You can read about this at Suspects follow dealer home from show. Be vigilant folks . . . the bad guys are getting bolder and are going to greater lengths to get what they want. If you see something, say something.
I 'Liked' your thread/post because you brought this to everyone's attention AND because the dealer wasn't robbed or harmed. Unfortunately the suspect now knows the dealers home location. I hope the story ends here. I have serious doubts though. I wish the dealer good luck, good fortune and much safety.
I share your concerns for that dealer, but also for most others. As such incidents become seemingly commonplace, I myself am considering abandonment of my long-held table at the local show, and only doing the occasional major show for which air travel would make following difficult.
These days dealers, and everyone else for that matter, need to be more vigilant about security. Take prudent measures that many of us learned years ago - vary your travel routes, remember/write down license numbers, etc. If you are being followed, drive to the nearest police station, not home! If you don't know where the police stations are then find out! Situational awareness is key. Bad things can happen at anytime.
One of our older dealers here was hit twice on the way home...one time he stopped for gas ,and didn't want to pay at the pump...bad mistake as they cleaned him out...the next time he was hit in front of his home. This time recived some injuries. Sadly that was enough to make him quit as his injuries lead to other medical issues. We told him that none of us go from the show right home...that we chooseva route out of the way, with several moves to ensure that if being followed one might recognize that they were a target. The gas station was his cheapness issue fault...as he saved a few cents on a gallon paying cash! Duh ??? And lost his coin inventory. When I worked the shows..I stayed until all dealers were packed up...and on their way...walking as well helping them to their cars. I also walked customers whom we knew were cash or coin heavy.
One of the biggest concerns about our hobby is safety. I'm very careful who I tell about my collection and when I do talk about it, I always refer to it as my hobby not a collection!! Hope the dealer isn't followed anymore and remains safe! Thanks for the reminder to be very very careful!
Thanks for the heads up, I changed two items on my profile due to this. The picture of my restored truck and the name of my home town.
I just saw this post and I am concerned about my wife and my security. We live in the country, about a mile down a dirt road. Our mail is dropped in our mailbox on a paved road. So far, no problems. Our neighbors on the paved road have their mail delivered at the same place ours is and they watch the mailboxes. I think that no matter how safe you try to be, some thieves are better than we can be. Amazon delivers to our house. U.S.Mint delivers to our mailbox. Our neighbor bought a wig and they stole that. Any hints?
I lived in the country for decades. Your fears are justified. Be paranoid and prepared. The more prepared you are, the less afraid you will or should be. Preparation reduces fear. Long stories ahead.... I am comfortable with a $28 per month simpisafe security system. To get to my safe, you pass three cameras uploading to the net. I have the doorbell camera to alert me of any doorbell activity or motion on my porch. I prefer to have coins delivered to my door with a required signature or if they have very high value, to my friend at a local business. His secretary will sign and keep the package for me. I prefer UPS Ground or FedEx vice the mailbox. I have found even UPS will leave a package requiring signature at your door. Go figure. My wife has a really stupid two-pound yip dog, barks at everything unless it is caged. We have a pistol for each adult in the house. When away from the house, I carry a pistol. I do not trust semi-automatics, they jam. I keep most of my high dollar coins in the local bank deposit box to protect them from tornados. I keep a spare pistol in my safe, along with pepper spray and a large knife sitting on a shelf near the safe. I do not answer the door to a stranger unless I am holding my loaded pistol. The paranoia may be due to having been stalked, and nearly robbed / mugged two or three times. Depends on how you define the terms. First time I was working overseas on an island. It was a very hot, dark and humid night. I was walking down a deserted country road which ran a mile along a cemetery with a high block fence. The other side of the road was forest. I was about a third of the mile along the fence when three guys in a car passed and stopped thirty yards ahead. I never broke stride and pretended I was holding a knife or pistol at my side as I continued to walk; never swinging my right arm or moving my right hand. I did move my left hand and arm to wipe sweat from my face. They kept pulling ahead, trying to get the courage to act. They finally left. Great bluff. If they had left the car, I would have gone into the forest and waited. The second time I was nearly robbed was when my prospecting partner and I were twenty-seven miles off the highway looking for hidden silver bars in the ghost town of Vekol. It is on the Pima Reservation. We were unloading his jeep and I turned to see a guy walking towards us. He had a shotgun on his shoulder. I put my hand in my jacket pocket, cocked my pistol and warned my buddy. I started to move behind the jeep to put it between me and the stranger when he drew down on me. He ordered me to remove my hand from my pocket. I told him that was not going to happen. An interesting and colorful discussion resulted. My sailor experience with colorful words and phrases came in handy. I finally convinced the stranger to put his shotgun back onto his shoulder. He did so and invited us to his camp for coffee and prospecting stories. He ended up joining our prospecting team for the day. He was an ex-con, no automobile, looking for treasure and starving to death in the mountains. He told us there are a lot of ex-cons in the mountains looking for lost treasure and gold. That explains the four times my camps have been plundered and only food and a couple cooking items have been stolen. I never sleep in camp when I am in the wilderness. Just before dark we gave the ex-con most of our food, and we went north to the Estrellas for a treasure hunt near Hidden Valley. A couple years later, someone fired a warning shot at me in the Tonto range south of Seven Springs. The warning was clear, the bullet hit a tree, exactly head high, eight feet to my left. I never flinched, I did leave the area and went back to town. I returned with four other prospectors. We were there to hunt him down or at least show we will not be intimidated. No sign of the shooter. Crazy dangerous world. You never know when someone insane or someone desperate or just dangerous is close to you.
i learned something years ago if you think like a crook you can beat a crook cause you know their mindset, what they look for and what they dislike and what they like one must know their their enemy to beat them
The only comment of value in my previous post is to use a business in town to receive your items. I sometimes use my friend's Dentist office. No one is expecting coins to be delivered there. Better would be some trusted friend with a business open on Saturday.
Good situational awareness Dennis. Based on your life experiences portrayed above you seem to have some hobbies that put you in harms way more than the average Joe. Carrying concealed when prospecting should be no less important than having your metal detector, sluice box, or gold pan with you. If you're lucky enough to hit the jackpot, someone nearby and out of sight might be looking to cash in on your jackpot. Be vigilant, aware of your surroundings and prepared to protect yourself. You seem very well in tune with all that. Kudos to you. I hope you never have to brandish or actually pull that trigger.
