (close the curtains, turn on lights), secure the house to keep them from getting inside in the first place (good locks, sturdy doors), and have a good security system.

 

[polexican23]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

There are a few companies that install a few wireless cameras. They snap pics on movement when you set them. I installed one in my buddies garage for him. I forgot I even did it until he sent me a pic from his phone showing me "borrowing" his beer while he was gone.
Whatever you install, notify your insurance company. Most give a discount once you add something.

This is the company we got them from. http://www.protection1.com/home-security-systems/

He just sent me a pic of his dad currently "borrowing" some beer.

 

[Silvercbr]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

We have ADT with door and motion sensors. We have accidentally set it off, and let me tell you, you honestly can hear the alarm at least a block in all directions. ADT not only can call the cops for you but also the fire department if the smoke alarm goes off. Cheap insurance for $40 a month and peace of mind when we travel.

We also purchased a DropCam camera because the quality of the video is amazing (even at night with infared). Plus we can set them up on a schedule so if they detect motion, they take a snapshot or clip, and then auto-text it to your smartphone. When we went out of town, but were expecting some packages, we pointed the camera out a window to see the front door. It notified us of when the delivery guy dropped off the packages.

Another cool feature of the DropCams is the fact that you can talk through the camera. So you could say "Hey dipstick, you are already on camera, and the police are on their way". The cameras DVR to the cloud immediately so they can't try to find where the video is being stored.

 

[2oolhound]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

I had my business b&e'd about 15 years ago. I lost $25,000 in gear.

I took a table apart to screw the top over the window which left me holding the central heavy wall pipe pedestal in my hands and I thought "I'd like to catch the sob with this in my hands". Then I remembered, thieves often come back the next night cause who would suspect?. I slept there that night and about 3am I heard the guy trying to get in the same window. I waited patiently with my pipe but the wuss couldn't get in through my patch so I tip toed downstairs and called the cops. They promptly came over and shinned their flashlights on the window from inside warning the guy they were there. I already told them he was likely climbing the scaffolding on the next building and coming over the roof. After 20 minutes I was sitting there thinking "is that it? where's the police dogs and the helicopters with the bright lights and ****?" The cops had come and gone and I was left there feeling not too secure. My shop was one of 4 other shops in the same building. I ended up crawling though a little cubby hole and dropping into a dark basement where I systematically tip toed through every square foot of the building and worked my way upstairs till I was in a common area where I opened a door and found myself in a fabric store. I quickly closed the door but I heard it open right behind me and there was a dude, scruffy looking who was coming at me, lunging at me. I told him to stop where he was explaining I would pound his head into a pile of pulp if he didn't do exactly what I told him to do and since he could see by the way I was wielding my pipe over his head that I had the jump on him, he obliged, going back in the fabric store and laying down. I called the cops back and told them I had a prowler in custody and after 5 - 10 minutes I figured the cops couldn't get in the building so I blocked the rear fabric store door open and ran 40 feet to the outside double doors, threw them open and placed a brick there to hold them open. The thief got up and locked me out of the fabric store but I thought he would still be locked inside there. WRONG, the front door just had a thumb screw to turn and he was gone out on the street where he walked right past the cops who were parked at the corner.

I had just moved into these premises so I wasn't sure if this thief was the husband of the fabric store owner or a janitor or who he was. Had I caught him on my premises I would have smashed his knee caps right off the get go but since it was at someone else's premises he got away.

The cops said to me "next time let us handle it" and I bit my tongue because it seems to me I did let them handle it and they left after warning the guy they were there. Then one cop said he thought what I did was good and I agreed saying the thieves feel safe inside out of view of the cops who are driving around but now this guy knows he has to watch out for the business owners too, on the inside.

So just a heads up, keep a shot gun handy, the scum bag may be back tonight.

 

[sxk122]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

. Had I caught him on my premises I would have smashed his knee caps right off the get go but since it was at someone else's premises he got away.

You're a better man that I. In your position I'd be tempted to offer the suggestion he crawled to the other premises......

I've had stuff stolen before and you just want to rage on someone. I'm not an overtly violent person but I do work long and hard for my money and possessions. If I find you jacking with my stuff you're going to 'earn' something.......


To the OP, another vote for a dog if you can. A dog will make noise and most people would avoid them as they don't know how the dog will act.

We have two dogs that are nothing but big babies. However, the boxer is rather muscular and lean causing people to think twice. We've had door to door solicitors back completely off the porch when my wife has opened the door holding the boxer by the collar..... (she just wants to get at them to lick them -- they don't know that)

 

[KCarGuy]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

I Know this isnt what you want to hear but...If some Crazy wants to get in, they will.

At my first house, Someone broke in...While my Wife and kids were home!
And...we had 2 Labs!
And...a 6 foot privacy fence around our backyard!

I was out of town on business, and luckily one of the dogs heard something and the 2 of them went to check it out, with my 10 year old son.
my son walked into his room only to find a guy halfway in his window...He screamed like a Girl (as my wife explained it) and the Guy jumped back out the window, followed by both the labs.
My wife said that he cleared the backyard fence with 1 leap.
the dogs just paced the backyard until the cops came.

nothing happened that time, we were lucky. But if some crazy lowlife with no morals wants in...they will try even with all your safeguards. Some people just aint right!
Unless you brick up your hose and cage up your windows.

I am sorry about your loss, its horrible.
good luck.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

3 hours 45 minutes. I told them there was a break in and the whole house was tossed. They said they were on a shift change and would be there as soon as they could.

Sorry to hear that it did take the longer time man. Sometimes, calls stack up at the end of shifts so the patrol guys can finish up what they are working on before they leave, if not they literally would never get home.

One thing you might want to seriously consider it to get a safety deposit box at your local bank. While it does make it an inconvience at times, it does help you retain your stuff in today's society. A safety deposit box (locally) that is about 2" tall x 10" wide and 20" deep only cost about 20 dollars a year, that's cheap insurance to keep your stuff "safe."

 

[OldSoldier]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

We got burgled a couple of months ago during the day when no one was home. The scumbag had been robbing folks all through DFW for several weeks. We didn't have any security measures in place (other than locking the doors) when this happened. He only stole the gold, and went right past a camera, ipad, an unmounted LCD TV and DVD player. The cops got a good hand print, we went on the local news to help spread the word and they caught the guy about a week after the break-in. We didn't get our stuff back though, but the criminal is no longer breaking in to people's houses.

Within about a week we had installed our simplisafe system. I like it but it isn't perfect and it took us a while to get the bugs worked out of it. We'll get a dog when my kids are old enough to not be scared of a dog, and the CCTV is coming when I can get a chance to install it.

My advice is to do as many of the action items presented in this thread as is feasible because each performs different functions (deterrent, evident, etc) and each can help provide a sense of security which is what you lack at this point. For the most part there are many houses that don't advertise security systems (such as a sign or cameras) or a dog which are far "softer" targets and provide much less risk of being caught. That will shore up 95% of the likelihood of a break-in, and putting your valuables in non-standard locations will help foil the ones that do get past your other measures.

 

[Zeke]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

Recommend a video surveillance system to me that has a HD or mem card, has a monitor and the cameras are wireless. Indoor only is fine.

 

[power wagon]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

first off, real sorry you went thru that,this seems to be the norm latly.i think the system has failed the victims,as soon as the punishment really fits the crime it may slow down,3 caught up here ,not far from me,caught, arrested and out on bail within the day, hardly seems right.for me calling the cops is useless,due to never a cop in the area,i dont have any advise for you but i know what i will do if any one is caught,so far so good but it could happen

 

[67carl]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

My friend is rehabbing a house and had it down to bare studs in the hallway. I suggested a wall safe or even just a concealed box to place valuables into -- hidden behind a picture. He chuckled and said "that's extreme!". I said "not really, plus it'd be a cool feature when you go to sell the house" which he is planning on doing in a year or so.

This ^^^^^. I have a wall safe in an interior closet wall that is lag bolted to the studs. I also got an electrical panel cover and placed it over the front. Kind of a disguise. Maybe it will work, maybe not, but it's better than leaving stuff out on the dresser.

 

[Outlander]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

Very sorry to hear this. You will be discovering things missing for years. The 2 lowlifes that broke into my lake house spent time in jail.

 

[Thumper68]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

Lighting and a loud alarm are always your best bets, I have lots of motion detector lighting and non monitored alarms on the house and shop. Like I said in your garage security thread, keeping them from getting in is way better than catching them after the fact.

 

[6768rogues]

I have a safe in my cellar. I bought it at an auction for a couple of hundred bucks. Of course, not everything of value will go in it, but important papers, cash and a coin collection are inside. I had a hell of a time getting it in the cellar, because it is large and weighs about 1200 lbs. I am not a small guy, but if a burglar can carry it out there is nothing I can do to stop him short of a bullet in the head.

 

[jmarkwolf]

A lot of goof suggestions here. I'm going to check out the Simplisafe system.

One item I didn't see mentioned here is to keep it quiet if you're going to be away from the house for any length of time. Advise the kids not to mention around school that the family is going skiing for the weekend, etc. That little bit of news can be very inviting to the unscrupulous.

 

[ZRX61]

Spiky plants under all the downstairs windows. Bougainvillea is a right ******* in this regard.

 

[mmack66]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

3 hours 45 minutes. I told them there was a break in and the whole house was tossed. They said they were on a shift change and would be there as soon as they could.

WTF? They all switch at the same time?

 

[upndown]

Unfortunately, short of making your home a fortress, I don't know if there's much you can do to keep some random Low Life from getting his drug money!

When we got robbed they backed a van in the driveway and kicked in the front door..Busy street, broad daylight.

Fortunately we kept an inventory and pictures, so no real issues with Ins. co, Well worth the time and effort! A bit of advice the LEO gave me..When you start replacing items, be careful how you dispose of wrappings, cardboard boxes etc. They sometimes watch the house for that.

The Ex. still lives in the house, only happened once. Best of luck to you!

 

[Big Barn]

Our home alarm has floor sensors at key areas (top and bottom of stairs, main traffic areas) that works really well. These are in addition to the typical window contacts etc.

My SIL lives in L.A. and they were broken into. The police told her to get a dog. It was a young kid who broke in. I think if I lived in an area with high crime, I would add both real and dummy cameras all over the place.

 

[BFBOB]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

A couple of thoughts...

Be careful hanging signs advertising your security system. People love to have their ADT signs up near their mailbox. All this does is tell the thief what kind of security system you have. If they want to get in, they will know how to get past your system. You are better off leaving them guessing or just
past.

Nope. 40 years in the alarm business, 5 of them as an ADT dealer. ADT uses a variety of equipment from many manufacturers, some private labeled, some not. There's no such thing as an "ADT alarm". The same is true of other companies; they may have preferred brands, but most use more than one. We use four different brands and several models within those brands in various situations, so knowing it's one of our systems is no help.

What IS a help to the homeowner regardless of brand of equipment is cellular monitoring. As pointed out previously, it can't be defeated from outside the house. The intruder who's bent on defeating the alarm has to trip it first, and then it's a race to see whether he can defeat it before it communicates. Today's alarms communicate very, very quickly.

 

[Leaflessshadetree]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

first off, real sorry you went thru that,this seems to be the norm latly.i think the system has failed the victims,as soon as the punishment really fits the crime it may slow down

I almost agree with this.
IMO punishments should be far more severe than the crime.

 

[gatewaysysop]

A lot of goof suggestions here. I'm going to check out the Simplisafe system.

One item I didn't see mentioned here is to keep it quiet if you're going to be away from the house for any length of time. Advise the kids not to mention around school that the family is going skiing for the weekend, etc. That little bit of news can be very inviting to the unscrupulous.

This. Know way too many folks that were "coincidentally" rolled the one time they were out of town, and have seen that scenario play out with other members on the board as well, unfortunately.

If at all possible, when traveling, I leave in the dark, well before dawn with a trusted private car service. Cars in the driveway block access to the garage and keep people guessing until I get back. If they don't see you leave, it will take them a while to figure out you're not home. Buy yourself as much advantage as you can.

 

[machineshop]

Hello CaminoKlng71,
sorry to hear that. I was in the same situation as you, in my house they broke in now 3 times. First you will be fed up but then you will get mean.

To your first question, this is probably the most difficult one, i had the same problem, hysteric wife which is guided by emotions but not by rational thoughts. You have to show her that you understand her and you will put an alarm system to your appartment/house. Take the cheapest one from ebay you can find for about 50 dollars and dont tell her the price. Install everything and tell her that you installed an alarm system and that she can come back and look at it. In most cases this helps and you have your wife back and this will be worth the dollars.

To your second question: forget the alarm system you bought, therefore it had to be the cheapest one, this was only to get your wife back.
Alarm systems can be useful but a burglar who is not completely stupid will inform himself about alarm systems, too. The www is full of information about "bypassing an alarm system".
If you want to secure your property you do not have to think like a home owner, you have to think like a burglar, so read everything on the www about bypassing alarm systems and you will see why the dollars you spent are useless. Everything which works with current can be bypassed. Then these guys probably have other information about this theme which you can not find in the www. If someone comes out of jail, he is a perfect criminal because he learned all tricks there.
Most of the burglars are stupid and dont know what an electro pick is etc but it can be that the next time you have to deal with a clever one who will bypass every lock or every alarm system which works with current. So keep it very concealed and simple, with trip wires attached to something, just be creative and very mean. Depends on what you connect for exemple the tripwire this will either kill the burglar instantaneously or only warn you or the neighbours. Think in this direction. But there is again one problem: how do you explain it to your wife.

To your third question: Again you have to think like a burglar and not like a home owner. The more very visual signs you attach to your property, the more these individuals know that you are very vulnerable because you dont seem to have an other clue how to protect your property and this even attracts them.

All in all i would recommend you to use unconventional methods like tripwires attached to..... and such things. Things which a burglar isnt prepared for. The biggest problem will be how you explain this to your wife, there i cant give you any useful information, good luck

 

[Lippyp]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

WTF? They all switch at the same time?

You want to try France, the Gendarmerie shuts for two hours at lunchtime, luckily French criminals also subscribe to the universal two hour lunch so thankfully nothing ever happens between 12 and 2. I'm surprised Hitler bothered going through Belgium, all he needed to do was roll up to the Maginot line between 12 and 2 and they'd have been through and halfway to Paris before the French army had finished with their napkins.

What we did was walk around the house trying to think like a burglar and look at where you think you could get in yourself and beef up those areas security, whether it be extra locks, lighting etc. I think people attribute way too much intelligence to the vast majority of burglars, they are not "Raffles the Gentleman Thief" neither are they Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible. They are more likely to lob a brick through a window or smash your back door in than spend hours with lock picks and bypassing alarms. My advice, park a rusty old car up on bricks on your front lawn, don't mow the grass ever, spend sunday afternoons shooting old jack daniels bottles off the back fence. if you look like you haven't got a pot to piss in and have a gun then no one will bother breaking in!

 

[fomocoforrester]

......... The more very visual signs you attach to your property, the more these individuals know that you are very vulnerable because you dont seem to have an other clue how to protect your property and this even attracts them.......

That reminds me of how pickpockets have been known to put up a sign in crowded tourist areas saying "BEWARE OF PICKPOCKETS"

Then they watch for the pocket people check to make sure their wallet is OK ...

 

[softailgarage]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

3 minutes 45 seconds or 3 hours 45 minutes ?


The first is not a bad response time, the latter, either means high crime area, officer shortage or a major call that was more important.

All of the above. Santa Ana is a very bad *** city, major calls are always going on. Unless it's a "in progress" call, forget it. Half the time they send out a community volunteer to take the report and unless there's a murder attached to it forget the fingerprinting as well. Welcome to SoCal.

About the only thing a monitored alarm system is good for is to let you know 'when' someone broke in.

Gotta disagree with you on this one Deputy. Along with the alarm, there is also fire protection. They can also listen in and record voices. I accidently set off our alarm, then gave them the wrong password. 5 Minutes later, while standing in the garage with the door opened, 2 officers snuck up to me, scared the livin **** out of me.

Recommend a video surveillance system to me that has a HD or mem card, has a monitor and the cameras are wireless. Indoor only is fine.

I just picked up a Uniden UDS655 wireless system and so far I'm very impressed. I use it to monitor the front of the house while I'm in the garage away from the office desk and monitors for the other cams. It's 2 wireless camera's that pan-tilt-zoom and a portable monitor w/ 7" screen & an SD card. You can upgrade to 2 more cams (I intend to attach a commercial grade ptz cam to it) . The cost was $250.00 and so far I would say its well worth it.

 

[Cadillac fan]

Not sure if it has been said but Rosebushes or other thorny plants along the windows do work. At my old house I used to have them planted on the ground where the windows were. They were a mix of roses and some really poisonous thorn plant. Trust me, people don''t want to risk cutting themselves up.

CCTV cameras are also a great idea. You can get cheap ones that can be wirelessly connected to your computer.

Even a sticker stating you have a security alarm is good. If the thieves do decide to come back they may think that you got something to protect yourself.

 

[Panel Dan]

+1 for getting a dog.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[brycez28]

Re: Just got Robbed, what do I do now?

Nope. 40 years in the alarm business, 5 of them as an ADT dealer. ADT uses a variety of equipment from many manufacturers, some private labeled, some not. There's no such thing as an "ADT alarm". The same is true of other companies; they may have preferred brands, but most use more than one. We use four different brands and several models within those brands in various situations, so knowing it's one of our systems is no help.

What IS a help to the homeowner regardless of brand of equipment is cellular monitoring. As pointed out previously, it can't be defeated from outside the house. The intruder who's bent on defeating the alarm has to trip it first, and then it's a race to see whether he can defeat it before it communicates. Today's alarms communicate very, very quickly.

Actually, cellular monitoring could be beat from outside. It would only take a cellphone signal blocker. Though illegal in most places, they can be found online for $60 (and up).

 

[bczygan]

Noise and light.
I always leave a light and TV on when not at home. Just loud enough to be heard downstairs.