[btrapr]

One of the current trends for vehicle break-ins...is that they target a lot of trucks and SUV...looking for guns, electronics, sporting good products, etc...

***If they use a screwdriver and punch a hole in the hole DRIVERS' door handle they can unlock YOUR truck...The car thinks that a key opened the door and the factory alarm turns itself off...THUS no ALARM ACTIVATION!

PREVENTION----other then not storing valuables...NEXT IS TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU HAVE THE SERIAL NUMBERS, MAKE, MODEL #'S SO THAT IF THE ITEM IS STOLEN IT CAN BE ENTERED INTO THE STOLN FILES...tHAT WAY IF SOEMONE RUNS THE SERIAL NUMBER IT COMES BACK AS YOUR STOLEN PROPERTY...NEXT is to get an after market alarm with motion sensors or door opening activations...that does not act like the factory alarm! IT MIGHT NOT KEEP THEM FROM HITTING YOUR TRUCK BUT THEY DEFINATELY GET IN A HURRY EITHER ABANDONING THEIR EFFORTS OR THEY GRAB AND RUN...INSTEAD OF RUMMAGING YOUR CONTENTS!

Good Luck

[DarrinG]

Good advice btrapr.

More advice from a 14 year officer:

Walk softly and carry a big stick.

[mkgarrison5]

so they take a screw driver and punch through the handle or the key lock?? i am assuming the key lock??

i really dont know what i would do if i caught someone in my truck. i know i couldnt stand there and watch ..but you never know if they have a knife or gun

[flytire]

why not bring just what you actually need for a day of fishing or whatever and leave all of the stuff you dont want stolen at home where it will be safe??

dont give the thieves a reason to rob you blind!

remove all stickers and decals from your windows. dont look like a rolling billboard for expensive hunting and fishing products.

[Murdock]

Originally Posted by DarrinG

Good advice btrapr.

More advice from a 14 year officer:

Walk softly and carry a big stick.

Darrin,

Will you come watch my truck while I fish?

[appalachian angler]

Originally Posted by flytire

why not bring just what you actually need for a day of fishing or whatever and leave all of the stuff you dont want stolen at home where it will be safe??

dont give the thieves a reason to rob you blind!

remove all stickers and decals from your windows. dont look like a rolling billboard for expensive hunting and fishing products.

I'm with ya Norm! That is exactly why my truck has NO product stickers on it. Like I really want to tell some crack head (with an awareness of premium brand name gear) 'C'mon over here...I use the GOOD stuff"

Amazing how alittle EGO can foster such stupidity ! I never understood this

AA

[UGAflyguy]

Regretfully, I have been a victim of break-ins twice in the past year. Looking back, I was basically asking for it, but still, it sucks. Both took place in the booming metropolis of Atlanta, so that might ease the tension of you "northerners" a little bit. Anyways, I drive a 95' Chevy truck and it seems like theives target Chevys between 89 and 99 becasue they all have the same plastic door handles.

This is probably gonna get long winded, but bear with me.

What happens is exactly how btrapr explains it. The theif shoves a screwdriver inbetween the door handle (plastic - think flexible, pliable, breakable) and the metal door itself, and somehow jimmies the lock. Essentially, he breaks the lock and now has the door unlocked. Then he climbs inside your car/truck/suv and shuts the door. Now, nothing looks very suspicious because he has gotten inside your car with no alarm blaring, now shattered glass, and no loud noises. Free range, and time to go through all your stuff and take what he likes.

So back to my story. The first break in occured in the heart of downtown Atlanta, while I was working as an intern for the summer. I had parked my car in pay lot, and was in a hurry to get upstairs. I somehow forgot (probably because I was in a hurry) to detach the face plate to my stereo. I usually take it upstairs with me each day. I had one of the nicer aftermarket stereos because the factory one had quit working a while back. Anyways, this was an instant MAGNET for theives. So, I come back down stairs at the end of the day, and hit the clicker to unlock the doors. I climb in a notice a giant hole in my dash. I knew exactly what had happened. I get back out of the truck and notice that not only had the driver side door been "screwdrivered" but so had the passenger side door. On the bright side, the theives did not just bash in my dash like I have seen them do to some friends cars, and they had it in their heart to put my dash back together after they had pulled the stereo out. How sweet. No cut wires, no broken glass....these guys were pros. The best thing that came out of the whole deal was that my brand new Scott rod was behind the seat, and they didn't get that either.

Well, second story is about the same, but I had learned from the first break in. Long story short is that I got hit again. After I had spent all day replacing the broken door handles from the first break in, I left my car in a "nicer" parking deck that you have to pay, has a security officer, and has cameras. At the end of the day, I have one "screwdrivered" driver side door handle, and a book of missing CDs. Luckily, that was all they got. Now I don't carry anything of value inside my truck. I hope they like the Celine Dion greatest hits. Jerks.

Anyways, just wanted to give you guys a heads up. Especially all you guys with 89-99 Chevys. If you ever see someone suspicious, give them ****. I ended up busting a guy breaking into my friend's Chevy truck in college. It was 6:00am on a Saturday morning as I was going to work. A quick 911 call and some chasing got me a date with the DA to witness. Although a royal pain in the a$$, it felt good to nail this guy.

Tight Lines and keep those valuables at HOME,

Nate

[mkgarrison5]

dude that sucks... i had my jeep wrangler broken into, not really broken into it was a 1996 model and all they had to do was lift up on the rear bar of the soft top to unhinge it and they can zip off the side window reach in there and unlock the door. they stole my cd player. A nice one at that. it doesnt work if ever detached from the battery. they would have to have one of my cd's that was used as the code locker.. yeah they stole my cd player but its useless to them. i bought the same one and now its in my yota truck. i just wish it had a detacable face though ... the man left his whole hand print on the plastic window and the officer didnt bother to finger print it lol wtf?? go figure. my truck doesnt have an alarm but i wish i had the $$ to buy one. i have a nice cd player, radar detecter, cd's and other stuff

[DarrinG]

Originally Posted by Murdock

Darrin,

Will you come watch my truck while I fish?

Depends. Whatcha pay per hour?

Seriously though, btrapr is correct. I've also seen several vehicles broken into the same way, none recently though. Seems the car break-in's have almost quit in recent times in my neck of the woods (fingers crossed it stays that way)!

[btrapr]

DarrinG
Charlotte has around 3,000 stolen cars a year..Not sure how high the break-in numbers go...and were up to over 155 gangs...and I predict that our violent crime will increase a bunch in the next few years...I have been dealing with lots of gangs members in the 12-14 yr old range...and they are no slouches...Arson, att. rape, beatings, weapons, drugs, sexual battery, robberies...I know that three or four years ago our property DA's handled around 6500+ cases a year a piece, and person crimes DA's ran around 4500 cases a year...around 50% of everything was plead to a lesser or dismissed altogether...

So if Mitchell Cnty. gets a slow for your taste come down here and run with the rest of us...usually all shift long...I am the gang coordinator/intell officer for my division which spans around 60 square miles...of CITY! I cna barely keep up...were over 125 gang crimes already since Jan 1st...and that's one division and we have 13 divisions in the county