Thinking Like a Criminal: Surprise Visits…
“Know your enemy.”
That saying has been around, in one form or another, for as long as humans have been around. It is a valuable bit of advice to live by. Regardless of politics, religion, interests, and philosophies there is always a common enemy to us all: criminals. As long as there’s more than one person on the planet, there will always be the potential for someone to steal from or harm another and they will use any means they have available to do so.They were using rocks back in the stone age and they’ll probably be using some kind of laser beam device 1000 years in the future.
Now, having the means to protect yourself goes a long way but I never want to have to use my gun to defend myself and I know that pretty much every gun owner out there feels the same way. One of the best things we can do is make sure we never put ourselves in a situation where we would need to.
That means being able to recognize the signs that a bad situation is coming, or at least knowing how to steer far clear of trouble. That’s what this new series is about: knowing your enemy. We’re thinking like criminals would think. We’ll be providing you simple things you can do to ward off trouble. Hopefully, in the long run, it’ll change the way you think about things you see on a daily basis.
Today’s topic: your friendly neighborhood cable guy.
There was a story in the local news this morning. Two guys show up at a woman’s house in JEA uniforms (Jacksonville Electric Authority, the local power company). They claimed to be verifying power lines and wanted to check that she had proper power coming into her home. She says “sure, come on in.” They then proceed to attack her, tie her up then steal everything they can carry while she watches helpless. She winds up with a dislocated elbow and various cuts and bruises.. She’s lucky to be alive because it could have been much MUCH worse.
So how can you prevent this from happening to you? First and foremost, your local power company, phone company, cable company, utility company or whatever will NEVER show up unannounced like that. See how I capitalized “never” and made it bold and italic? That means I’m not exaggerating. The power guy can look at your meter and tell how well your power is flowing. Same with the water/sewer company. The telephone guy can test your line from the junction and the cable company can ping your box. There is no reason to ever let anyone into your home unannounced.
Even if a cop shows up at your door! If you didn’t call the cops (and you weren’t throwing some kind of loud party or causing a disturbance, mind you), they have no reason to be at your house. If they’re wanting to warn you of something, they can warn you through the door. If they want to ask you some questions about something that might have happened in the neighborhood recently, ask them to show you their badge number and then call your local office and verify they’re a real cop before you step out to talk to them. I can’t speak for all precincts but according to a couple different police officer friends, in a lot precincts, cops are trained to expect this kind of thing. Remember, you’ve done nothing wrong and there have been a lot of people that have been robbed or worse because someone was dressed like a cop and knocked on doors. The cops know this.
One of the best investments you can make is a good peephole for your door. The one on my door was under $20. It has a 180 degree field of view which means I can see everything around my door when I look through it. Make sure it’s at a height where your children can get to it also. Keep a stool next to the door if you have to. Stress to your children that the door should never be opened for strangers. Even a cop.
So keep that front door locked and don’t open it for anyone you aren’t expecting. It seems like such a simple rule to follow but it’s amazing how many people don’t follow it. There’s a reason criminals are pulling this scam: because it works. Just because someone is wearing a uniform, doesn’t mean they’re a good guy.
Intro image used under creative commons license from Tobyotter.
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