Stolen Tools

[Woody610nb]

So I had some tools stolen from a job site a couple of weeks ago. I'm not here to whine about it, they where locked up, but probably a bad choice on my part. I check Craigslist every couple of days, but I think that's a lost cause, I think most people are to smart to go that route. I was just wondering if anybody has ever recovered stolen items on Craigslist, and how you went about it. Call the police or show up at the thief's home. Any stories.

 

[59 wagon man]

no I found the pawn shopreceipt when my worker pawned my tools ,thought I would get MY tools back for free. not quite had to pay the pawn ticket in cash

 

[scdealer]

I think most end up in pawn shops (unless stolen for personal use). Guys are looking to turn that stuff as quick as possible to score their next fix.

 

[ratdoggy]

Or they've been scrapped...

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

Times like an inland marine insurance policy on tools/equipment is priceless.
As far as A holes who steal a guys tools,I'm all for hanging them from a bridge by their freaking nuts.

 

[Woody610nb]

As far as A holes who steal a guys tools,I'm all for hanging them from a bridge by their freaking nuts.

Yeah, it's like the old saying, "steal a man's wife, steal a man's dog, but don't steal his tools, (that he makes a living with). But I don't really believe that, there's too much scum around.

 

[oilslick]

My dads neighbor had his stihl chainsaws stolen, called a few pawn shops, caught the guy couple days later, nothing was done to the kid faras i know. .

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

Yeah, it's like the old saying, "steal a man's wife, steal a man's dog, but don't steal his tools, (that he makes a living with). But I don't really believe that, there's too much scum around.

I can replace my tools. Now if somebody stole my dog words could not begin to describe the hell that would rain down who ever did it.

 

[Richard Cranium]

I hope you get your tools back, Most people never do. A lot of tools end up at pawn shops or taken to another state for sales.

 

[braidmeister]

So I had some tools stolen from a job site...

This is what's known as a cardinal sin. You don't steal a man's livelihood.

 

[LXCam]

I've had plenty of hand and power tools nabbed thru the years. But the only thing I ever got back was my back hoe attachment for my skid steer 5 years after it got ripped. What a story that is.

 

[Empty Pockets]

I don't care who you are, or what you steal, a thief is lower than a snake's belly

 

[rburke65]

The only thing I have had stolen was my dads Boy Scouts hatchet from my pole barn. Had to be kids as it was the only thing taken. I'd have felt better if they had taken theKubota and left the hatchet.......miss my dad....

 

[engineer2]

Harbor Freight is the preferred brand where tool theft is an issue.

 

[braidmeister]

I don't care who you are, or what you steal, a thief is lower than a snake's belly

True...but to steal tools a man uses to make a living - that is the lowest form of thievery.

 

[L5wolvesf]

So I had some tools stolen from a job site a couple of weeks ago. I'm not here to whine about it, they where locked up, but probably a bad choice on my part. I check Craigslist every couple of days, but I think that's a lost cause, I think most people are to smart to go that route. I was just wondering if anybody has ever recovered stolen items on Craigslist, and how you went about it. Call the police or show up at the thief's home. Any stories.

Sorry about the theft. Whenever I go on CL looking for deals I wonder if they were stolen. When I see a load of miscellaneous tools fro stupid cheap I tend to pass them by.

"I think most people are to smart to go that route." I don't.

Call the police or show up at the thief's home. Realistically you are inviting trouble if you show at their house. If you really think what you see is yours (hopefully it has some indication on it) call the PD Robbery bureau. Have you reported the theft?

 

[red61cj5]

I was in a gun shop once, this other guy asks the owner to look at a used rifle, he looks at it for a few minutes, hands it back to the shop owner, then walks out. Comes back about 15 minutes later with a state trooper, who asks for the rifle, reads the serial number, then hands it to the guy. Shop owner said not a word. I'm pretty sure he knew it was stolen, or at least suspected. I wont go there anymore, unless I get something stolen, then it will be my first stop.

 

[gungatim]

I had a bunch of tools stolen from my hunting shack I was working on, they left the craftsman hand tools and box but took my Makita cordless drills, charger, sawzall, and a new set of pots and pans still in the box. then had the courtesy of breaking the lock on the shed and pushing my quad into the pond where it wasn't found until months later when the water level went down.

cops caught the kids, was a neighbor 2 houses down. never got a penny of restitution. the dad came over and apologized. I said the kid should come over himself and apologize and work off his debt by helping work on the house, do some chores, etc. never heard from him again until next hunting season when the dad asks if he can hunt my property...

people ****...

 

[braidmeister]

I was in a gun shop once, this other guy asks the owner to look at a used rifle, he looks at it for a few minutes, hands it back to the shop owner, then walks out. Comes back about 15 minutes later with a state trooper, who asks for the rifle, reads the serial number, then hands it to the guy. Shop owner said not a word. I'm pretty sure he knew it was stolen, or at least suspected. I wont go there anymore, unless I get something stolen, then it will be my first stop.

Did you ask to see the imports?

 

[gunguy]

never heard from him again until next hunting season when the dad asks if he can hunt my property...

Hope you said, "Are you F'ing kidding me???" or better

Jim

 

[Holzarbeiter]

I feel your pain,
Had my truck broken into years ago, they stole my portable table saw, compound miter saw, emglo compressor, a couple of nail guns and cut the chain to the generator on the trailer and took that too, had the cops come out, take the report and gave them all the serial #s to the items, cop told me strait up that my chances of finding them again were slim to non. Never recovered a single item.
Friend of mine had his enclosed trailer stolen out of his driveway. Over 15k in replacement value, cops took the report, he checked craigslist twice a day, after 6 weeks he saw a compressor advertised on craigslist by a pawn shop 15 miles away, went down and looked at it, identified it as his, called the detective and recovered about 5k worth of stuff, the pawn shop had identification and video footage so they caught the guys. All pleaded guilty at least one serves time but he had plenty of other charges pending.

 

[steveo1o9]

There is a pawn shop in a not so great area of town near me that always has some of the most commonly stolen tools and yard equipment displayed outside (ex. miter saws, chain saw, trimmers, etc.) I have almost stopped on a few occasions but I am sure there is a large portion that is stolen, especially with a homeless shelter across the street. Ill pay a few extra bucks for the peace of mind.

 

[Backyard Imports]

One of our rentals was broken into when we were between renters and doing some remodeling. The crooks were spooked by a neighbor and took off with only parts of a paint sprayer for their trouble. The police were contacted and a deputy came out to take a report. He didn't take pictures of the shoe print left in spilled paint, or dust for fingerprints, or even bag the jacket that was left behind by one of the thieves. He told me that they didn't really have the manpower to investigate property crimes unless firearms were stolen or someone was in the house when it happened.

Fast forward a week... my wife finds the paint sprayer on Offer Up. We actually didn't know for sure that it was the sprayer, at first, because there wasn't an actual picture of it. The guy had put up a "stock" photo of an identical sprayer (they only got the body and no hoses or accessories) and it wasn't one that was readily available anymore. However, on Offer Up you can put up a picture (avatar kind of thing) and a name, if you want. The guy had put up his actual picture and name. With these two things I was able to locate a Facebook profile. Low and behold the guy was wearing the jacket that he left at the house in one of the photos that was posted. After a little more research I found an address for him that was only 5 minutes from the burglarized property. So... I went to his house and confronted him.

The guy admitted to everything (on video, since I was surreptitiously recording everything. And we were in the street in front of his house... public space, no notification required and no privacy to be expected). He even had on the same shoes that he had worn during the burglary and they still had paint stains on them!! He said that he didn't have the paint sprayer at the house and he would get it from his partner and return it to me (never happened). So I (actually we, I didn't go alone) left and waited for a call that never came.

Fast forward another week.... the information collected was passed onto the police dept. handling the matter and I waited for them to call. Never happened. So I went to the police station to try to speak with someone. Nobody available. I left a message for the deputy that took the report and asked him to call me back. Never called me. I finally contacted a friend who works for the dept. He informed me that I would probably never get a call back because they don't have the budget or manpower to follow up on such small crimes. (Funny to me because I thought that felony burglary wasn't such a small crime.) He said that he would, however, make sure that the guys info was given to the correct people so that they could follow up and, possibly, catch the guy committing other burglaries.

It's pathetic really. And it is no wonder that these guys keep doing what they are doing. There are no consequences for their actions. At least, not from law enforcement.

 

[gungatim]

never heard from him again until next hunting season when the dad asks if he can hunt my property...

Hope you said, "Are you F'ing kidding me???" or better

Jim

no, see, here's how it works when you have hunting property 2 hrs. away in the middle of nowhere: you don't piss off the locals any more than you have to!

I made friendly with the guy and let him know if he would keep an eye on it he could hunt the back when I am gone after the first week of the season.

if you get them riled up, they steal your blinds, burn your house, and piss all over the place right before the season opens...believe me, I know people this has happened to. nothing like going up the day before the season opens finding someone took a chainsaw and cut your blind to pieces...

now if we were full time neighbors, there would be a different story posted on one of those hate-my-neighbor-threads

 

[gunguy]

^^ I get it, but it just ain't right.

Like buying insurance from Al Capone so your windows don't get shot out. Maybe the best you can hope for is that the world turns in a circle.



Jim

 

[Rag Roc]

We had a hobby shop where several of us has many $$ worth of hand tools stolen one night. Checked the local pawn shops, & flea markets......nothing. A few months later I happened upon a Monday flea market in a neighboring burg, and there was about 15% of our stuff, confirmed by the serial numbers on the toolboxes. Cops came and confiscated what I identified and took the local guys info. Three weeks go by, I call the detective. The guy got a lawyer, got back everything that wasn't engraved or serial numbered. He told me that nothing was gonna happen, just drive over there and pick up what's left.
Sad state of affairs.

 

[Musicinabottle]

So I had some tools stolen from a job site a couple of weeks ago.

I'm just curious why you would have your tools stolen. That don't make sense...

Seriously though, that's an area I've always been lucky. During Spring thaw, when I've had to park my truck out on the county road a quarter of a mile away from my house with my tools sitting on the seat, and never had an issue. Of course around here, thieves literally get shot!

 

[Kaizen]

i'm actually building my garage because of a theft. I got lazy and they capitalized. never recovered any nor any trace. police can't give a **** not even worth calling them.

 

[MarlynOC]

A few years back I bought 3 Penn International Reels off CL and before we completed deal I got copy of his drivers license and wrote down plate number. Reels retail for over $500 each and serial number is on file with Penn Reels.

 

[Woody610nb]

Yeah, I got a little lazy. Story is I'm almost 69 and still working as a stair and railing builder. The worst part of my job is carrying tools and materials in and out. I was working in a condo unit that had very poor parking and access, literally walking and carrying things a block away. I was working on and end unit, end of day I left my Bosch glide saw, stand and air compressor chained up out of site. The only one still in the area was the block mason. He must have had a bolt cutter and got the tools. I'm pretty sure it was him, but no proof.
The worst part is knowing someone else has my tools, I can make more money and the tools are replaced with lighter ones that I will not leave anymore.

I would like to add that I had my own stair business in NY for almost 30 years. I was always shown respect and builders were grateful for the work I did. I moved to NC and work for a large stair company and the builders here treat you like a *************. They don't care about the conditions they leave for you to work in or try to make things easy for you. Example; I get to a house cut in the woods. The only access is the driveway which they are pouring cement. They poured the garage floor, front walk, side door pad, I ask the construction manager, how am I supposed to get in? "Well park down the road, cut through the woods, over the fence and in through the back door which is 3 ft. off the ground with no steps." Call me when I can get in like a human being.

Thanks for listening.

 

[Bellaireroad]

I had a bunch of tools stolen from my hunting shack I was working on, they left the craftsman hand tools and box but took my Makita cordless drills, charger, sawzall, and a new set of pots and pans still in the box. then had the courtesy of breaking the lock on the shed and pushing my quad into the pond where it wasn't found until months later when the water level went down.



cops caught the kids, was a neighbor 2 houses down. never got a penny of restitution. the dad came over and apologized. I said the kid should come over himself and apologize and work off his debt by helping work on the house, do some chores, etc. never heard from him again until next hunting season when the dad asks if he can hunt my property...



people ****...

Like father , like son


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[Bellaireroad]

One of our rentals was broken into when we were between renters and doing some remodeling. The crooks were spooked by a neighbor and took off with only parts of a paint sprayer for their trouble. The police were contacted and a deputy came out to take a report. He didn't take pictures of the shoe print left in spilled paint, or dust for fingerprints, or even bag the jacket that was left behind by one of the thieves. He told me that they didn't really have the manpower to investigate property crimes unless firearms were stolen or someone was in the house when it happened.

Fast forward a week... my wife finds the paint sprayer on Offer Up. We actually didn't know for sure that it was the sprayer, at first, because there wasn't an actual picture of it. The guy had put up a "stock" photo of an identical sprayer (they only got the body and no hoses or accessories) and it wasn't one that was readily available anymore. However, on Offer Up you can put up a picture (avatar kind of thing) and a name, if you want. The guy had put up his actual picture and name. With these two things I was able to locate a Facebook profile. Low and behold the guy was wearing the jacket that he left at the house in one of the photos that was posted. After a little more research I found an address for him that was only 5 minutes from the burglarized property. So... I went to his house and confronted him.

The guy admitted to everything (on video, since I was surreptitiously recording everything. And we were in the street in front of his house... public space, no notification required and no privacy to be expected). He even had on the same shoes that he had worn during the burglary and they still had paint stains on them!! He said that he didn't have the paint sprayer at the house and he would get it from his partner and return it to me (never happened). So I (actually we, I didn't go alone) left and waited for a call that never came.

Fast forward another week.... the information collected was passed onto the police dept. handling the matter and I waited for them to call. Never happened. So I went to the police station to try to speak with someone. Nobody available. I left a message for the deputy that took the report and asked him to call me back. Never called me. I finally contacted a friend who works for the dept. He informed me that I would probably never get a call back because they don't have the budget or manpower to follow up on such small crimes. (Funny to me because I thought that felony burglary wasn't such a small crime.) He said that he would, however, make sure that the guys info was given to the correct people so that they could follow up and, possibly, catch the guy committing other burglaries.

It's pathetic really. And it is no wonder that these guys keep doing what they are doing. There are no consequences for their actions. At least, not from law enforcement.

Reminds me of the Big Lebowski when he picks up his stolen car and asks the cop if he's going to take fingerprints .... the cop just busts out laughing .. funny stuff


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[jd_1138]

no I found the pawn shopreceipt when my worker pawned my tools ,thought I would get MY tools back for free. not quite had to pay the pawn ticket in cash

Wow, how much did the loser get for the tools? Probably not nearly enough to make up for losing his job and going to jail.

There are some real dirt bags out there.

 

[Backyard Imports]

The cop told me that he could email the "forensics guys" if I wanted to cover the $250 cost. I told him sure, get them coming. Of course I never heard from them. Then I asked my friend, who works for the Dept. of Corrections and offices at a sheriff substation, and he just laughed. He told me that they all have kits in their patrol cars to dust for prints and the guy just didn't want to bother. He also told me that most of them are pretty lazy and are only collecting a paycheck. I don't know about that first hand but he works with and doesn't have too much respect for them.

 

[jd_1138]

I would like to add that I had my own stair business in NY for almost 30 years. I was always shown respect and builders were grateful for the work I did. I moved to NC and work for a large stair company and the builders here treat you like a *************.

Hell, they even treat the customers like s--t. My mom hired a contractor to do a lot of work at the house she bought to be near my sister. Paid them a lot of money. My mom's a nice lady and put up with their neanderthal behavior.

Anyway, after a month they finished, and their boss sent them over to my sister's to do a lot of work. He failed to tell them their new client was the daughter of their old client. My sister could hear them make rude comments about my mother. They even bashed me. I had done some backyard projects at my mom's house, and they were critiquing them. lol. My sister fired them and threw them off her property.

 

[moneypit_k5]

no I found the pawn shopreceipt when my worker pawned my tools ,thought I would get MY tools back for free. not quite had to pay the pawn ticket in cash

Yeah.. I had the same experience. Had to buy my stolen Mtn bike back from some scumbag pawn shop. pretty frustrating. And this is after the detective told me all I had left to do was pick it up from the shop he found it at!

So I had some tools stolen from a job site a couple of weeks ago. I'm not here to whine about it, they where locked up, but probably a bad choice on my part. I check Craigslist every couple of days, but I think that's a lost cause, I think most people are to smart to go that route. I was just wondering if anybody has ever recovered stolen items on Craigslist, and how you went about it. Call the police or show up at the thief's home. Any stories.

Man, really sorry to hear it!

Around 2003 I was working for a construction company who, one friday night had some tools stolen from a vacant house.

Not yet aware the robbery happened, I responded to a craigslist ad for a super cheap compressor the next day, and managed to be the first guy there to pick it up.

I mentioned in passing that "small world, I was working on a jobsite just around the corner on X avenue!" The guy got real fidgety and tried to renig on the sale. We discovered on monday the house had been robbed, And sure enough, the compressor I bought was our own.

It wasnt hard for the cops to nab the guy after that.

I know this is highly irregular ending, but I had to share the story. I hope you get your stuff back, or at least pin the guy who took it!

 

[jd_1138]

The cop told me that he could email the "forensics guys" if I wanted to cover the $250 cost. I told him sure, get them coming. Of course I never heard from them. Then I asked my friend, who works for the Dept. of Corrections and offices at a sheriff substation, and he just laughed. He told me that they all have kits in their patrol cars to dust for prints and the guy just didn't want to bother. He also told me that most of them are pretty lazy and are only collecting a paycheck. I don't know about that first hand but he works with and doesn't have too much respect for them.

Probably some $8/hour fast food worker is under more scrutiny than some $70,000/year cop. Pretty sad and pathetic.

Karma's a cruel *****, though. If they don't do their jobs and dust for prints and such, that means more criminals are running around free and putting their lives at risk every time they execute a traffic stop. That dirt bag behind the wheel could've been put away years ago.

 

[FrancisJ]

I had an incident a year ago where 2-3 individuals "tried" stealing tools out of one of my barns at the back of the property..........dogs (our best friends) alerted me (they were separated from the thieves by a 6' non-climb horse fence)..........

Bottom line: the Springfield Super Match M1A 308 worked perfectly (with two 20-round mags) --- allowed me to (1) get them doing the Belgium "two-step" dance rapidly "outbound" towards their vehicle and (2) facilitated some "artwork" on their rear bumper as they were fleeing the scene...........groups at long range are EXCEPTIONAL

 

[jd_1138]

I had an incident a year ago where 2-3 individuals "tried" stealing tools out of one of my barns at the back of the property..........dogs (our best friends) alerted me (they were separated from the thieves by a 6' non-climb horse fence)..........

Bottom line: the Springfield Super Match M1A 308 worked perfectly (with two 20-round mags) --- allowed me to (1) get them doing the Belgium "two-step" dance rapidly "outbound" towards their vehicle and (2) facilitated some "artwork" on their rear bumper as they were fleeing the scene...........groups at long range are EXCEPTIONAL

Sadly, that may get you locked up. Unless they had weapons trained on you, had you blown them away you might end up in the klink depending on your local laws.

 

[ptgb]

25 year cop here.... 16 years Detective Division. Of the hundreds and hundreds of prints taken over the years.... 80% are just smudges and smears. 19%, we send to the state crime lab for comparison to the national database.... response is always.... ".... did not contain enough ridge detail for comparison purposes". 1%... no comparison found in database.

You want to know how many of the thousands of cases I investigated was made on fingerprints alone? One.

I tell people all the time, "People want CSI in a The First 48 world". The vast majority of cases from murder down to vandalism are made by someone squealing on someone else (usually to cover for their own sins). It's just like grade school, most people will tell on their family and friends in a heartbeat. Gotta know how to talk to people. The most successful investigators out there aren't good crime scene techs... they have the most ****-bag snitches in their contact (phone) list.

Where do your tools go? Into a car trunk.... to the local bar..... and into someone else's car trunk. That regular guy, your neighbor, co-worker, hunting buddy, or even friends, knows that the stuff they are buying for pennies on the dollar out of a car trunk in the bar parking lot are stolen.... they really don't care.

There's a little bit of larceny in everyone's heart.