PSA Lock your cars... Carroll County isn't what it used to be

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  • DraKhen99

    Professional Heckler
    Sep 30, 2013
    2,320
    Sorry for your loss & your trouble, BUT...

    Welcome to America 2017...

    We all need to lock Everything Everytime & Everywhere...

    It's not the 1950's any longer...

    We're just lucky this thread isn't locked :sad20: :mad54:

    -John
     

    Doctor_M

    Certified Mad Scientist
    MDS Supporter
    Sorry for your loss & your trouble, BUT...

    Welcome to America 2017...

    We all need to lock Everything Everytime & Everywhere...

    It's not the 1950's any longer...

    Appreciate it and I get it.... btw I have no idea what the 1950s felt like, but I grew up in the area (literally a few hindered yards from where our house is now) and we never locked our doors or cars growing up (80s and 90s)... it doesn't seem like that long ago when you could trust folks around there, but, yeah, I do get it... it's not the same as it used to be.
     

    pleasant1911

    Ultimate Member
    Apr 12, 2012
    10,222
    In the 50s, what kind of valuable could of been left in cars. Cars getting broken into just proves, there is a huge drug problem in our society and people have far too much junk that they leave everywhere. Keep your car interior clean, and have nothing valuable laying inside an empty car, and hopefully the a$$Os will skip to the next car.

    Now a days, its easier to break into cars. back in my days, "slim Jim" or something like that to break into cars. Now they have that bag with pump, that you can buy off of ebay. open locked doors very easily. My friend has one, but he keeps it in his trunk????
     

    Sirex

    Powered by natural gas
    Oct 30, 2010
    10,380
    Westminster, MD
    Little excitement yesterday. We were getting ready to visit a family member in the hospital on Sunday when my wife couldn't find her purse. We looked in the car and all around the house but couldn't come up with it. I figured, it's got to be around somewhere, so we went to the hospital thinking we would just tear the house apart when we got back.

    Low and behold, when we got home, I noticed something odd in my car. Center storage compartment pulled open and CDs/junk spread around.... uh-oh.

    Sure enough, someone had ransacked all three of the vehicles parked in the driveway (probably late Saturday night). We found a spot in the neighbor's yard where they crouched behind their wood pile and dumped some of the contents of my wife's purse. She lost her wallet, cash, cards, and cellphone, but they didn't take anything of value from my truck or car... looks like they were moving fast because they left some things of value behind.

    Deputy Sheriff who came out to investigate said that they have been getting a rash of these thefts lately across Westminster, Manchester, Hampstead, etc. He confirmed that many folks, like us, don't bother locking their vehicles when they are at home, because... well, it's Carroll County. But it clearly isn't the same Carroll County that it was a decade ago. We live in a pretty rural area and are a good 100 yards off the road, but that didn't seem to bother them.

    So... yes, we were stupid. My wife should not have left her purse in her vehicle, and we both should have locked the cars.... we will be altering our behaviors there, but I wanted to pass this along to our neighbors who can learn from our mistakes. The days of not locking up are gone. Thieves are everywhere and they suck.
    What area of Carroll are you in where this happened? Thanks
     

    PO2012

    Active Member
    Oct 24, 2013
    815
    There are currently several of these thieves operating in Westminster. A Westminster City Police Officer caught one in the act a few nights ago on Windsor Drive and tried to arrest him. The Officer didn't see the thief's partner hiding in the shadows. He was attacked from behind while trying to handcuff the first suspect but managed to keep control of his gun and fight them off. He was fortunate that he was able to broadcast a call for help before they ripped his radio off his belt. Unfortunately both managed to escape and remain at large.

    Heroin, Section 8 and virtually non-existent penalties for crimes against property are to blame for the uptick in burglaries and thefts.
     

    K31

    "Part of that Ultra MAGA Crowd"
    MDS Supporter
    Jan 15, 2006
    35,632
    AA county
    Went out one day a several months ago to get something from my truck and I noticed my wife's car door was ajar just enough so I could tell. Sure enough, there was stuff strewn of her seats. Apparently they didn't find anything worth taking. My truck was locked and alarmed. Found out later a group of yutes was caught somewhere around Deale doing the same thing, they had bunch of cellphones, etc.
     

    Redcobra

    Senior Shooter
    MDS Supporter
    Jan 10, 2010
    6,422
    Near the Chesapeake Bay
    I still don't lock all the time. Here's why.
     

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    sht4fun

    Member
    Mar 19, 2017
    31
    This has happened to us, in the heart of MoCo, Gaithersburg/Laytonsville area, several times over the past 15 years. It started out with them just entering unlocked vehicles to them unlocking locked vehicles. Nothing is secure anymore.

    I also live in the Laytonsville/Gaithersburg area. We have not had this problem in our neighborhood. I have lights with sensors around the house though, and I lock the car I park outside all the time. I also lock the house and close the garage even when I'm mowing the lawn.
     

    TargetGrade

    Banned
    BANNED!!!
    Aug 13, 2017
    2,970
    Pensultucky
    In the 50s, what kind of valuable could of been left in cars. Cars getting broken into just proves, there is a huge drug problem in our society and people have far too much junk that they leave everywhere. Keep your car interior clean, and have nothing valuable laying inside an empty car, and hopefully the a$$Os will skip to the next car.

    Now a days, its easier to break into cars. back in my days, "slim Jim" or something like that to break into cars. Now they have that bag with pump, that you can buy off of ebay. open locked doors very easily. My friend has one, but he keeps it in his trunk????

    Guns, purses, $$$, check books, silver dollars, Mickey Mantel rookie cards and full Pez dispensers much like today.
     

    Yellowdog

    Active Member
    MDS Supporter
    Jul 4, 2011
    257
    Columbia
    Columbia isnt any better.

    this is a still from a 12 second video which has been forwarded to Ho Co Police but haven't heard back. One person did tell me that they think they recognized him but haven't given me a name yet.
     

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    Name Taken

    Ultimate Member
    Feb 23, 2010
    11,891
    Central
    Is it surprising this happens in every neighborhood?

    Lock your doors and you likely won't have any issues.
    Keep valuables out of plain view and you likely won't have any issues.

    Is it the "right way" to have to live...nope but when cell phones are in the thousand dollar range and folks keep computers worth thousands in their cars it's going to happen.

    At least they stopped ripping the CD player out of the dash....that would be a pain.

    Most criminals aren't going to smash a window at 2 a.m. unless the take is worth the risk. They'll move onto the next sap who didn't lock their doors.


    Here's another BIG hint...don't leave keys to your wife's vehicle in your vehicle's glove box and vice versa. A large amount of vehicles are stolen this way.

    Also with all the keyless ignitions make sure the keys are kept far enough away from the vehicle where the car wont start. We tested this in our house where the wife keeps her keys. There's no where in the driveway the car would start.
     

    1time

    Ultimate Member
    Apr 26, 2009
    2,258
    Baltimore, Md
    I haven't seen a broken car window in 10 or maybe 15 years. Walking by a car and checking to see if it is unlocked is the standard practice nowadays.

    Same with stolen cars, no one attacks the steering column or ignition. With chipped keys it doesn't work. But someone in your neighborhood has their door unlocked and the key to their car or the spouses car in the console.

    The best part is when I catch 1 or 2 of these people, I am off of the road for 2 or 3 days dealing with returning property to people and packaging property when I can't.

    Now for the "who is doing this". It may surprise you to find it is almost never drug addicts. This is the neighborhood kids. Your kid when they are spending the night at a friends house. These are low level gang members that are pretty organized. They will steal a car, usually a minivan and drive 6 or 8 kids around. They drop 1 or 2 off on each street and wait for them in the other end. They can tear a neighborhood up in no time. Usually they end up stealing a few more cars in the process. This last set of criminals doesn't mind traveling several counties away to do this crap.

    Save everyone some trouble and lock your doors.
     

    DraKhen99

    Professional Heckler
    Sep 30, 2013
    2,320
    Here's another BIG hint...don't leave keys to your wife's vehicle in your vehicle's glove box and vice versa. A large amount of vehicles are stolen this way.

    Also with all the keyless ignitions make sure the keys are kept far enough away from the vehicle where the car wont start. We tested this in our house where the wife keeps her keys. There's no where in the driveway the car would start.

    Dude, this happened to my neighbor - his wife had her purse in her unlocked car, and HIS car keys in the purse. Thief stole HER purse and HIS car. Now she doesn't have keys to his car.

    As for distance from key to car, the key has to be IN the car for it to start. YMMV, but in every system I've come across, the key has to be in the car, and even sometimes in the front seat area, for the car to start.

    -John
     

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