A friend of mine living in a separate house (not an apartment) was burglarized recently.   Having heard that burglars often return to such locations 60 days or so later on the expectation of more goods being available due to insurance having replaced what was swiped,  I considered how I'd prepare for the possible return of the same crooks.   Let's leave aside the expensive installation of video surveillance or alarm systems and concentrate on the easy and the obvious.

     First, an insurance inventory is in order and this will be the most time-consuming part.  This, however, will be good for fire and flood insurance situations as well as burglary loss.  Use digital cameras to photograph items as well as organizing purchase reciepts for them.  Remember to make sure the camera's time/date stamp is accurate.  Record model numbers and serial numbers for listed items, as well as colors or other options that may be unusual.

     Second, in cases of computer or printed material, make and store backup copies of anything important or rare.  

     Third, and this is the major strategy point of this article, think of the area from the viewpoint of the crook.

     The crook is pressed for time and wants to grab whatever's valuable and portable.  That leaves out things like large furniture, wall-to-wall carpeting and light fixtures in most quick-job situations.  It would include musical instruments and portable, up-to-date electronics like large televisions.   Laptop computers would be more desireable than bulky desktops; iPods and smart phones would be highly desired, as well as jewelry.   So armed with this knowledge, we can infer two tactical points: what to hide and what not to hide.

     In leaving the place, always think about what must be hidden.  This would be a short list of the most important items like equipment needed for work or even issued by one's job: tools, a laptop, radios, access cards or ID's, and so forth.  Also, consider any item that would be personally traceable, like licenses, general ID's, credit information or financial data (pretty obvious).  Place such items in concealed or inconvenient locations from the perspective of a snatch-and-grab group, preferably in one of those shoe box-sized fireproof storage safes (for records or small items).

     And now there's the flip side of the above concealment strategy.  Crooks will expect to get at least something for their trouble, so prepare the main area with what might be enticing, like an inexpensive but recent laptop (for guest use), a nice television, a DVD player/recorder, a gaming system, etc.   Now make sure that all that exposed gear is fully documented with recorded identification numbers and photographs.   When feasable, consider engraving your name (not your social security number) in or on a concealed metal area.  There are even ways to plant tracing software on the computer so that it reveals its location via email back to you when swiped (doing most of the Police work automatically).   A little bit of planning can go a long way; I only hope that, after hearing of my friend's experience, I follow my own advice effectively.

6/19/2010