We Were Broken Into

One of the scariest things is when your house is broken into. It is not just unwanted people invading your privacy and stealing your possessions, these thieves can be armed and dangerous. A few years ago we were broken into. I never thought it could happen to us as we lived modestly in a small apartment, on a main street. I honestly thought there was nothing in the apartment worth taking.

However, one day on my way to work I noticed I left my wedding and engagement rings at home. For a moment I debated whether to return home to take them or not. But since I was already late for work, I continued on my way. Later that afternoon, my husband called me and said somebody broke into our apartment. He asked me to come home as soon as possible.

When I arrived home I just couldn’t believe what I saw. All our belongings were thrown all over the floor. It was a nightmare. I immediately called the police and we were told not to touch anything before they arrived, as we could destroy evidence. I remember I couldn’t stop crying, while my husband was in shock and didn’t say much.

The first thing I noticed was the rings I left in the morning on the kitchen table were gone. When the police arrived I realized the burglars did not take the credit card and the chequebook which were in the bedroom drawer. The officer told us that burglars usually do not take credit cards or cheques as they are easy to trace. On the other hand, they take any valuables they can get their hands on that would be hard to trace back to your house, and money obviously.

Anyway, the officer asked us to make a list of all the items that were taken. Unfortunately, there was such a mess in our home that it took us a few days to put a list together. We couldn’t tell what was stolen at that time, except for my rings and some money. We started cleaning up when the police officer left. Only then did we find out how much stuff was stolen. On the other hand, we found all kinds of stuff we did not remember we had….. sadly, we didn’t have insurance so we couldn’t recoup what was stolen.

Even if we had insurance, I’m not so sure we would get anything as when I left home that day I did not lock the deadbolt lock, which was stupid on my part. Still, it is hard for me to understand how the burglars managed to break into our apartment in the middle of the day without anyone noticing. Back then I couldn’t stop wondering what would have happened if I went back to my apartment to take the rings?!……… I might have surprised the burglars in the middle of the act, and it would have ended differently…… They might have turned violent, like many stories I heard before.

In addition to losing our possessions, some which had sentimental value, the break-in was a very traumatic event for me. I couldn’t feel safe in my own home anymore. It goes without saying that we did not hear anything from the police. Actually, we were told the chance of getting our stuff back is almost zero. My rings were gone forever…….

The break-in could have been prevented if I had locked the door with the security lock. It doesn’t mean they couldn’t get in anyway, but I made it easy for them. You would be surprised how many people don’t lock their doors at all or leave the windows open. There are also people who leave their keys under the welcome mat. So all the burglars have to do is to watch them for a while and plan the next move.

People make the same mistake over and over again, when they go on vacation they don’t cancel their newspaper delivery. They let their mail pile up, leave lights and TV’s turned on, sometimes at high volume, at night as well. This is a signal to thieves “you are welcome to visit………….there is no one home.”

When you buy a house you must also take the location into consideration. I am not just talking about your neighbors, you also need to pay attention to the physical surroundings. Meaning, living next to an area that has a lot of trees, or an area under development. In other words, places where thieves can easily hide. According to reports from the U.S. Department of Justice, most break-ins are committed by people that know the victim. It could be your neighbor or an acquaintance.

In our case, the police told us the burglary was probably committed by drug addicts looking for a quick score. The bottom line is that one has to protect himself and make it as difficult as possible for thieves to break-in. In addition, you need to have home insurance just in case.