Rant # ? Thieves

as you know I was broken into a few days ago and they tore down half the wall of my shed to do it. just gat a cal from my partner (whale #1) on the server deal. last night he got broken into. they didnt get the good stuff thousands of ram, copper heat sinks servers and such, they were too stupid to know what it was worth. instead they got some alu gutters. an old giant industrial sewing machine and other scrap.

the problem is I am the only guy he has ever sold scrap too so I come under imediate suspision since I arranged the first deal, and I know where every thing is located on the property.

I told him the first place I want searched by the sheriff is my place. most of the yards arround here are closed on saturday so if the investigters move fast (an oximoron here) they can catch the pric*s red handed.

now here is an interesating factoid. the only direct connection between my break in and his is we both use the same hauler who reciently let go a not too brite young kid who knows both lay outs.

this could have major reprecussions on my partnership with Whale #1 on the big server deal.

here is our connection, he has the source to the servers, I have the knowledge on how to maximize the comp scrap and where to get the best price. That is the only thing that binds us in the partner ship.

I understand his suspission of me. we are from 2 different worlds. he's a millionare. and Im a scrapper. and the only possable way any one would know where his scrap was located is through me and my down line connections. which are 3 people. so one of the 4 of us has to be guilty. I under stand that. the fact that I had an unprovable break in just adds to the suspision. I can prove the destruction of the wall to my shead, but I cant prove I didnt do it my self, and I can't prove what was stolen.

I am a realist, a pretty smart one with a million miles of life experience, he is an IT geek,so, I know exactly what is going through his mind.

I need help to figgure how to go from here to try to save this deal. If all else failes I am thinking I will just give up my sources to him and let the chips fall where they may. A logical mind would realise I would not jepordize a $200,000 deal for $200 dollars worth of alu, but as we all know Im just a scrapper in his eyes and we know what the public thinks of scrappers. help me chew on this one.

Olddude, I can't believe your luck lately. Actually I can, sounds like stuff that would happen to me.

I'm starting to wonder if maybe there is someone out there using info here to their advantage in illegal activities in your area. Maybe a bit of a stretch, but something to consider just the same.

Given the amount of questions about "is it ok" and "how do I" about illegal activities here lately, I'm starting to think we may all be exposing too much. Thats just the registered members, never mind the 200 - 300 "guests" here reading the forum anonymously.

Sorry to paint with such a wide brush, I have the deepest respect for most of the members here, but I sometimes think our willingness to share within our family here, could be used against us.

you are exactly right. there are at least 2 lurkers here from my area. they are not members but lurkers. I know this for a fact. however I never gave the location of my partner or where on his property the loot was located. after thinking about it I have a pretty sure suspect. like I said I have 4 pretty sound suspects. there were only 4 people who knew where this stuff was, and I know it wasnt me . Im also pretty sure of two others, so it boils down to one suspect, who is young and stupid enough to fit the profile.

what I fear is collateral dammage, or blow back from this incident I may well cost me 10s of thousands in lost revenue. I need to solve this.

here is a warning: I suffer from really bad karma from a totally free life. I keep thinking the bill should be paid in full by now, but aparently it will never be paid. "Karma is a bitc*".

I think the biggest thing you should point out is that they didn't "get the good stuff". You are smart enough to know what to take to make the most money on something like that. I have a friend who owns a jewelry store and it got broken into a quick smash and grab. They took things that were unique and easily identified and worth about 9k and left 10's of thousands of dollars in easily transported and ebay'd items instead. Those guys were caught quick because they took the wrong stuff.

Also point out that you didn't have to come in and steal anything he was selling to you and you both were making money on the deals. And it makes no sense for you to steal it.

the deputy called, and due to the pending deal my partner and I have, I am not a suspect, the detective is smart enough to realize that would be a truely stupid move. but i am going to continue my quest to catch this kid Im pretty sure I know who it is, just gotta figgure out how to catch him and prove it.

Ought to be legal to hang scrap thevies

Dont take this the wrong way, but Ben Franklin said a open mouth catchs flies. Maybe be in your best interest to stop "bragging" about your deals. This way noone knows your location etc etc. Maybe even moves these "whales" into the private paid section of the forum. My father always taught me never shoot your mouth off, be quiet, and noone will know what your thinking. Rip.

Dont take this as a personal attack, but these "lurkers" maybe getting jealous. May know you and your "whale" And trying to make you look like a ass so they get him instead....

I never really tell anyone my gigs or spots until after its over...:>

Again I respect you and ya advice, but time to seal up..:>

If you thaink tha kid in question is the culprit then do this.Contact him through his old boss and give him some bs reason to come by your house.Make sure you have a pile of something interesting for him to see like a couple of buckets of copper or a nice pile of esrap.Then you set up a way to bust him when he comes back to steal it.

A $200.00 game camera would have captured the thief.

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Originally Posted by taterjuice

Ought to be legal to hang scrap thevies

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Oh Oh :(
I thought it was...
LOL

The game cameras are a great idea. Check craigslist and find some used cheaper then new. Set it up to see the whole inside of the shed if you can. Set your bait to where you know his face will be caught by the camera. Sit and waight. Also mark your bait items in a way that cant be duplicated or seen unless you know where to look. With the proof cops cant lag as$ around. And since you did thier work maybe they will offer you a job lol. Also look up the laws of self preservation in your area. Here in Ky we have some very cool laws that allow us to protect ourselves and our homes.

I have been leary of posting big hauls here lately. I know there are eyes from the area reading posts here. I doubt though that Olddude has given enough info to let anyone know who he is or where he lives. Same as most of us here. it is just smart business. Either way, there is no excuse for what those a holes did to him. Not only theft, but destruction of property to boot.

I think he narrowed it down with a little deduction, maybe he could use our resident detective Idaho to help narrow it down more.

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the only direct connection between my break in and his is we both use the same hauler who recently let go a not too brite young kid who knows both lay outs. After thinking about it I have a pretty sure suspect. like I said I have 4 pretty sound suspects. there were only 4 people who knew where this stuff was, and I know it wasn't me . I'm also pretty sure of two others, so it boils down to one suspect, who is young and stupid enough to fit the profile.

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Originally Posted by parrothead

I have been leary of posting big hauls here lately. I know there are eyes from the area reading posts here. I doubt though that Olddude has given enough info to let anyone know who he is or where he lives. Same as most of us here. it is just smart business. Either way, there is no excuse for what those a holes did to him. Not only theft, but destruction of property to boot.

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IIRC, he posted a mailing address and phone number awhile back. That's gold to the wrong person.

I know he gave a full name, so people could look up an article.

Sucks all around. Hope you catch the scum olddude.