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I was out of town and my house was robbed, my guns stolen. Need some help.

Tyler Kemp

Tyler Kemp

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Aug 23, 2008
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Hi guys, I'm quite distraught as I was out of town this weekend and got a call on the way back that my house had been robbed.

There are a few details I thought someone on here might have experience with.

I just graduated college, and rent the house from my buddy's sister. She has homeowner's insurance, is there any way my belongings could be covered ?

My parents have an individual insurance policy on my guns, will these be covered if they weren't at my parent's house?

I'm very disappointed in the police officers as they only fingerprinted the window they broke into, and not anything that was moved around. (my entire house was torn apart) I found a few prints and items that look hopeful, but I'm just really at a loss for words and was hoping for some advice from someone in the legal field, or someone who has been in this situation.

One gun that was stolen is a very unique GAP Gun in a wildcat cartridge and a bright tiger stripe paint job. I can't imagine the thief would try to pawn it.
 
Please tell me you had a safe? Since one was not mentioned I take it you either do not want people to know which I can understand especially if you are trying to recover them! I would start looking hard on the Internet sites, local pawn shops, and any place that sells used guns! Maybe pass out flyers of pictures of your loss? I hope ya had pictures and serial numbers! Look in news papers for weapons sales! Hope ya find this POS as it's hard to think they could hit the inside of your house and leave no finger prints? Do not be surprised who you might think that would do something like this to ya as everyone should be looked at and especially your supposed group of friends that might not be your friend for real!! good luck but ya need to get busy as they will sell them on the cheap if it's a crack head? I so know insurance guys will do all they can do to not pay full value on losses of anything! Good luck with any insurance company!
 
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Tyler Kemp said:
Hi guys, I'm quite distraught as I was out of town this weekend and got a call on the way back that my house had been robbed.

There are a few details I thought someone on here might have experience with.

I just graduated college, and rent the house from my buddy's sister. She has homeowner's insurance, is there any way my belongings could be covered ?

My parents have an individual insurance policy on my guns, will these be covered if they weren't at my parent's house?

I'm very disappointed in the police officers as they only fingerprinted the window they broke into, and not anything that was moved around. (my entire house was torn apart) I found a few prints and items that look hopeful, but I'm just really at a loss for words and was hoping for some advice from someone in the legal field, or someone who has been in this situation.

One gun that was stolen is a very unique GAP Gun in a wildcat cartridge and a bright tiger stripe paint job. I can't imagine the thief would try to pawn it.
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Never underestimate how fucking retarded people are. Make sure you quietly put out the word about the easily identifiable wildcat cartridge rifle. You may be surprised.

Something very similar happened at a large rifle range in Florida 2-3 years ago. A custom rifle in a really unique caliber was stolen in broad daylight with zero idea as to who did it. Within a few days, the idiot that stole it was calling gun and pawn shops trying to figure out its value and find a buyer. One of the gunshops referred him to the owner of the range who has some unique weapons; within 30 seconds he realized it was the stolen gun this idiot was trying to fence.

Told him to bring it by and if its in good shape he'd buy it; when the guy showed up, the owner of the rifle was there as well, ID'd it and the cops walked in.

As far as the insurance, read your policy and what exactly is covered.
 
I was out of town and my house was robbed, my guns stolen. Need some help.

Your attorney won't know what insurance contracts the homeowner, and your parents, signed. Read the contracts.

In general, renters need rental insurance and firearms away from home need riders.

I don't understand how your parents could have an 'individual' policy on your firearms.
 
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TheGerman said:
Never underestimate how fucking retarded people are.
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THIS!

You needed renter's insurance. If you're a member of the NRA, there is some coverage on your weapons. I'm sorry for your loss brother. Watch the pawn shops. Watch gunbroker and armslist and gunsamerica. Keep us posted.
 
Sorry to hear that man, it really sucks. I hope you can recover your firearms. People have gone friggin nuts everywhere its pitiful.
 
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Start by thinking about which one of your "friends" did it.
Oh, and let me guess; you posted about your trip on FB or Instagram.
Sorry about the theft though. Hope you find your stuff.
 
I didn't post about leaving and I only told a few of my closest friends.

One roommate was home in bed. Thieves came in the other side of the house and stole everything from my room right next to my roommate.

Didn't have renters insurance....I thought I had a nice neighborhood, and it is, but I learned my lesson and will have it from now on.
 
Tyler Kemp said:
I didn't post about leaving and I only told a few of my closest friends.

One roommate was home in bed. Thieves came in the other side of the house and stole everything from my room right next to my roommate.

Didn't have renters insurance....I thought I had a nice neighborhood, and it is, but I learned my lesson and will have it from now on.
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Do yourself a favor and thoroughly rule out that this was an inside job.
 
dimar1492 said:
Do yourself a favor and thoroughly rule out that this was an inside job.
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I was thinking that his roommate MUST have some really potent drugs!

Sorry for you loss and the humor at your expense... unless thats true. If so the joke's on you, because your roommates holding out on you. Did you check under his bed and the trunk of his car?
 
I was out of town and my house was robbed, my guns stolen. Need some help.

Maggot said:
Dont want to start an argument here but most of those contracts are so couched in legalese that you need an attorney to figure them out. Call your attorney. Good luck.
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Maggot, now you're hedging.

No standard insurance contract requires an attorney to figure out what is covered.

... For obvious reasons.
 
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I also want to add that I hope you recover those heaters. I second what dimar 1492 states. Smells fishy. Most break- ins are perpetrated by someone who knows the occupant. Leave no stone unturned!

Fuckin' pukes. Doesn't matter what you have, someone always needs it more than you.
 
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What the insurance doesn't tell you:
A STOCK is worth X amount
A rifle action with barrel is worth X amount
A scope, rings and base are worth X amount
My old agent told me this is how 'we' get around that low number and get the entire rifle reimbursed. My new agent agreed with the same process
 
I was out of town and my house was robbed, my guns stolen. Need some help.

Maggot said:
Not hedging at all. My personal experience has taught me that whenever any contractual or legal situations come up, it is always prudent to consult a GOOD attorney. I see no obvious reasons not to, and many good reasons to.
Click to expand...
Except that the OP's problem - determining coverage - is not a legal situation.

You can't seriously be telling this guy that there's no obvious reason not to pay hundreds of dollars to an attorney instead of simply obtaining and reading the coverage section of those two contracts.
 
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Put the word out with friends that hit the gun shows . A guy here in town had his guns stolen so he started hitting gun shows looking for them. It took a while but north of us a guy had a table selling rifles at a show. He called the police and they ended up getting him back three rifles and after searching the guys home . They also found many more stolen ones belonging to others.
 
I just read the latest posts. I agree. This smells really fishy. No way is this coincidence with your roommate home. Someone knew you were gone, (a "friend" or neighbor) and jacked your stuff. Don't tell anyone what you intend to do to catch them.

I think someone you know did this. That's my 2 cents. Ask your roommate if he told any neighbors or friends or co-workers about your trip. Whoever it was knew you weren't home. Otherwise, they wouldn't have broke into your room.
 
In this case the insurance for coverage would be the renter, not the sub-letter, therefore her insurance should cover it, OR if it was me, I would go her insurance first then mine to cover whatever was left to replace stuff or vice versa. All an attorney will do is cost you money. The insurance companies will pay what they pay regardless as your case has probably millions of dollars already paid out in cases the same as yours. Why pay an attorney to take up to 40% after you get paid? That is just STUPID considering you have now been educated away from ignorance on the subject
 
You said she has homeowners insurance, it will cover her property as she is the property owner only(Structure Etc.). If you rent, to protect your property you would need to get renters insurance to cover anything you own (Tv, Bed Etc.) . You can get renters insurance for any amount you need, but it only covers you items.
 
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Had a good buddy years ago that decided his car was too plain. He bought a set of rims and Goodyear Eagles and then went down to a local stereo shop and had a new system installed (stereo).
That was on a Saturday. Monday morning he goes down to the parking lot to head to work; you guessed it.......no car.
Cops found it that afternoon in an alley. Guess what was the only thing missing? Yup, the stereo system he had written a check for and it was removed as neatly as it had been installed. Checks have your address on them. Most theft of personal property is an inside job. Maybe one of your friends didn't take it but they said something to someone who said something to someone and that someone used the intel to steal your stuff.
 
When I owned a surf and skateboard shop, we had about a 50% success rate of recovery by alerting all the pawn shops in town. Browsing all the local gun shows is also a great idea.
Most thieves are are not too smart.

I'd agree with others it smells like an inside job.
Were there other items of value that were stolen or were there things like nice tools and stuff that were left behind? That will be a big clue if they knew what they were going for.
Often times people will make a mess of your shit to make it look random.
 
I lost some other valuable electronics, like an Xbox one, and my laptop.

They nabbed another roommates laptop and a few watches, but left the third roommate's (who was in his room) laptop. They did move it however.

I found one fat fingerprint that matches no one I could imagine being in my room. They came and dusted it, but told me I could expect results in a YEAR.
 
Tyler Kemp said:
I didn't post about leaving and I only told a few of my closest friends.

One roommate was home in bed. Thieves came in the other side of the house and stole everything from my room right next to my roommate.

Didn't have renters insurance....I thought I had a nice neighborhood, and it is, but I learned my lesson and will have it from now on.
Click to expand...


And this is extremely interesting; I am willing to bet any amount of money on one of these:

- Your roommate was in on it at least passively; he may not have been like, hey lets go rob this guy, but he's talked about your stuff to other people before and they decided they were coming over to get it. They think the roommate is the last person you'd suspect because he was 'home in bed'.

- You know this person/people by association.

Think about this. Seriously. You are gone. A handful of people knew this. So thieves conveniently know to come on the other side of the house and which room is yours, break into just your room and take your stuff? These must be some telepathic motherfuckers - or you need to look at this much closer.
 
TheGerman said:
Think about this. Seriously. You are gone. A handful of people knew this. So thieves conveniently know to come on the other side of the house and which room is yours, break into just your room and take your stuff? These must be some telepathic motherfuckers - or you need to look at this much closer.
Click to expand...

Telepath, hell. Spread garlic around your room.

FSSPKjj.jpg


And find a new place. And some renter's insurance. And a safe.
 
I was out of town and my house was robbed, my guns stolen. Need some help.

Back in college, a rifle was stolen out of my truck in my apartment building parking lot 200 miles away from the insured home. My parents' homeowner policy gave me a few bucks for it and a few other things that were taken. The agent was a friend of the family, so I don't know if the coverage was technically suppose to pay on that claim.... I'd definitely give it a shot though.
 
TheGerman said:
And this is extremely interesting; I am willing to bet any amount of money on one of these:

- Your roommate was in on it at least passively; he may not have been like, hey lets go rob this guy, but he's talked about your stuff to other people before and they decided they were coming over to get it. They think the roommate is the last person you'd suspect because he was 'home in bed'.

- You know this person/people by association.

Think about this. Seriously. You are gone. A handful of people knew this. So thieves conveniently know to come on the other side of the house and which room is yours, break into just your room and take your stuff? These must be some telepathic motherfuckers - or you need to look at this much closer.
Click to expand...

I will ante up a few bucks behind The German. I have had two similar incidents in my life. The first theft was in college and I was sure it was folks in the same duplex. The second time it was kids who lived a few hundred yards away. Turns out they traveled in an old overgrown alley way that enabled them to get very close to houses without being seen. In spite of my having an excellent alarm system and inside cameras (advertised by a sign on my front yard) it was a game cam outside the house that caught them, before they had a chance to cover their faces.

Tyler, as painful as it is to think about, this was likely someone not very far away from you. I pray you catch them and get your belongings back. Because they have nothing to lose by throwing your guns down a well if they get spooked you might try enlisting some help in a doing a quiet search in all the places others have posted.
 
I wholeheartedly agree I probably know the person. My neighborhood is one of the nicer ones in town, and my house has a tall fence around it. I'm also nearly a mile down my street, a random robber would have hundreds of other targets before even getting to my house.
 
I also agree 100% that it was someone you know, or a thieving friend of theirs. They knew you were going out of town, and broke in at the right time and into the right place.

I also agree that you should re-evaluate your roommate. Money does things to people, or should I say it shows their true values. I would not discuss, with your roommate, any details regarding your attempt to recover your property. If through him the items were stolen, then through him details of the investigation would also leak.

Do not post notices in public places notices regarding the theft. However leave a detailed list with pawn shops, gun stores, etc. Give out only your cell phone number to the pawn shops and gun stores, keep the investigation close to you. Thieves are stupid, something with a serial number may show up.

To stop this from happening in the future, use a safe, locks, and a hidden camera in the room.
 
I'll tell my roommate not to discuss anything, but I am not worried about him being involved at all. He's one of my closest friends and we've lived together all through college, and now I'm still here since I got a job in the same town.

Will be contacting all the pawn and gun shops around. They stole electronics that have serial numbers, and didn't take the cords, so I can only assume they plan to pawn them somewhere.
 
Any chance the neighborhood is nice enough to have one main entrance with a camera? It's a really long shot, but I'd imagine they would be happy to let you look through it if they have a camera set up. Do it quick though, as they usually only keep the preceeding 48 hours before deleting or overwriting. Good luck man. Sorry to hear it.
 
Tyler Kemp said:
I'll tell my roommate not to discuss anything, but I am not worried about him being involved at all. He's one of my closest friends and we've lived together all through college, and now I'm still here since I got a job in the same town.

Will be contacting all the pawn and gun shops around. They stole electronics that have serial numbers, and didn't take the cords, so I can only assume they plan to pawn them somewhere.
Click to expand...


Make a phone call for a while, outside. Then come back and tell your roommate that it sounds like the detective I just spoke with is narrowing down people because they think they know who it is, but won't tell me yet incase I know them or see them in the meantime.

See what roommates face does, and then see how long until he needs to go make a phone call.
 
TheGerman said:
Make a phone call for a while, outside. Then come back and tell your roommate that it sounds like the detective I just spoke with is narrowing down people because they think they know who it is, but won't tell me yet incase I know them or see them in the meantime.

See what roommates face does, and then see how long until he needs to go make a phone call.
Click to expand...
Tyler you should listen to Germans advice. Im not trying to be an ass when I say this, but if you think your roommate couldn't be involved because he's one of your closest friends then you are very young and nieve. With age comes the cruel reality that even the best of friends can stab you in the fu#$#@! back. These guys are trying to give you advise and its not meant to hurt your feelings, it's meant to help you and you need to be preparing yourself for the fact of when and if they find the perp your not going to like the outcome of who it turns out to be. All we have to go by is what you have told us and givin those details I find it hard to believe they broke through your window, took your shit, and trashed your stuff and all the while your roommate never had a clue what was going on !!! Seriously ???
I hate this happened to you but your are going to learn a lot of painful lessons from this.

Unfortunately life is like a box of chocolates and you never know what kind of SHIT your going to step into.
 
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forrestgump01 said:
Tyler you should listen to Germans advice. Im not trying to be an ass when I say this, but if you think your roommate couldn't be involved because he's one of your closest friends then you are very young and nieve. With age comes the cruel reality that even the best of friends can stab you in the fu#$#@! back. These guys are trying to give you advise and its not meant to hurt your feelings, it's meant to help you and you need to be preparing yourself for the fact of when and if they find the perp your not going to like the outcome of who it turns out to be. All we have to go by is what you have told us and givin those details I find it hard to believe they broke through your window, took your shit, and trashed your stuff and all the while your roommate never had a clue what was going on !!! Seriously ???
I hate this happened to you but your are going to learn a lot of painful lessons from this.

Unfortunately life is like a box of chocolates and you never know what kind of SHIT your going to step into.
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I'm not even looking at the roommate as the thief. I don't think he actually did it; I'm very curious as to the type of friends he has that are acquaintances/know the OP however. I would start to think the roommate has talked about or even shown the cool stuff that OP has to these people and one of them got it into their mind as to how easy it would be to take it and get some cash. This went from idea to reality either beforehand when the roommate mentioned OP was leaving, or when the friends came over to hang out and realized his shit was up for grabs.

Too much of what you mention points to people knowing that you were gone, when you were gone, what was in the room, where the room was and the best time to get it - all without stealing anything else or waking anyone up or alerting them to it (which I think is bullshit, they simply walked in).

The absolute easiest route to go with this is simple. The roommate is the weak link here by far. He has very little to gain and any punishment coming his way can be huge. I would talk to the roommate at different times about what went on that night, when was he home, when did he notice whatever he noticed, etc. See if it changes or seems odd. Then I'd contact the detective assigned to the case and mention to him that you think the roommate might be involved; they'll come by and talk to him and say its routine. What they'll really do is shake his story up and see if its bullshit as they will be able to utilize him as the weak link very easily against the people in possession of your items.
 
anyone of your friends have someone they are close to on heroin? I know people messed up on that stuff stole guns from their own family. good luck man
 
Although I agree that you should properly vet your roommate to see if he's involved, I'd like to add a story that would make him not hearing the whole fiasco more believable.

A coworker had his house broken into about 4 years ago. The thieves broke into the garage and managed to load his truck with most of his power tools as well as a 750 motorcycle. My buddy, his wife, and three children were all home at the time of this burglary and the garage was attached to the house. He had absolutely no clue that anyone was in his house until he woke up for work the next morning to find out.

Again, I would look into the roommate but the idea that he didn't hear the burglary isn't impossible.
 
I know your pain... kind of... didn't get any guns... but my 76yr old mother wrecked her car last Wednesday evening... after spending all night & day with her at the hospital.. got home Thursday around 9:30 pm set down on the couch & fell a sleep... about 20 min's later the alarm co. was calling me tell there was a alarm going off.. by the time the police dept. & I got there just about every closet & drawer had been dumped in the floor.. beds turned over ... ended up getting mostly jewelry... pretty worthless POS....
 
TheGerman said:
Make a phone call for a while, outside. Then come back and tell your roommate that it sounds like the detective I just spoke with is narrowing down people because they think they know who it is, but won't tell me yet incase I know them or see them in the meantime.

See what roommates face does, and then see how long until he needs to go make a phone call.
Click to expand...


LOL The German knows his stuff. DO THIS. But you gotta play it cool.
 
I'm going to test the roommate's story some, like you guys said. I had people over and one of my friends posted my most valuable gun on a social media site doing a sexy pose...although I asked her and she said she hadn't talked to anyone about it that asked.

Called all gun and pawn shops around the area and alerted them. There's a gun show this weekend I plan on attending and making sure my firearms aren't there. Also walked up and down the street and no one has any security cameras :(

FYI this is what I'm wanting back the most:

sgswWDL.jpg
 
Social Media is nothing but trouble sometimes. Sorry to hear about your loss.
 
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Did you have the serial #'s? That can go a long way if reported guns have paperwork done on them.
 
Someone may try and paint over the tiger stripe stock. I would look closely for any rifle with a barrel such as that. Scope may be sold separately.

I also agree that the roommate is the weak link, and is probably in on it in some way. I once lent a "friend" who was a very close friend of lifetime friends of mine $20,000 worth of tools. I knew he had some personality issues, but did not think he would go that far.

Well, he did, he stole all $20,000 worth of tools. Nothing in writing, so I lost it all. Don't think it can't happen to you.
 
hope you get the guns back,

ive always wanted to put together a cheap 223 and keep it loaded with a mag of hot 300blk in case anyone ever steals it..... Wouldnt take long to know who stole it.
 
Roomate. This happened to me. They stole all of my cd's, knives and rummaged through the room looking for my pistol that luckily I had with me at work. None of my roomates stuff was missing not even his brand new tv. Turned out to be my roomates girlfriends buddy. I found out years later of course. Just sayin', don't rule it out and feed them bullshit while you investigate. Or say nothing and see if they inquire and ask about any police leads.
 
There's very little chance your sisters policy will provide coverage. Land lords have no insurable interest in tenants property. Your parents policy could possibly provide some coverage depending if your enrolled in school still. There's generally a small amount built into each policy like jewelry. If your parents scheduled the specific guns you may have coverage. No need to get lawyer involved. Talk to agent and he can advise and see if there's potential coverage. It will be tough getting coverage but questions to an agent are free.

I work in the insurance industry. If you need help or want an opinion PM and I'll try to help.
 
A Canadian friend told me of a plumber in town, who's truck had been broken into and tools stolen three times. There were lots of break-ins in the general area, mostly due to meth-heads. After the third break in, he rigged some dynamite into a tool box that he left inside the truck lock box.

One night, a few blocks away, the dynamite went off, and there was one less car burglar around. He told me vehicle thefts went way down for weeks after than. The police accused the plumber of setting a trap, but he replied "prove that was my dynamite". The police then dropped the matter. Karma is a bitch sometimes, I hope the perp in your case get's his due reward.
 
Apparently there was not much the police could do. The plumber stated that it was not his explosive. There is, however, plenty of meth in the area, and no lack of problems those people cause. Perhaps the cops that that their time was better spent chasing something more productive.

This was in Canada, not NYC.
 
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