RE: [Paddlewise] locking up boats

Rich wrote:
>>>>>>>>But with the size and transportation issues of a kayak, the "see it,
take it" scenario seems awfully hard, just because of the transportation
issue. I would think that a potential thief would be looking for kayaks,
and once found, would be prepared to steal it on the spot or come back
for it.  That implies that he would have the tools with him, and the
means to haul it away quickly and quietly.  So, unless the thief is a
joy rider who sees the boat near the water and decides to take a ride, a
kayak thief would probably be prepared with the proper tools (IMHO).

These are all assumptions - I have no concrete evidence to support the
above.  But perhaps Matt does?  Matt, when a boat on your web-site is
recovered, do you gather any statistics regarding the nature of the
crime?  Was the boat locked up?  Was it a thief looking for boats or a
target of opportunity? How did they get the boat transported?  Are
thieves stealing all types of boats equally, or are some types more
prevalent (composite over plastic, sea vs. rec vs. WW) Etc????

It might be enlightening to discover what the highest theft threats are
for kayakers, and that might also point us to the best solution(s) to
protecting our stuff.<<<<<<<<<<<<

I only know of one professional kayak thief and he is now in jail (for
several other crimes considered more serious by the authorities than kayak
theft). Trying to catch him was the reason I started the stolen kayak
database in the first place. he targeted kayaks he could steal at a time of
his choosing. Most were from on water locations where I suspect  he could
silently paddle them away without raising much suspicion (no one I have
heard from anyhow ever witnessed him stealing one around here, if I recall
correctly I think he was once spotted in CA paddling a kayak away that was
later discovered to be missing by the owner).

Most kayak thefts seem to be targets of opportunity rather than crimes of a
regular thief specializing in kayaks. That doesn't mean they are not planned
though, I think they most often are. The kayaks most likely to be hit are
those that are the most visible to the most people and that can be predicted
to be in the same location day after day. The thief can then gather the
tools necessary and chose the optimum time to steal the kayak. Locks can
help deter a thief, but many kayaks were locked up but taken anyway (I ask
this of victims to see if there is any patterns or if the theft fits a
particular MO, I don't have to wait until a kayak is recovered to find out
how it was taken). The professional kayak thief had his special bolt
cutters. He nipped through several padlocks, hardened chains, and even a
kryptonite lock with them. His wife once loaned them to a neighbor and he
had a huge fit with her about that. They were obviously one of his most
prized possessions but she couldn't understand why at the time.  Still,
locks make most thieves work harder and they certainly act as a deterrent
especially if the kayak is in a public place where their might be witnesses
getting suspicious. Most people wouldn't give someone they saw untying a
kayak from a car a second glance but if he is cutting a cable or chain they
might start to wonder why he doesn't just use his key and call 911 to have
the guy checked out. I cable lock my kayaks to the car with a very heavy
duty bike cable if I'm going to be away from it for a bit and I don't leave
a kayak on my car overnight or keep it where it is visible on a regular
basis (so a thief couldn't count on finding it there at any given time when
he might be ready to steal it).

Even the professional kayak thief took a variety of kinds of kayaks. His ad
would often read something like: "Plastic kayak $450, fiberglass kayak
$850". He didn't even have to know yet what kayaks he was going to steal to
run that ad. He at least once called that ad into a newspaper from out of
state when he was preparing to move to a new location. He had the potential
customers lined up on his voice mail and caller ID before he even found the
kayaks he was going to sell them. Once he chose the kayaks he knew he could
steal he would contact the potential buyers he felt most comfortable dealing
with and claim to have been called out of town for a family emergency right
after he had contracted to put the ad in the paper to explain why two or
three weeks had passed since he ran the ad. This helped to protect his phone
numbers but they would be unlisted and would deadhead to other phones as
well so he kept himself both available but hard to locate. he would then
describe the kayaks and get several buyers lined up to buy the kayak the
next day. Then he would steal the kayak that night and deliver it from
prospect to prospect until it was sold (to assure he wouldn't still be in
possession of stolen property by that night). Actually he often had someone
else do the delivery for him further distancing himself from the stolen
property and a buyer who could ID him as the seller. It is nice to know this
guy is finally behind bars and facing three strikes charges.

Much more detail on how to avoid being a kayak theft victim can be found in
the stolen kayaks section of our website. The stolen kayak report form has
the information I ask the victims to provide, if they can. I also want to
have the police case number so that if someone reports one of the stolen
kayaks to me I can get the police to understand what I'm talking about
immediately and put them in touch with the police department that took the
victim's report. Without the case number it is usually hopeless to get the
police to act to recover the stolen kayak for the victim. I only publish the
information I get that would help the stolen kayak be recognized and
positively identified.

Matt Broze
www.marinerkayaks.com

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