Really Strange Thing Today

Does anyone remember the time when my house was broken into while
I was a work?

http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthre...ghlight=robbed


Well something strange & weird happened today. I went out to run some
errands & since it was decent weather, I took the dogs with me. Went I
returned I saw a white cigarette butt laying on the concrete walk outside
my back door. :confused: The back yard is fenced & gates are locked.
Someone was here at my door when I was away. I got that old spooky
feeling all over again. :( Isn't that weird?

Maybe somebody just flicked the butt over the fence and it landed there?

Not weird.. SCARY!

I'd let your neighbors and maybe even the police know that you suspect someone is "checking out" your home.

We had a teen on a bike that was riding around my parents neighbor hood checking out the houses for weak points. Neighbor caught him poking around my parents back basement window and scared him off. Police picked him up shortly after.

*HUGS*

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Karen

Maybe somebody just flicked the butt over the fence and it landed there?

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Not possible, if you could see what they'd have to do for it to land there,
you would know what I mean.They'd have to be a contrortionist to do it.

Oh, okay, 'twas just a thought, as I've seen thoughless smokers (no, not all smokers) do that every once in a while, like sending it out of sight is proper disposal.

Hmm, maybe having large dogs barking saved you another robbery?

Liz, maybe you don't have enough information to call the police, but I hope you will let all of your neighbors know about this.

I was in my home and my gardener told me (after the fact) that a man had come up my driveway and tried the rear hatch door and my side doors to see if my car was open. He had a description but didn't do anything.

I told my Korean neighbors and she volunteered that the same day a man had come in their back yard (right next door to me) and their car was open and the guy got away with their rolls of parking quarters. She gave me the same description of the man who ran away when she yelled at him.

So, I let our neighborhood watch group know and turns out they have had problems on their blocks as well and we all have the same description of the guy.

So I decided that was enough for me and called the police station. They have put our area on a 24 hour watch for a month to see if they can catch the guy.

What I realized is that at face value - trying my car door is really nothing to bother the police with - but once we all shared stories it turns out he has been successful in breaking into several cars in our area. That is then more than enough.

Yeah, I have a locked gate and fence and I have watched a young man fly over it like he was superman - the locked gate only keeps the honest people out.

(don't mean for this to sound like a lecture:) )

Yeah Gini, My son just hopped over mine last time he was here. :) Just
finding the butt laying there like that was so unnerving for some reason.

I do have an alarm system now, and maybe the sign slowed them up
a bit. I will share this info with other neighbors though. Good idea. :)

Funny but we just formed a neighborhood watch group recently.I'll let them
know as well. Thanks you guys.

That really is scary, especially after having been burglarized once already. And the fact that it happened when the dogs were gone. I would definitely talk to my neighbors, if I were you. Well, I am glad that you have two big dogs now to keep you safe.

CREEPY!!! Yah if I were you I'd definately be watching for more signs of this person's appearance. Its good that you are telling the neighbors too, now they will watch out for this snooper as well.

Well, I'll be hoping that you have no more updates for us in this story. *hugs*

That is creepy! What about someone coming to read your meter? Is that anywhere near the door? If so, you could call the energy/water company.

I know sometimes service people just walk into my yard, even though I have a large gate that is very securely shut (to keep the dogs from getting loose).

Creepy. Any possibility that a bird dropped it there? I would alert my neighbors at a minimum.

My neighbor's car was broken into last week, and $40 stolen. She had left her door unlocked. My other neighbor told me that she turned off my light, and locked the door to my car last week, and figured it was the same night as the theft. (Jonah plays with the dome light as he exits the car, and must have hit it to 'on'). So, she might have been the reason MY car wasn't broken into. While I only had $3 or $4 bucks in it...still. <sheesh>.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Pembroke_Corgi

That is creepy! What about someone coming to read your meter? Is that anywhere near the door? If so, you could call the energy/water company.

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Nope, don't think so. So many people in this area have dogs in their yards
or keep their gates locked, that our meter readers use binoculars to read the
electric meters from the alley. ( they are all located in the back of houses) I thought that was funny when I first saw it, but that's what they do. :)

I had to run by the Vet's office today, so I left the dogs at home & the
alarm set. I hate this feeling of being so uncomfortable in my own house. :mad: I now lock all doors to even go out and work out in my yard. :(

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Cataholic

My neighbor's car was broken into last week, and $40 stolen. She had left her door unlocked. My other neighbor told me that she turned off my light, and locked the door to my car last week, and figured it was the same night as the theft. (Jonah plays with the dome light as he exits the car, and must have hit it to 'on'). So, she might have been the reason MY car wasn't broken into. While I only had $3 or $4 bucks in it...still. <sheesh>.

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I don't even report car breakins anymore. I've had mine rifled through
3 times already.I just leave it unlocked so they don't have to break a
window & don't keep anything of value in the car.

You know, that is somewhat MY thoughts as well. Unless they are going to steal the CD containing Baby's First Nursery Rhymes (PLEASE!), there isn't anything of value! Okay, okay, I DO have some old Michael Jackson....

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Cataholic

You know, that is somewhat MY thoughts as well. Unless they are going to steal the CD containing Baby's First Nursery Rhymes (PLEASE!), there isn't anything of value! Okay, okay, I DO have some old Michael Jackson....

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I agree- I mean, most likely, if someone is looking to break into a car, they probably aren't going to pick mine when almost every car is newer, and most likely has better stuff in it. :D I never lock it, if someone wants my mixed cds, they can have them.

Lizbud, I'm sorry you feel so unsafe in your own neighborhood. I hope that your neighborhood watch will help!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Pembroke_Corgi

Lizbud, I'm sorry you feel so unsafe in your own neighborhood. I hope that your neighborhood watch will help!

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Well, sad to say, this happens a lot more often nowadays. I believe the
trend is the same in most larger cities all over the country. I live in a middle
class, blue collar neighborhood & believe me, it can get a whole lot worse
in poorer class neighborhood. Some of our very pricey neighboods they have
been having a rash of breakins & carjackings. Seems many crooks seek out the elderly to beat & rob as well. Crime is up so I guess I have to remember
to be a lot more careful & proactive.

That really is creepy and I am sorry that it happened. We have never had a breakin, but reading about it really scares me. Hope the neighborhood watch can help you out and make you feel safer.

That would really creep me out and make me jumpy.

Just knowing someone has been trying to break into my neighbors house has me scared. They tried to get in from the back of the house so I keep telling Richard we need a big guard dog out back. The one time they got the back door open on the neighbor's house they didn't take anything because they are sure the dog's barking, a corgi, must have scared them off. I don't have a dog anymore. :(

Just wondering; could a bird have been carrying it and dropped it?
Sometimes they carry weird things when they are building nests.
I admit, I've never seen one carrying one of those though.

Be sure to keep all door locked and tell the neighborhood watch for sure! :(

I watched a (NBC Dateline??) program about protecting your home and one of the things I remember is leaving a BIG chewed up dog bowl in the backyard - I actually did it for awhile :p NRA stickers are supposedly something else a thief checks for. We have them on each entrance.

Not to make light of your scare...I'd be nervous myself. However, my sister worked in SF at a ground floor office with one way glass windows to the street where she parked her car on a Sat morning. She witnessed a homeless man break her car window and steal her dirty laundry from the back seat. She was going to do laundry on the way home. Turns out the soon to be Mayor (then head of Police) Jordan witnessed it as well and chased the guy. Retrieved said dirty laundry, arrested the guy and my sister had to go to Police headquarters to "identify" her dirty personals. LOL! :eek:
Also living in the city with a cr*p car, we decided to just leave it unlocked after having the windows broken so many times. Lovely sidenote is that we didn't get robbed but the car had a lovely pee smell in it from those choosing to sleep in it overnight. Oy vey!

Wow Liz, I'm really sorry to hear that you feel so vulnerable at your own home. That's supposed to be the place you feel the safest at and now again someone has you spooked.
I'll be keeping you in my thoughts and prayers.

Last year when I was in California my mom took Keegan out for the nite to potty, and as she meandered out to the yard she froze, growled really deep in her throat and took off like a shot. My mom said she looked like a long red hot dog! :eek: She barked - my mom assuming she was chasing a bunny yelled @ her and she came back. (if I would have done that she would have ignored me :rolleyes: ) The next day my dad went outside and the shed doors were open. Turns out someone had probably been in there when Keeg was outside, they got a chainsaw, weedwacker, and a can of gas. :rolleyes: And now the shed doors are locked.

Sunday afternoon my dad went to my grandma's to get the grain truck to take up the road to load up the wheat that was coming off the fields. It was gone. They called around and no one had borrowed it, made a report with the sheriff. Thing that bothered us was that the person was there when my 85 year old grandma was there and waited until she went to church and then took off in the truck. (which had the keys in the ignition btw-:rolleyes: ) B/c she didn't hear it go by the open window (being a semi it would have made a lot of noise) A neighbor said that they saw someone walking up the road with a back pack on and didn't think anything about it. Now he regrets it, and we suspect the guy probably slept in the barn and when my grandma left he was checking out the barn, and saw that the keys were in there - he probably thought it was a gift from God. Fast forward to Tuesday @ 4am. Phone rings, it is the Police Dept in Franklin Ohio, down in Hamiliton County. They caught the guy driving the truck, and he told the cops that my dad gave it to him. (I said technically with the keys in it you did :)) He was from Bluffton Oh about 30 miles from my parents - walking - homeless - they aren't even sure if he gave the right name or not. Fast Forward again to Yesterday - my parents made the trip down to get the truck - after much yanking of chains and going here and there - paying a $300 towing charge - cleaning out the truck b/c the guy had been living in for 2 days - dirty underwear, dirty clothes, food wrappers, a bible, a water pistol that looked very much like a REAL gun and a couple of tools put together that could very well be a make-shift gun, after disenfecting the truck - it is now home, in the locked shed @ my grandma's and the KEYS are down the road @ my parents house!
My mom said - well we live in the country - you don't think you need to lock your doors like that anymore- I said you should know better after last summer - and we don't live in those times anymore......:(
I hope you start to feel better Liz. I'm sure the alarm will help....

How'd I miss this thread? I am so sorry you felt so creepy and unsafe in your own home. Believe me when I tell you I know the feeling.