Posted on 12/23/2021 3:33:32 PM PST by nickcarraway
Police in California are taking action against thieves as Christmas quickly approaches.
They leave packages with tracking devices in front of houses to catch porch pirates.
"We're going to a prearranged residence with the homeowner's consent. They are a prior victim of either mail theft or package theft. We place the package at the front door, and we wait for the signal to go off," said Anaheim Police Officer Andrei Bratiloveanu.
Officers are delivering boxes with GPS trackers inside an unmarked black van to bait the thieves.
The package is placed at a house that's been targeted twice already.
The box contains iPhones and other popular gifts.
Then, officers sit back and wait.
"Dispatch will get the notification that the package has moved, and they're able to relay to officers at what speed and which direction the package is going in," said Officer Bratiloveanu.
Once the package is taken, an alarm sounds on dispatchers’ computers.
Officers receive notifications on their cell phones.
A man was tracked and arrested at a park as he opened the package.
Police say they will use the high-tech crime fighting tool all year.
I like Mark Robers approach.
I’m a firm believer in electrically charged decoys, camouflaged bear traps and hidden trap doors.
I guess the Police are letting this out of the bag to deter the slim bags. I’d just prefer they clam up and bust the scurg and toss them in jail.
About damned time.
If the package is worth less than $900 it isn’t a crime is it??
In and out of the po-leece station same day. Back on the street to commit more crimes. It’s time for Rule .303 to be applied.
The ones with the glitter bombs and the personal alarms are hilarious.
As long as the policy remains “catch and release”, why bother. It’s just a distraction to give the illusion that they are actually doing something.
> If the package is worth less than $900 it isn’t a crime is it?? <
If the cops were clever they’d put something worth a $1000 in each of the boxes. Just better not lose the thief’s car!
As a side note, I remember watching an episode of ‘Cops’ from years ago where they were setting up bait bicycles to be stolen. The cops set out expensive bikes so the thieves could be charged with grand theft.
There aren’t enough packages stolen & recorded on Ring cameras that they don’t catch? They need to use bait packages?
How it should have gone :
A man was tracked and arrested at a park as he opened the package. He was then shot dead. Cheers & accolades from the bystanders.
Why bother... They won’t be prosecuted
I saw that one; it was brutal! They also did one where they sent out letters to people with outstanding warrants saying they'd won a big-screen TV and could pick it up at a certain location. When they got to the location they were promptly arrested. I recall one of the busted perps saying, "Does this mean I don't get the TV?"
“If the package is worth less than $900 it isn’t a crime is it??”
I believe the article mentions that the packages had new iPhones in them and other goodies so they’re beyond the threshold of $900. I believe the charges were Grand theft as well which I believe would confirm that.
That’s what I was thinking. Nothing said about that!
Dog in meme....
I thought of that.
One dog guarding out of sight on the left, the other on the right. The one that catches ——and discourages——the thief gets a steak reward. Other one is more motivated for next time and gets Dog Chow this time.
I think there’s one yuge catch. In local stories all the thieves turned out to represent one demographic segment of the area. Get my drift? *
* Pacific Islander Ladies in their 80s.
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