The Down Range Forum
Member Section => Down Range Cafe => Topic started by: TAB on August 26, 2018, 10:01:25 PM
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For the past 3 months I have been doing a complete facade and internal gut of a strip mall. During that time approximately two dozen times we've come back the next day or after a weekend to find the on-site dumpsters full of trash. Sometimes it's household but normally its other people's construction waste. In total its cost me somewhere in the range of about $8,000 in dump fees. So last week I installed a game camera hooked up to cellular network. Whenever there's movement I get a text message. On Wednesday I got some very good pictures of a guy in a blue truck unloading it in the back of my dumpster. Sadly the camera did not get the plates. Tonight I got a text when I just happened to be about 1 mile away picking up some stuff at the local Home Depot. I left the cart, jumped in the truck hauled ass over there and caught them red-handed. From across the street I called the cops, they showed up about three minutes later( the strip mall is litterely 300 yards as the crow days from thier hq, shows how dumb/ high they are) gave them a nice set of chrome bracelets. Come to find out these guys had warrants in three states all heroin-related.
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Good job TAB! Is there any way you can be reimbursed? If there's a victims advocate department you can talk to them and submit your receipts for the dump bills to the court. They should at least have to pay for the times you caught them on camera.
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They are druggies, only thing I could do is sue them and they would never pay. For the $1000 I can prove was them, it's not worth it .
I mean yes the judge could rule they pay, but it won't happen and they are wanted in 3 states
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"Wanted in three states" should keep them off the streets for an appreciable amount of time--at least if the other states hear about them being in custody and they exercise extradition. Notification is not a given these days. You might want to follow up on that with the local LEO just to make sure notices have been sent. It would be a shame if these cretins did not have a chance to enjoy jail hospitality for as much time as they have earned by their bad behavior.
Other than that, nice job TAB. You have saved unknown others from suffering loss at the hands of these pukes. Or at least postponed said loss.
Crusader Rabbit
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Could you put a lien against their truck?
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They might have assets not illegal to possess and not direct evidence that you could get a lien.
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Start a Go-Fund-Me in their name to help them pay off the cost of getting abused by an overbearing government. Would help a lot of they were illegal immigrants....
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They might have assets not illegal to possess and not direct evidence that you could get a lien.
it's possible, but given that they are wanted on drug charges I doubt they have any. Given the condition of those truck(fake plate, bald tires, etc) I doubt it's even theirs. The impound will get all of the money from it i am sure.
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it's possible, but given that they are wanted on drug charges I doubt they have any. Given the condition of those truck(fake plate, bald tires, etc) I doubt it's even theirs. The impound will get all of the money from it i am sure.
That sucks. I thought you could recover some of your losses, but it doesn't sound like it.
If they're wanted in 3 states, can they be tried and convicted in each one, and serve 3 consecutive sentences? Or just in one jurisdiction? It would be nice if they served time for every crime they committed, but that's not going to happen.
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No clue, just going by what the arresting officer told me that they had warrant out. Hard too say what will happen. I know they arrested them here for e misdemeanors and 2 felonies.
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With any luck the felonies will get them a long stay at the Graybar Hotel.
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Got a phone call from one of the detectives handling local theft. They had a generator that went missing about two weeks ago from one of my job sites. Of course I already replaced it
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Well, looks like youi have a spare now. At least they found it.
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I need another generator like I need a hole in the head. There is a small one on every truck several full job site ones and a tow behind.
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Next time you visit relatives in OKC I might take one off your hands....
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One time I saw a job site with a tow behind generator...
hanging from a crane. I don't think anyone stole that one.
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One time I saw a job site with a tow behind generator...
hanging from a crane. I don't think anyone stole that one.
seen those disappear too.. I have seen things welded down disappear.
Once we even caught a fbi agent( the one watching us of all people, federal court house remodel) get into our box's and steal tools.
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Yeah, they'll steal things welded down. Anything else too. I just read this on an old website last night.
18-ton bridge stolen in Poland
WARSAW - An owner arrived at his riverside cottage last weekend only to discover he couldn't get near it - someone had stolen the 18-ton steel bridge that was the only way in. The 19th-century bridge was apparently cut into pieces with a welding torch and hauled away, police chief Zbigniew Skorwider said yesterday. The scrap value of the bridge was estimated at $1,200. (Associated Press)
Boston Globe, Wed 20 May 1998
And a thieving FBI agent doesn't surprise me at all. When I was much younger I remember hearing that cops always had the best drugs. I know they don't always turn in property they seize. Drugs, money, electronics, my pocket knife. >:(
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I need another generator like I need a hole in the head. There is a small one on every truck several full job site ones and a tow behind.
Don't worry, it will be tied up as evidence for months at best.
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Don't worry, it will be tied up as evidence for months at best.
Yeah you right!
By the time they get through with it you will probably need a new one Tab...
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By the time they get through with it you will probably need a new one Tab.
My thoughts exactly when I read Mike's post.
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Don't worry, it will be tied up as evidence for months at best.
the detective said I could pick it up next week. It helps when the local sheriff was your neighbour and you built his barn.
I have said it before and I will say it again. It's not what you know, but who you know.
I use tools until they are used up or I can buy new ones and write them off. Generators tend to be shot when I get rid of them. They still work, just either run rough or not putting out the power they once did.
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I'm running a 900 kVa monster right now to run and electric submersible pump pulling 450 or so HP. The dang thing is drinking nigh on to 200 gallons of diesel a day.
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At least you are kind enough to prosecute them. I love it when you climb into a dumpster to get information and the business owner finds out who it is and declines to prosecute. You spend the next 11 hours of your shift smelling like a dumpster covered in grease.
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Call from the same detective as before, looks like they also found more stuff of mine that's gone missing thus year in a storage unit these guys had that they found and impounded. Not expensive stuff mind you, but things that are annoying when they go missing. You know, buckets, cones, saw horses etc. Luckily I brand( like with a hot iron) every thing I can with my company name. Most of it i did not file reports on, since it's not worth my time/ consumables / worn out.
Spent about 15 mins talking too him this morning, looks like I got off pretty easy compared too some other larger contractors in the area. They were guessing total theft too be some where in the half mil range in the last 10 months( when .ca let these guys out of jail) said most of that ended up in some ones arm. He also said they closed 90% of the job site theft reports in the last 6 months.
Any one that says drugs do not effect all of us is full of shit. I can assure you my customers do feel it when I have stuff stolen. Over all not a lot,but each one does.
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Any one that says drugs do not effect all of us is full of shit. I can assure you my customers do feel it when I have stuff stolen. Over all not a lot,but each one does.
Tab you are so right. Now multiply that for everything you buy. It's a big problem and getting bigger.
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Tab you are so right. Now multiply that for everything you buy. It's a big problem and getting bigger.
The retail industry says about 17%
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I saw this at one site. -> A heroin user with heavy tolerance may spend upwards of $200 every day to maintain their addiction.
And this at another. -> Heroin also costs Americans over $22 billion per year in healthcare, law enforcement, and automobile accidents.
That's just one drug, and a relatively cheap one at that. One addict said she spent $450 to $1,200 a day on cocaine. $1,200 a day would be 2.19 million dollars in 5 years. I don't think I've come close to making that much in my whole life.
As TAB already knows, all that money has to come from somewhere. And let's not forget a lot of that money gets funneled into terrorism, as if cartels killing people wasn't already bad enough. But really, drugs only hurt the people who do them, right? ::)
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If you are lucky you might earn half the value of what you are stealing. If you have a $200/ day habit. You would have too steal 12k a month. That is if you are lucky and making half, I know you are more likely just getting 10% of cost, that's 120k a month in theft. Let's be super generous and say they get 25% overall. That is still 48k a month in theft. Or too put it another way you would need 18 more people like me. For just that one month, even if they got full retail there would still be another 1.5 of what was recovered. Remember, thats every month and does not include all the stuff that they sold off.
Oh yeah it costs my state about 44k a year too warehouse these guys. The detective said they are facing 14 years. In 10 month they racked up well over 1 million in damage, but I would not be shocked if it's 3, by the time they get out. In just 10 months since they were released from jail in .ca
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Call from the same detective as before, looks like they also found more stuff of mine that's gone missing thus year in a storage unit these guys had that they found and impounded. Not expensive stuff mind you, but things that are annoying when they go missing. You know, buckets, cones, saw horses etc. Luckily I brand( like with a hot iron) every thing I can with my company name. Most of it i did not file reports on, since it's not worth my time/ consumables / worn out.
Spent about 15 mins talking too him this morning, looks like I got off pretty easy compared too some other larger contractors in the area. They were guessing total theft too be some where in the half mil range in the last 10 months( when .ca let these guys out of jail) said most of that ended up in some ones arm. He also said they closed 90% of the job site theft reports in the last 6 months.
Any one that says drugs do not effect all of us is full of shit. I can assure you my customers do feel it when I have stuff stolen. Over all not a lot,but each one does.
TAB, could you contact me via email? I saw a post of yours from awhile ago, and have a couple questions for you, if you have the time. I’m new to the site, and not sure how to message your profile. Thanks in advanced.
Mg.scott88@hotmail.com
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TAB, could you contact me via email? I saw a post of yours from awhile ago, and have a couple questions for you, if you have the time. I’m new to the site, and not sure how to message your profile. Thanks in advanced.
Mg.scott88@hotmail.com
I think you need 10 or 15 posts too pm, what do you need? Chances are very good others here would be interested. I can send you a email, but it won't be until way later in the day
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Sent you a pm
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I was contacted by the da secretary today. They wanted too know the dollar ammount for the dumpster so I sent her the invoice. Got the old, " that's more than I make in a week" "yep, that's why it sucks"
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That was the special gold plated deluxe limited edition dumpster. When will I be compensated for it? ;)
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Nah, just $842.18 is what I was charged. All I can get them for is the one they were caught red handed.
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That's more than I make a week too, at least after taxes, but I'm no longer working.
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This thread really does remind me just how much I hate theft.
I was at the auto parts store yesterday, buying grease for my heavy equipment, watched a guy pocket 4 items... don't even get me started on people buying things and returning them used/ empty/ damaged.
Hell saw that last night at home depot a lady was returning a vanity that had clearly been installed, back cut out, screw holes on the back support... and the cashier took it back. I even told the manager ( he likes me, I spend 6 figures in that store every year) he was not shocked and imeditaley tagged it to be tossed.
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United States retailers lost $60 Billion in 2015 to shrinkage, up from $57 Billion in 2014. Loss of inventory from stores — due to causes including shoplifting and employee theft — cost the U.S. retail industry nearly $48.9 billion in 2016. That's about $55,000,000,000 a year on average lost due to theft in the U.S. I'm glad I don't own a store.
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I'm glad I don't own a store.
That doesn't mean you, as are all honest folks, aren't paying for it. That lose is recovered by the store in higher prices to stay profitable.
Every theft is stealing from you and me (all of us)...so TAB, you watched that guy who pocketed items steal from you.
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The stores have to raise their prices to make up for their loss and it's a fact that we pay more. I was looking for a dollar amount and the first article I found was from 2009. Research shows that, on average, a “low-level” shoplifter caught stealing today has already stolen $1,800 worth of merchandise before being caught.
Retail loss, also known as “shrinkage,” inflicts tremendous damage on an organization’s bottom line. According to the Global Retail Theft Barometer, shrinkage accounted for over $42 billion in lost revenue in the United States in 2014 and over $128.5 billion in annual losses around the world. Price increases directly caused by shrinkage are estimated to cost American consumers $403 each per year.
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This thread really does remind me just how much I hate theft.
I was at the auto parts store yesterday, buying grease for my heavy equipment, watched a guy pocket 4 items... don't even get me started on people buying things and returning them used/ empty/ damaged.
Hell saw that last night at home depot a lady was returning a vanity that had clearly been installed, back cut out, screw holes on the back support... and the cashier took it back. I even told the manager ( he likes me, I spend 6 figures in that store every year) he was not shocked and imeditaley tagged it to be tossed.
There's a guy that runs a thrift store in town that buys "salvage" items from stores like Lowes and Home Depot in lots and sells them at a fraction of the original cost. Most of the stuff is leftovers from contractor bundles (like flooring tiles and lighting) but some of it is customer returns like you mentioned.
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Yep, done that in the past when I was remodeling an apartment complex. Bought 3 pallets of light fixtures and was able save myself about 10k.
Now days I don't have the time to do that type of stuff. Between the sorting and miss matched parts, it's just not worth my time, but back then it was a great deal. Not any more.
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There used to be a store or two around here that sold whatever was left after other stores burned down, and had other odds and ends. They may have had other stores' customer returns too. The only thing I remember buying was 12"x12" linoleum, not vinyl, floor tiles. If you ever want your floor done and ask to see linoleum, the salesman will likely say something like, "Sure, I have some vinyl sheeting right over here to show you." I found enough to do the bathroom floor of the mobile home I lived in for a few years, after I replaced a spongy piece of floor around the floor duct. I used self-adhesive vinyl tiles to shim the surface of the plywood up to the height of the original floor.
I read a bit about laying floor tiles before I started, made all my measurements and drew my center lines of the floor to get everything lined up. When my measurements said I would end up with 3-4" wide tiles on both sides, I drew another line 6" off center to start from, and ended up with 8-9" tiles on the sides instead. I alternated the grain of the tiles as I placed them in the adhesive I troweled on. When I got done everything matched from side to side and end for end, with no half tiles or smaller. All except where the floor made an ell where the toilet sat next to the end of the bathtub. Not many people would look at the floor behind the toilet anyway, and the rest of the floor looked great. That was the only time I ever laid floor tiles and I'm very proud of the job I did. I should have taken pictures of it to show anyone who would look.
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Yep, done that in the past when I was remodeling an apartment complex. Bought 3 pallets of light fixtures and was able save myself about 10k.
Now days I don't have the time to do that type of stuff. Between the sorting and miss matched parts, it's just not worth my time, but back then it was a great deal. Not any more.
Back in the spring I bought two lighting fixtures for the dining room that Lowes sells for $80 each and I got them for $10 each.
Some of the stuff is items where the exterior of the box was damaged but the product wasn't and it can't be put on the shelf. My son bought a 54" ceiling fan for $15 because the plastic package with the mounting screws and wire nuts were missing from when the box corner was torn. He just reused the screws and nuts from the fan he replaced.