So...I caught my first Coin Thief!

At a minimum the thief should be banned from attending that coin show in the future.

 

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What's his name and where does he live? I think it's fair and legal to simply note him as an "alleged" crook. Put him in the light of day.

 

Kudos to you for catching the theif and standing up for yourself. It would have been easy to accept the offer of 3 times value for the coins. Sometimes the principle behind things outweighs everything else. The other dealer should have pressed charges as well. I also believe this thief should be banned from future coin shows. This theif has probablly gotten away with this crime many times in the past and hopefully will finally get what he deserves.

 

Nice job! Hopefully, he'll learn a lesson and you feel a lttile better after getting ripped off multiple times in the past. It's people like this that ruin the hobby for us honest collectors.

 

Well done ma'am!

 

Great job! Its a shame the coin promoter didnt file as well. I think everyone should file charges on people who steal.
How many times did this guy steal and get caught to only pay double the price and how many did he get away with. Im sure he made a killing.

 

Great job:thumb: I would do the same in that situation. Everyone that thinks to steal should be punished as much as they can be. Its when people get away with stuff that they think they can keep doing it.

 

They didn't give me the thief's name but I plan to get more info on him when I call the DA. And, yes, he is definitely banned from the Bakersfield show, and any show that this promoter does since they are also doing a new show in Ontario, CA. And the promotor took a cell phone photo of the guy and said he would send it around to other dealers and hopefully other show promoters, so I don't think the thief will be able to stay anonymous at coin shows.

However, even if I knew it, I am reluctant to post personal info on the internet about this thief right now since he isn't (yet) convicted of this crime, so I will have to see how it plays out and once he is hopefully convicted, I think it would be more appropriate to "post" who this guy is, etc.

And thanks again, everyone, for all the kind words and support. I was telling my husband this morning that, as much as I enjoy and appreciate (and, yes, eagerly read!) all the advice and "thumbs up" comments, after talking with other dealers and hearing stories about how many dealers don't prefer to file charges, it is pretty sad that what seems to me to be the no-brainer "right" thing to do by charging this thief, unfortunately, it is not necessarily so cut and dry for others, mostly just because it is inconvenient. What a shame.

 

Great job Charmy. There's a good chance your actions stopped a repeat thief for good, and hopefully a few others by publicly sharing the consequences. From what I've heard, once someone gets away with stealing in a scenario like a coin show, they keep doing it over and over with less fear of the consequences as their pattern of success develops. Now he has a new, real fear that could involve going to jail over his silly habit. You may have stopped this guy dead in his tracks.

This makes me wonder if it would be beneficial for dealers to have surveillance cameras set up over their tables. For a thief it's easy to keep track of several sets of eyes around you, but it might be much more discouraging if a camera was recording you. This might change the whole feel of a show though and keep honest people away who do not like the feeling of being watched.

 

Way to go Charmy, Roger

 

Nice job!!!

 

Great work! I wish people realized the time and effort put into an appearance at a show. You have to enjoy it. If you figured your hourly pay after expenses, it's not spectacular. Nothing like someone trying to take more of that away! I would've done the same.

 

Good going, Penny Lady. His name should be a matter of record and his photo should be blasted across the internet. You definitely did the right thing and I salute you.

Bruce

 

excellent work Charmy!!

 

Most dealers don't press charges if they get their oins back because in any cases they live a long way away and don't want to have to keep coming back for court dates that keep getting "continued" rather than settled. A smart theif keeps that in mind and tends to hit dealers from out of town and the further away the better.

Since the amount is small, dont be surprized if the DA decines to prosecute. And also don't be surprised if somehow you fail to receive notification about the court date and the charges get dismissed because you don't show up to press the complaint. happened to me on a stolen moped. They caught one of the guys that stole my moped and my bosses. Caught him redhanded on the bike. They never bothered to notify me about the court date and then turned him loose because I didn't show up and surprise surprise, my bosses bike was never recovered. At least not officially.

 

Penny Lady
I am not sure about other states, but here in PA the local paper posts the names of people arrested/charged every day in the police blotter. They will say so and so of street and town was arrested for (insert charge here) at (insert time here). They have this both in the printed paper and on their online version.

If it was me, I would calling the DA here every other day. I have seen a few cases here slip through the cracks because the person who was pressing charges didn't contact the DA fast enough.

Dave

 

Wouldn't it be funny if someone stole from him while he was busy stealing from someone else.

 

Thanks for doing that!! Most people don't want to take the time out of there life to press charges!!

 

When people steal from our nationwide company, we turn the information over to the local police. Sadly, unless it reaches a high enough dollar level, nothing is usually done (other than us firing the individual).

I remember vividly my own experience as a 17 year old kid, working at a national retailer, having been nabbed for stealing things out the back door. I was properly fired and prosecuted. After I was fingerprinted, I sat in a jail cell by myself for about an hour then released. I think they did this for effect. A few weeks later I went before the judge and received probation and I thankfully was eventually hired at a small sporting goods store whose owner was willing to take a chance on a stupid kid. That was a formative and powerful experience for me and I'm glad I had it.

 

Charmy Harker:


Poker game: Shark
US Copper:........Expert
Coinshow thieves :........Pitbull
All around gal: A sweetie hottie

best of all, my friend:hug: