Robbed thrice in three months

[1a1a]

I posted here before about being robbed twice in the space of a fortnight https://www.enotalone.com/?forumId=34

 

I did make the baitop, I didn’t do any vigilante stuff (I did plant the baitop though). 
 

Well work has been crazy and the baitop went flat and came inside. Last night I locked up the van and locked up the house and went to sleep. This morning it was gone. Nope, still not insured (which at the heart of it is in part because I’m paranoid the insurance company won’t pay out). Yep, with a bunch of gear in it, by the time I got home I was exhausted. I thought locking it would save me from the bold move of taking the whole vehicle. Realise now they must have stolen the keys when they stole the laptop. Why why why didn’t I put two and two together and realise how insecure it was?! 
 

This sounds so dumb even as I write it down but I feel heart broken. So much worse things can happen. And I’m not at rock bottom yet there is still a lot more gear here they can take. And if they have my car keys I think there’s also a house key on that ring. Feeling very stupid also. 

[Wiseman2]

Sorry this happened. What is a baitop?

Have these robberies been reported to the police?

Is it possible it's someone you know?

Time to get a security system, change the locks and get auto and homeowners insurance, no?

[1a1a]

A dead laptop with a gps tracker inside of it (aka a bait laptop). If the returning thief had taken it when it was charged and working they’d have lead me right to them. I guess so far they’ve stolen very easy things and I didn’t think they’d escalate to the unambiguity of outright car theft. I was wrong. 
 

Yep, the police have flagged the vehicle on their system as stolen. Based on the last stolen car experience I had I’ll never see this van again. 
 

It remains a persistent possibility it’s someone I know. Disappointing.

 

I’d say you’re right, expense on top of expense and probably once I start paying for insurance I’ll never be robbed again. 
 

After the second theft I wanted to install cctv but I had two months left on a rental and they rejected my request. 6 more days till I get the keys to the new place. The thief could clear me out in that time. After this the landlord has okayed me changing the locks at least. My housemate’s mum is staying with us to help with moving. She said we should always have someone home (although being home has been zero deterrent thus far). 

[1a1a]

I cried my eyes out this morning and half a day later I still feel sick and achey from that. I’ve lost the car and tools and a free day I didn’t have 😞 (need to pack and move an entire house and get invoices off, make quotes for new jobs ughhhhh). I should go and do the things now but only lying still on bed feels ok. I feel like I’m wasting so much time on top of how much money I wasted by having ineffective security 

[melancholy123]

A seriously loud alarm installed in your van would deter them.

[Wiseman2]

5 hours ago, 1a1a said:

A dead laptop with a gps tracker inside of it (aka a bait laptop).

A GPS on the vehicle itself and a security system for the vehicle would be a good idea in the future. It sounds like someone you know because they told you to use this "method" of "bait" rather than appropriately securing your belongings.

[1a1a]

It would have been so doable to install gps on the actual car. I wish a lot of things including that 😞

 

The baitop was my idea, I thought they would come back for more equipment and I wanted to be able to track them. I didn’t think they’d take the whole damn car based on the nature of the previous two thefts, (no break no enter just trespass. Car theft is a more serious crime and they didn’t seem to want to escalate like that. Oh I was wrong). 
 

Car alarm is actually a great idea!

[1a1a]

In the kind of funk that makes it hard to get myself off to bed 😞

[Cherylyn]

I'm sorry these multiple thefts happened to you. 

I agree with others regarding a better security and loud alarm systems. 

[1a1a]

I had this fleeting moment yesterday where I thought ‘well, that’s gone’ somewhat matter of factly and I didn’t feel so crushingly sad but it didn’t stick. 
 

I wish I’d put it behind the gate, I wish I’d unloaded it, I wish I’d realised they have my key, I wish I’d installed a gps tracker, I wish I’d had just one of the myriad of tracking devices I bought inside the actual car. I wish the landlord had approved my request to install cctv instead of telling me ‘with only two months left on your lease we don’t think it would be beneficial to you to install cctv. I was trying to work last night and my mind kept replaying the sight of the empty driveway 😞

My dad came around yesterday and replaced to lock, put a dead bolt on the back door and the gate. None of which could have saved my van (unless I’d taken the extra time to put it behind the gate!!!!!!!) but all of which might save the rest of my things since there is definitely more that could be stolen. 

 

 

[1a1a]

I just found the keys to my van. 
 

So the thief didn’t have them from last time. This wasn’t a return to gank the car with the keys scored in the last hit but a return and force entry/ignition. A real step up in the seriousness of the laws broken. (Also strongly suggests they’re not above cutting padlocks or breaking windows at this stage.)
 

Don’t know how to feel. 

[Wiseman2]

Sounds like someone who knows you. Someone who you told about this dead laptop gps thing and realized how easy it would be now to just steal the vehicle and all its contents.

Start there. Review everything you know who knows what you keep in the vehicle and your basic coming and going.

It would be a remarkable coincidence that they would just steal this or that (without the car) then keep coming back at appropriate times for more of this or that and when you detailed the useless laptop story, they knew for sure how easy it would be to just drive off with the whole vehicle.

They would have to know and awful lot about your place, your habits your vehicle contents etc to keep coming back for more.

So review who you know, who knows what's in the vehicle and most of all who you told about the dead laptop thing.

The police may recover your car or some of the contents if you give them more accurate information.

How old is the vehicle? It's odd it doesn't have an alarm system (vehicles have had them for half a century now) and most later models have built-in GPS.

The other odd thing is not having car insurance. Is that legal where you live? Most insurance would cover car theft (after an investigation) and at least give you the blue book value.

Make sure all your expensive belongings and equipment are insured and you have receipts for them.

Were you living in a particularly rough area? Is the crime rate generally this high?

Again. It's an astonishing coincidence that this happened 3x. Therefore it's likely it's someone who knows a great deal about you and your habits.

[catfeeder]

I'm so sorry to hear of this, and my heart goes out to you.

Can you rent self-storage until you have access to your new place in which to move your valuables?

[1a1a]

Too many people, I’m a blabber mouth. 
 

On the 15th I hand over the keys. I lose both any chance of busting the thief coming back for 4th and any danger of that happening (unless they know my new address which is reeeeeeaally going to narrow down the pool of suspects). 
 

The cops know the make and model and rego and didn’t seem to care to know anything else. They didn’t want to know what was in it ‘because some cars are recovered and returned with the contents intact and then those listed items get registered as stolen when they’ve been recovered’ (for real? Are you really being serious right now?!)

 

It’s a 2008 Mitsubishi van. Not that old but they have No frills. Not even central locking. 
 

In Australia third party bodily insurance is compulsory but third party property is your own responsibility. Like all insurances I’ve never felt like I could afford it on such erratic income. 
 

I’m in a ridiculously quiet suburb. But this ****hole knows where I live.

 

I’m in the thick of moving house now and both my parents and my housemates mum have picked up the slack to pack and clean while I work and waste time getting cctv up and running (which was actually so easy to do and I hate myself even more for not doing it two months ago) and that’s both sweet and legendary of them but it’s depressing that I’m failing at adulting so hard right now!
 

Absolutely no sign of my van. And moving without it sucks and depression persists despite the various friends and family trying to pick me back up (maybe it would be worse without them). 

 

If moving day wasn’t upon me I think I would have gone the storage route for the av equipment at this point. May as well be leaving my stuff on the side of the road in that house. 

Often times I can console myself reading other peoples stories about times similar things happened to them but ‘robbed three times and they stole my van’ is awfully specific. I’m sure someone somewhere can relate but I can’t find them. So I howl into the void here and appreciate those who hear me.

[Jibralta]

On 11/7/2021 at 5:12 AM, Wiseman2 said:

Sounds like someone who knows you. Someone who you told about this dead laptop gps thing and realized how easy it would be now to just steal the vehicle and all its contents.

I thought the same thing.