The bigger question is why are the police not at least doing an initial knock on the door as this several hundred dollars worth of stuff from one person could add up to 5,000 worth of stolen goods when they make a visit? It could be the gateway to a much larger operation?
Cooler thief hit neighbors house
- Thread starter StratRider
- Start date
- Joined
- Nov 25, 2016
- Messages
- 839
- Reaction score
- 2,280
Absolutely. I am certain this is not this thief's first rodeo. Plus the fact that he did it in the middle of the day may illustrate just how little fear he has of being caught and punished. If the police executed a search warrant on his residence, there's no telling how much stolen property they might recover.
I live in suburban North Houston, out of the city limits. We have no 'police' per se. We are covered by the Harris County Pct 4 Constables, Harris County Sherriff, and Texas DPS, in that order. Patrols are done by the Constables. The only time we see Sherriff or DPS is if it is a major accident or murder.
That being said, Pct 4 Constables have over 500 officers. We get good response from them and they take all crimes seriously, including petty theft. They respond to and investigate the door checkers, shoplifting, and other non-violent crime just as much as they do the violent crime. They post these incidents on their Facebook page, including booking photos. I have actually had them stop by and ask if my cams have caught anything at a certain time and day since I have provided them with shots and video in the past that they used to ID the perp and make an arrest. Now the court's response to those arrests is a different story.
That being said, Pct 4 Constables have over 500 officers. We get good response from them and they take all crimes seriously, including petty theft. They respond to and investigate the door checkers, shoplifting, and other non-violent crime just as much as they do the violent crime. They post these incidents on their Facebook page, including booking photos. I have actually had them stop by and ask if my cams have caught anything at a certain time and day since I have provided them with shots and video in the past that they used to ID the perp and make an arrest. Now the court's response to those arrests is a different story.
bigredfish
Known around here
Same here in far North Orange County. The Orange County Sheriff responds very quickly to calls and appreciates video footage.
sebastiantombs
Known around here
The "broken windows" theory of policing is being totally ignored in favor of the criminals. Another sign of societal break-down.
- Joined
- Nov 25, 2016
- Messages
- 839
- Reaction score
- 2,280
The courts may slap them on the wrist, but none of them want the hassle of being arrested, posting bail, or spending time in jail. If my cameras can at least increase their chances of cooling their heels downtown for a couple of nights, then that will provide some deterrence.
looney2ns
IPCT Contributor
Squeaky wheel gets the grease.
If you can't get police to respond.
I would be camping out:
Police chiefs office.
Prosecutors office.
State Attorney's office.
Mayors office.
All city/county council meetings.
Your local councilman.
The local tv news department.
If you can't get police to respond.
I would be camping out:
Police chiefs office.
Prosecutors office.
State Attorney's office.
Mayors office.
All city/county council meetings.
Your local councilman.
The local tv news department.
Absolutely call the police and report this!
The thief is likely not new to this behavior. There is a reasonable chance he could be on probation or parole for something similar... or maybe something worse. Being a dumbass thief stealing that cooler may just be the ticket needed to send the bastard to jail.
The thief is likely not new to this behavior. There is a reasonable chance he could be on probation or parole for something similar... or maybe something worse. Being a dumbass thief stealing that cooler may just be the ticket needed to send the bastard to jail.
StratRider
Getting comfortable
It was a cheaper one - maybe $50 - $100 at most - neighbor wasn't concerned with the price, just the fact someone had the nerve to do it.
I did scan the footage and he drove past there 2 times earlier and none in the previous days. A good citizen here informed me that the plate comes back to a guy living just over 400 miles from here. The timing of the previous drivebys indicates to me that the guy was likely visiting friends or relatives, had to make a trip to the store for something and saw the cooler - came back after the store run an hour later to drop off what he bought for his friends/relatives, then 5 minutes later as he was heading home - he snagged the cooler figuring that nobody would identify that truck since he lived so far away. Just a logical scenario in my mind.He had to walk w-a-a-y up in there, right next to garage, he knew it exactly where it was, IMO.
Either he lives nearby and has noted it before and knows what vehicle(s) to look for to determine when no one is at home. Or he was there before and knew where the owner leaves it often....
I'd scan older footage to see if he scoped the area often in the recent past. Dude has a burnt out right rear brake light, too.
I detest thieves !
Good catch on the brake light being out too.
LOL - that temperature is supposed to be the temp inside the PTZ. Which was in the sun at that time of day. The Amcrest IP2M-853EW is a better cam than I expected. Not to mention that I caught it on sale for under $200 last year.
I have mentioned before that THAT stop sign is exactly 300 ft from the cam - but even though it says 12x zoom - that is optical zoom plus another 4x digital - so it is at 16x in the final frame. However, it is looking into the sun also which made it a bit hazier than normal.
At the right time of day, I have actually made out a plate at 400 ft - which I measure using google maps.
I've not been back in touch with this neighbor yet - I'll try to do that tomorrow just to see if they heard back. He gave the cop the CD that I burned and I think the cop may have looked at in in he vehicle because when he pulled away, he also stopped in front of my house and was looking at that cam.
I posted it on the Nextdoor.com page but intentionally left out the license plate. Now that I know he lives so far away, I will try to look him up on Facebook and if I find him, I'll post the video to his page and see what happens.
CCTVCam
Known around here
- Joined
- Sep 25, 2017
- Messages
- 2,676
- Reaction score
- 3,506
From your reply I think you probably don't have it. In the UK a private individual can criminally prosecute someone for an offence themselves where the police refuse to act, very rarely happens and only usually in serious cases, persumably because of the cost and time involved, but it is an option:
Private Prosecutions | The Crown Prosecution Service
This is entirely different from a Civil Case. Here it's an actual prosecution so if convicted, the individual faces the usual criminal penalties, not compensation ie fine, jail, criminal record etc.
- Joined
- Nov 25, 2016
- Messages
- 839
- Reaction score
- 2,280
On the contrary, many states in the U.S. do have private prosecution as an option. (After all, much of our law was copied from English common law.) It is entirely different from criminal and civil cases, but is used only rarely as far as I know. Here in the U.S., small claims court or civil court is far more common.From your reply I think you probably don't have it. In the UK a private individual can criminally prosecute someone for an offence themselves where the police refuse to act, very rarely happens and only usually in serious cases, persumably because of the cost and time involved, but it is an option:
Private Prosecutions | The Crown Prosecution Service
www.cps.gov.uk
This is entirely different from a Civil Case. Here it's an actual prosecution so if convicted, the individual faces the usual criminal penalties, not compensation ie fine, jail, criminal record etc.
Regardless, my original point still stands - pursuing this thief for a $450 loss makes no financial sense. Even if my neighbor had no out-of-pocket legal expenses, his time is still worth more to him. This, as they say, is why we pay taxes. It's the job of the police to catch him, and the courts to punish him. If they refuse to do so, there's not much that can be done except plaster the thief's face and license plate on social media.
Parley
Known around here
I could not agree more.
Amcrest are re-branded Dahua--- do you (or anyone else) know what Dahua model that is?
mat200
IPCT Contributor
- Joined
- Jan 17, 2017
- Messages
- 13,966
- Reaction score
- 23,277
Man I really wanted the police to stop those looters in Long Beach who were running through the police with stolen goods....
StratRider
Getting comfortable
I had read in here that Dahua makes some models for other companies that they don't carry themselves and I believe this is one of them.
StratRider
Getting comfortable
Well, just spoke the the neighbors about their cooler. It turns out that the police ran the plate - and yes it was the person 400 miles from here - so they got his phone # and just called to let them know - but they reached the thiefs father who then apparently called the thief on his cell phone and it was returned about 6 hours later. This means he got about 3 hours down the road and made the return trip and begged the neighbor to make sure the police knew it had been returned.
I'm guessing he and the cops made a deal on the phone.
So when he returned it, he is telling my neighbor that "Oh, I thought it was my buddy's, blah blah blah" and the neighbor just shut him down and he left.
You would think in 3 hours he could come up with a better lie - or maybe just tell the truth - jeez.
It wasn't much but I feel REALLY good about this.
Case Closed.
I'm guessing he and the cops made a deal on the phone.
So when he returned it, he is telling my neighbor that "Oh, I thought it was my buddy's, blah blah blah" and the neighbor just shut him down and he left.
You would think in 3 hours he could come up with a better lie - or maybe just tell the truth - jeez.
It wasn't much but I feel REALLY good about this.
Case Closed.
Jessie.slimer
BIT Beta Team
That guy will think twice before stealing anything again. Nice work.
sebastiantombs
Known around here
And another job well done by your Treasury Men in Action! Dum dee dum, dum dee dum da dum...