Theft From Boats

gungadin

Well-Known Member
In the past month I know of several thefts where persons have had motors, electronics, rods and reels etc. stolen from their boats. From various places, homes, marinas, storage yards, and while stopped on a trip.

Oh sure, you can have insurance, usually with a deductible of what; $500, but the inconvenience and sense of insecurity cannot be insured.

Today while talking to friends over coffee, I was surprised to find out where here in Campbell River a fair number of thefts occur each year. It is the Walmart and Superstore parking lots. Apparently people on their way to the West coast, or points North will park and go over to the store to stock up on groceries etc. Because of the space required to manoeuvre their rigs they park away from the entrances, and then they all head for the store. It seems there are persons watching for just this, sitting in their vehicle. As soon as the rig is vacated, they drive over next to it and set to work with battery powered impacts, etc. removing kickers, downriggers, and anything else they can get their scummy hands on. Its all over in 10 minutes, and they and your stuff is gone.

I have done what I can to protect my equipment, all compartments locked and alarmed, downriggers locked on and alarmed if the boom is lifted.

I am presently installing a passive motion alarm system capable of sending a signal to a receiver up to about 1000ft.

I chain my boat to the wharf, bow and stern. I know the idea is to make your boat look too well protected to bother with.

What else can we do? I'd like to see other ideas that people have incorporated.
 
yup.. my buddies boat had a rigger ripped off when we stop for breakie on the way to gold river we'll we were parked at the Campbell river white spot in Aug this year.. lucky enough a lady saw who did it & they were able to chase him down get it back and the fellow who was well know to the RCMP was arrested.. :(
 
Mental Health/Addiction Crisis + People that have no conscious buying stolen property = Big Problems Everywhere
 
On our trips to Hardy, we grub up at Superstore in CR. Two of us do the shopping and the third guys stays with the boat. Just a common sense thing, like not leaving prawn or crab traps unattended overnight,
 
... they were able to chase him down get it back and the fellow who was well know to the RCMP was arrested.. :(

And... therein lies the problem.
How much do you want to bet he was flipped and back on the street on the same day?
After so much of the revolving door, the LEO's tend to get frustrated.
Sure they know them. Sure he just committed another illegal act...
BUT the judge is just going to let him go asap in order not to infringe on his "rights".
After all, he probably had a $hitty childhood. Not at all responsible for his own actions... Right...

Our Judicial System these days is anything but.
More rights and concern attributed to the perps than the victims in the vast majority of cases. :mad:
Gone off the rails IMHO.

And unfortunately, I don't rightly know how to fix that...

Sadly,
Nog
 
Had a similar Cantire parking lot incident in Port Alberni, luckily I noticed my rig being eyed by some shady looking characters and returned with phone/911 at the ready. They quickly took off. Always leave a sentry at any parking lot now. Good leason for all. I keep an eye out for other rigs left now too as they can be easy targets.
 
In the past month I know of several thefts where persons have had motors, electronics, rods and reels etc. stolen from their boats. From various places, homes, marinas, storage yards, and while stopped on a trip.

Oh sure, you can have insurance, usually with a deductible of what; $500, but the inconvenience and sense of insecurity cannot be insured.

Today while talking to friends over coffee, I was surprised to find out where here in Campbell River a fair number of thefts occur each year. It is the Walmart and Superstore parking lots. Apparently people on their way to the West coast, or points North will park and go over to the store to stock up on groceries etc. Because of the space required to manoeuvre their rigs they park away from the entrances, and then they all head for the store. It seems there are persons watching for just this, sitting in their vehicle. As soon as the rig is vacated, they drive over next to it and set to work with battery powered impacts, etc. removing kickers, downriggers, and anything else they can get their scummy hands on. Its all over in 10 minutes, and they and your stuff is gone.

I have done what I can to protect my equipment, all compartments locked and alarmed, downriggers locked on and alarmed if the boom is lifted.

I am presently installing a passive motion alarm system capable of sending a signal to a receiver up to about 1000ft.

I chain my boat to the wharf, bow and stern. I know the idea is to make your boat look too well protected to bother with.

What else can we do? I'd like to see other ideas that people have incorporated.
Ummmm !!!!!!!!! I'm not a rocket surgeon or cop but me thinks that might be a good spot to set up a sting. o_O
 
gaf in the leg of a skid I like... But that's cruel... Right?
 
Perps as bait? Send one loud cleanup message, ooh I misunderstood. As Nog stated laws are more for the bad guys in Canada today. Dam I will be living in CR soon.

HM
 
I have a friend that had lots of stuff go missing from his boat and shed so one night he sat in the dark with his shot gun about 2 am two guys broke in to his she'd turned the light one than seen him there with his gun they just about **** them self they called the cops on him,he just said I was cleaning my guns,the cops asked the two guys what were you doing in his shed,I was looking for my dog lol they went to jail
 
Thanks very much for the heads up on parking lots I stop my rig at Costco etc every year on my way to Nootka Sound. I thought with the amount of people around in those location thieves wouldn’t touch it.
 
A few years ago somebody needed my Gerry cans of gas from my trailer more than I did while parked in Walmart Nanaimo. Changes a trip when you have to buy replacements and fill. Not a good way to start a trip. Another time I hid my kayak and 6 full gas cans way up (80km) an inlet on mainland north island. Imagine my surprise 2 weeks later upon my return, gas tanks empty and kayak beat to **** from dragging on beach barnacles. Should have hidden better, what people would use some body else's gas an stuff. Beyond me.

Good posts like this bring awareness to the forefront again, hope it saves someone's stuff from the lowlifes.

HM
 
Thanks for the heads up

I'v never worried or even thought of $h!t like being ripped off in a parking lot, guess will be more vigilant from now on..
maybe just take my sons rez dog with me from now on..shes one protective mother fkr :)
Its a messed up world when you cant stop for a **** break with out the chance of some low life ripping you off
 
Had some guy try and break in to my truck one night when we were sleeping in the boat waiting to launch in the morning. Image his surprise when I came flying out of the boat in my underwear and a gaff. He didn't even move or stop what he was doing till I started climbing over the side of the boat, then he ran like a scared little girl. My buddy still laughs and bugs me about it says it the funniest thing he's seen. He didn't know what was going on, just saw me running in my underwear swinging a gaff out in the dark.
 
I would suggest not leaving your riggers mounted when your boat is not actually fishing. Same thing with leaving rods in the rocket launchers etc..I see this all the time at the marina. If you do this, all you are doing is advertising for thieves and not just attracting them to your boat. but to all the other boats in the marina or dry land storage lot. When our boat is put into dry land storage we remove the kicker and take it home along with everything else of value. Same thing applies to your driveway. Just doing this simple thing will greatly cut your theft losses and those of your fellow boaters.
 
Had some guy try and break in to my truck one night when we were sleeping in the boat waiting to launch in the morning. Image his surprise when I came flying out of the boat in my underwear and a gaff. He didn't even move or stop what he was doing till I started climbing over the side of the boat, then he ran like a scared little girl. My buddy still laughs and bugs me about it says it the funniest thing he's seen. He didn't know what was going on, just saw me running in my underwear swinging a gaff out in the dark.

Hahaha.... I had to do nearly the same thing last summer. Except it was a buncha homeless people living/partying in the empty property across the way. Music playing all night and garbage everywhere. After about 5 nights of it around midnight in the middle of the work week i had enough and same thing, flew over there yelling my head off... but i was so mad I was naked and it wasn’t a gaff that was swinging. Lol. Turned out to be a pretty effective technique though as they loaded up their caravan and moved before I got home from work the next day.
 
Don't give theives the opportunity. In Vancouver the real theives are a bit more sophisticated. They steal it and don't sit on it. It's already sold. For example, they take a pic of what they are going to steal, list it or fence it at a "good deal" "smokin' deal" price, make arrangements for it to be sold upon viewing, then pick it the night before.

I heard a story about someone locally who saw the back of their boat in a Craigslist ad with the engine mounted..... crazy but true.....the theives were pre-selling it before it was sold. Similarly I know someone who bought a 4 stroke 9.9 Mercury kicker as at "don't ask any questions" price and sold it for twice that in a week.
 
So far this thread brings 4 things to mind:
1) I've parked to shop and left my unattended boat in many of the aforementioned lots. Changing my shopping routine would leave more of my money in my town and less on the Island.
2) Keeping my old boat with peeling paint, badly colour-matched patch jobs, and old motors as is; and continuing to run old riggers and a dog's breakfast of mismatched rods and cheap reels makes more and more sense.
3) Sadly, I'm slowly aging out of being capable of running down and pummeling anyone, but I'll still try.
4) Who are the #$%holes who buy all the hot stuff?
 
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