Halloween Persuades Real Bandits To Burglarize and Steal Safes
There have been several break-ins in multiple stores around the country. With Halloween coming up and everyone preparing for the weekend fun, it’s no wonder why thieves are deciding to raid stores, specifically Halloween stores. It’s the obvious target for a thief since many people are spending money on costumes, decorations, masks, props and other Halloween accessories. If you run a store yourself, even if it’s not Halloween-related, then you should prepare for the worse. There have been multiple break-ins and thefts nationwide in October alone coming into the Halloween weekend. Make sure you have the necessary security and safety equipment to prevent such disasters.
About a week ago in Northern Michigan, there were two break-ins at two different Halloween costume stores. One was located in Traverse City and another in Petoskey where both stores were raided and thousands of dollars in cash and valuables were stolen. On a Monday evening in Traverse City, the County Sheriff’s reported that the burglar gained access inside by breaking in through the back entrance. From there the thief was able to carry out two large safes. Then the following Tuesday night in Petoskey, another safe was stolen at that location. One of the employees of the Halloween Stores, Joe Richie, commented saying, “Just the fact that somebody out there didn’t work for it, took the easy way out and took from someone else.” The investigators of this crime scene noticed that the suspects who raided the stores were familiar with the operations of the store and knew the exact location of the safes. A few days later, the two suspects were arrested and charged for stealing the safes and other merchandise from both Halloween stores. Officers from Petoskey were working with Charlevoix County Sheriff’s Office where the two men were from. From the information that was gathered they were able to issue a search warrant at one of the homes located in Charlevoix County. From there the items were recovered from both the 22-year-old and 32-year-old suspects, both residing in Charlevoix. Fortunately, the officers were able to obtain most of the missing items and the safes that were stolen.
Recently, the police are looking for the suspect who raided several fast-food restaurants and was able to break into at least 30 different safes in North Texas. Surveillance cameras have caught the suspect breaking into a Bedford Subway sandwich shop. Officers have said that the man has attempted to break into the shops at least five times. The investigators have tagged the suspect as the “Subway Bandit,” as he broke into many different sandwich shops. But they also figured out he was also involved in many other restaurant break-ins. One of the Bedford police Lt. Kirk Roberts said, “He knows what he’s doing, he knows how to not leave evidence behind. And once he gains entry, he knows what to do to make things difficult for us.” The investigators are hoping that the surveillance tapes will provide enough evidence and information to arrest the thief. Lt. Kirk Roberts added about the footage, “These are pretty good, somebody is going to know him if they see him.” The “Subway Bandit” has robbed fast-food restaurants in Allen, McKinney, Plano, Denton, Garland, Irving, Arlington Bedford, Colleyville and Grapevine.
Where Should You Store Your Valuables?
With the downturn of the economy and more banks closing down, people are taking those matters into their own hands, storing their own valuables such as gold, jewelry, cash and other assets. Many are beginning not to trust the banking system and would be more comfortable if they had full control. Where and how can they store their valuables? Well, it’s pretty simple and easy. There are plenty of different solutions and it all depends on how much you’re willing to invest to protect them. Some will take extreme measures to ensure their valuables are safe and sound, while some will be satisfied with the protection they have. Either the case, you’ll need a plan and some type of security to make sure that your items are fully protected from theft, fire and other natural disasters.
If you own a significantly large amount of gold, jewelry or other types of currency, then you may want to consider storing it in a 3rd party storage facility. How it works is that you’ll be paying the company in gold and silver to have them store your gold for you. The main advantage of keeping it in a 3rd party storage is that it will be secure and fairly inexpensive. What these storage facilities have is the type of security and surveillance that you basically wouldn’t have or can’t afford at your home. They even have insurance just in case anything happens, which grants you the peace of mind without the risk of losing it at home. The downside to a 3rd party storage is that there is a fee. It’s probably not worth storing a small amount, but that depends on you.
A different approach is investing in a high security safe. You need a safe that is made out of steel and high quality to reduce the risk of break-ins and tampering. If you plan on storing a considerable amount of cash, gold, jewelry and other rare items, then it’s extremely important that you invest in a high-end safe. There’s no point in storing all that money in some plastic safe that can be broken into by amateur robbers. Some home safes just provide the bare features from keeping your children away from your belongings and protecting against fires for a few minutes. If you plan on purchasing these types of safes, you might as well keep it in a drawer or lay out visibly on your bedroom because that won’t deter or stop any burglar from stealing your items. Those plastic safes are just no match for any professional and determined thief who has access to a multiple of tools. Even as simple as a hammer or screwdriver would suffice against a plastic safe. The very low price of a plastic safe is sure to reel you in, but it’s not enough to protect and secure against the most dangerous of threats. In the end, you’ll be losing a lot more, and as the saying goes, “you get what you paid for.”
Two Safes Containing $45,000 In Valuables Stolen in Wichita, Kansas
No matter where you live or how safe you think your neighborhood is you should never keep your guard down. Just recently a police report was filed in Wichita, Kansas, which two safes were stolen from a home. The police are asking the neighborhood and community to aid them in the investigation if they have seen any suspicious criminal activity.
The residential burglary took place over the past weekend where the suspect stole an estimated $45,000 in cash, jewelry and other miscellaneous valuables. The home is located in the 6500 block of West Briarwood Court where the owner discovered that his home was robbed around 3:45 on Saturday afternoon when he returned.
He noticed that the burglar broke into his home through a windowpane on a door where he reached from the inside to unlock the door. It seemed like the thief only had their eyes on the main prize by taking the two safes and leaving behind the big-screen televisions, computers and other electronics.
Fortunately the owner did have a video surveillance that captured the suspect during his break in. The suspect was about 5 feet 10 inches tall with a medium build. He was wearing a hard hat, light colored t-shirt and blue jeans during the scene of the robbery.
We’ve mentioned a dozen of different break-ins and robberies in residential homes. This is probably your most common type of burglary where the suspect was able to get in fairly easy just by breaking the windowpane and opening the door from the inside. In most cases, this is how burglars usually gain entrance. It also seems like the burglar had only one thing on its mind, stealing the most valuable assets and getting out as quickly as possible.
Again, we never know what types of safes the owners carry, but we always remind our readers, that if you’re going to secure that amount of valuables into your safe, you better be investing in a high security, all-steel safe. Not a lightweight and cheap built safe that any burglar can swiftly carry out the door. You need the best possible protection against burglary and theft. Considering this was just a one-man job, it’s hard to believe that the owners did have high security safes. If they had a high quality constructed steel safes, it might have been a different story.
The safes we offer can weigh up to over 500 pounds and can be bolted onto the floor for added security. If they did have a high security safe, it would have been a lot more difficult to steal the safes. We also hope the owners had a better hiding spot for their safes. If you carry valuables with a large amount of value, then you should be hiding your stash in the most unrecognized and unfamiliar areas of your home. The number one spot a burglar will be looking is an office or your bedroom. Sure, it is convenient to have your valuables right next to you where you sleep where its easily accessible, but it probably isn’t worth it when trying to hide it from thieves.
Although it is very unfortunate that the owner had a massive amount of valuables stolen from him, he did have his own home security surveillance system. Most people will have to rely on neighbors or witnesses, but most of the time you're left with no witnesses or evidence that makes it a lot difficult to identify the suspect. It's a huge relief that the video surveillance caught footage of the suspect. That can be very substantial in an incident like this. It will help the police significantly and hopefully the valuables are returned in full to the rightful owners.
Source: http://www.kansas.com/2011/08/22/1983464/man-in-hard-hat-steals-two-safes.html
Robbers Steal An Estimated $27,000 from Grocery Store
In the city of St. Charles, the police are investigating a burglarized grocery store. The La Huerta Supermarket was robbed an estimated amount of $27,000, according to the police reports. The police drove over to the crime scene after the alarm was triggered. The burglary took place on July 29th where the police found the back door of the store open and the grocery store ransacked.
Inside the store two safes were completely pried open and emptied out. One of the safes contained approximately $25,000 in cash and checks and the second safe held about $2,000. The owner of the store told the police that most of the money came from transfer services that the business offers. The burglars were able to get inside and rob the store without being caught by creating a hole at the top of the roof. The police found three different sets of footprints on the roof. The owner even mentioned that maybe one of the burglars tried to unplug the camera system, but failed.
If you are a business owner, stories like this could be a complete nightmare, especially for small businesses. You have profits that you accumulated throughout the years only to find out all your hard work and hard earned profits disappear in a matter of minutes. We can’t assume that the owners did not prepare for the worse or invested in high quality safes, but we can say that it didn’t take long for the burglars to gain access. The only thing we can suggest is to make sure you invest in the best quality and highest security to protect your valuables. This doesn’t just go for business owners, but even for homeowners who need to protect their precious belongings from theft.
As a business owner, you should always take extra measures to protect your valuables and cash. You should never keep your guard down, especially when it comes to protecting your money. The best safes are built with the high strength and durable steel to withstand physical attacks and forced attempts. High security safes defend against break-in attempts and attempts at prying it open. High quality safes have the necessary security features such as non-removable hinges and thick steel diameter locking bolts that resist any attempts at getting inside. If you need to organize your cash flow and make quick deposits with money bags, envelopes and checks then investing in depository safes are a necessity. However, if you want even more protection and higher security from theft, then you need to invest in a high security safe.
The burglary incident above shows that the burglars easily gained access just by prying it open and emptying all the contents. It seems like the safe wasn’t built with the necessary strength and security features that most safes should have. If you’re a business owner and are storing that amount of cash, then you know you need the best safe out there, not a dull, plastic safe that could be broken into in a matter of seconds. Always go with the quality product, one that you can be confident about. Don’t rely on cheap safes just because the price is right. Remember, you get what you paid for, and sometimes it can come back to haunt you in the end. Stick to an all-steel security safe that has all the primary and standard features that prevent theft. Most safes also come with an electronic lock that enhances your security to your safe, frustrating any burglar attempting to crack it open.
Hi-Tech Burglars Breaking Into Home Safes in Sydney, Australia
A gang of hi-tech burglars with metal detectors and industrial grinders are raiding the wealthy homes in Sydney, Australia in search of hidden wall safes. Then breaking into them to steal its contained valuables. Residents have reported that a team of professional thieves targeted an estimated 45 homes from Wahroonga to St. Ives over the recent months.
The gang would break into the houses during the day and rob the safes that contained expensive items including jewelry and cash. More than $50,000 worth of valuables was stolen in just one robbery alone.
The police have setup a special taskforce to investigate the robberies, all which have been done very similarly. “There have been numerous incidents in the area which appear to be related, yes, and we’ve got some officers designated to looking into that,” a police officer said.
One of the victims has reported to the police that they believe the gang used metal detectors to detect the hidden safes behind the walls or other items within the home. When the thieves detect the safe, they grind off the doors to gain access to the valuables. “They [the police] are also looking at the possibility there are two different gangs of thieves,” the victim said. “In some cases people are finding their homes in disarray, the safe door grinded off and a lot of damage done to the house.”
A local of St. Ives has taken the initiative to distribute anonymous flyers in letterboxes to warn the people about the large number of robberies that have been occurring lately. The letter contains information about how the writer himself fell victim to one of the robberies where he arrived one day and saw that his home was looted and the safe had been emptied. “Beware of this,” the anonymous letter says. “Someone must know something, or must have seen something.”
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