to catch a thief - advice needed

[larryhead]

ok, i need some advice... our garage was recently broken into and my neighbor kelly's mountain bike was stolen (again). this happened a few months ago too. she thinks we are leaving the door open out of carelessness, but i pretty much ALWAYS watch to make sure the doors go down before i leave.

the situation:
- we have a garage with two automatic garage doors

- Wed. morning the girl pulled out of the garage, and she noticed when she closed the garage door that our door had been tagged w/ graffiti. someone had tagged our garage Tues. night.

- she calls me on her way to work to let me know, and i went down to check out the damage around 9am Wed. morning

- i am nearly positive (but not absolutely 100%) that i closed both garage doors before leaving for work.

- later on the downstairs neighbors call us to inform us that when they came home at 10:45am BOTH garage doors were open, and the upstairs neighbor kelly's expensive mountain bike is missing

- all the neighbor's first assumption is that *I* had left the garage doors open when i went down to check out the graffiti that morning

- the girl and i come home Wed. night after work. when we pushed the door opener, our door jammed halfway on it's way up and stopped, something it has NEVER done before. we also noticed a brand new dent in the left corner of the door. it looks as if someone has forced the door open.

- we try the opener again and now the garage door is behaving normally and not jamming any more.

- today, Thurs. morning, i go with the downstairs neighbors to check out the garage door, and the door is behaving normally, they are also skeptical that the small dent, is actually the result of someone forcing their way in - they think the dent would have been bigger if that were the case. it also doesn't explain why BOTH doors were open when they came home. they are not convinced that I did not just carelessly leave the doors open.


the problem:
- kelly and the other neighbors automatically think i left the door open, allowing anyone to walk in and steal her bike. how am i going to convince her that the door jammed up earlier (when it's working fine now), and that the dent in the bottom is brand new from being forced open. she already presumes i'm guilty and was careless and left it open.


the solution?
- do we just pay kelly for her bike - and thereby assume guilt. she already thinks i left the door open, and probably won't be convinced otherwise. it is an expensive top of the line bike, so i'd be shelling out some big bucks.. and she would continue to think i'm totally carelessness and caused the theft. the girl thinks we should do this b/c i cannot be 100% positive i watched both doors close before i left. this would be the "neighborly thing to do" to put kelly's mind at rest and not cause a big ugly finger-pointing argument.

- or do i try to point out the evidence.. which since the door is working fine again, the only evidence i have is just a minor dent in the door that i would have to convince her is brand new. not much to go on, but i'm POSITIVE the dent is new and the door DID jam - which is never has done before. also, this happened the morning after our garage had just been tagged with lots of graffiti - coincidence? i think someone is watching for when we all go to work, and was probably waiting to break in our garage. there are plenty of houses and windows around where someone could hide and watch us from. also, you could see kelly's bike in the garage from the window, so they would have known it was in there. this was also the only thing stolen.

what would you do???????

[Soul Queen]

File a police report if your positive that something was stolen. Most large cities you can do this online without calling anyone or hasseling with the police face to face.

This way you can show your neighbor your positive the place was broke into. Thieves are pretty crafty. I've had my laptop stolen and my car broken into TWICE without a scratch to show they were even there.

I personally wouldn't pay for the bike. You filed the police report. If its top of the line then it sounds like its one of those $$$ and maybe even $$$$ bikes.
It sounds like it doesn't matter what you do your neighbor isn't going to be satisfied with the result. Can they prove they didn't leave the doors open? If not how can they prove you did?

Besides if they have renters insurance they can file a claim and get their money from the insurance company.

In theory they could collect from the insurance company and collect from you if you agree to pay for the bike. It depends how well you trust your neighbors not to screw you. Which is sounds like they are.

Guess thats a cynical point of view.

[Soul Queen]

I guess it depends on how well you know your neighbors and how well you trust them.

If your good friends, then it could be just a misunderstanding.

[larryhead]

thanks sq.

i guess i don't feel it's my place to file a report w/ the police because it was her property that was stolen (nothing of mine was taken). but her bike was stolen (whether doors were open or not), so i agree that she should file a report.

also - i don't think she has renter's insurance as she owns her unit (maybe she has homeowner's?).

and the fact is, that i was the last person to use the garage door before the theft. she has been out of town all week. and the two guy's downstairs discovered the doors were opened when they came home - about 2 hours after i had left. :(

[Lori Burger]

I was thinking that you could split the cost with the neighbor? This is a gesture of good faith, but you don't have to eat the entire cost. And it should calm her down.

[slam]

i wouldn't pay a dime. yeah, it sucks, but unless you feel guilty, don't do it.

she should have homeowner's insurance. even then, she should lock up her bike EVEN IF IT IS IN A GARAGE. if all you're relying on is a garage door to keep your shit safe, you're asking to have it stolen. hell, my bike was stolen off our back porch, on the second floor, behind a locked gate.

it sucks you got robbed, but it's not your fault.

[larryhead]

I guess it depends on how well you know your neighbors and how well you trust them.

If your good friends, then it could be just a misunderstanding.

we all get along fine. there are three units and each person owns their unit so we are pretty trusting of one another.

i think the other owners already think we're just careless - mainly because the doors have been left open in the past, and they presumed it was our fault, though none of us could ever be sure who did it. and now this most recent break-in unfortunately would appear to back up their opinion. :drumfingers:

[False Alarm]

larryhead,

give me your address. i will break into your garage and steal something valuable from you, maybe everything valuable. to keep up appearances, i'll never return any of it. then your neighbor will believe you.

[paul]

she should have homeowner's insurance. even then, she should lock up her bike EVEN IF IT IS IN A GARAGE. if all you're relying on is a garage door to keep your shit safe, you're asking to have it stolen.

I totally agree. Common areas and garages aren't appropriate places to store valuables. Any idiot knows this. Whether you, the neighbor, or someone else left the door open accidentally, or there was a forced entry, doesn't matter in my opinion. I have a garage now, and I don't keep anything valuable in it, including my non-expensive bikes, and I don't even have to share it with anyone.

[JVO]

I would absolutely not pay a dime. If you do pay, what is going to happen next time when a car is vandalized, or something else is stolen? You are going to be expected to pay for that also. Also, legally if you agree to pay anything you are essentially accepting all liability. This could be problematic if anything else in the future turns up missing.

I like False Alarm's idea also.

[mrjohnchimpo]

i don't think you should pay. she shoulda been more careful. if the bike is really that expensive, leaving it laying around in a SHARED GARAGE is stupid.

also payment = admission of guilt.

i too think you should take FA up on his offer. although he's a better second-story man than garage guy.

[Soul Queen]

It should be her responsibility to file the report. Homeowners or renters, I think the policies are pretty similiar when it comes to theft. As long as she files a report, takes pictures of the dent and graffiti I would say she has pretty solid claim.

It's paperwork, but shit happens. Surely, this isn't the first time something was swiped from her while living in the city.

[larryhead]

I would absolutely not pay a dime. If you do pay, what is going to happen next time when a car is vandalized, or something else is stolen? You are going to be expected to pay for that also. Also, legally if you agree to pay anything you are essentially accepting all liability. This could be problematic if anything else in the future turns up missing.

I like False Alarm's idea also.

Very good point JVO. It sounds like this is the consensus here too.

Thanks everyone for your input.

[zero2056]

I think you should compensate your dumb-ass neighbor by buying her one of those large adult tricycles (with horn & bell). Nobody'll steal that turd.

Why does a resident of Chicago need a very expensive Mountain Bike anyway?? Looked pretty flat and un-rustic last time I was there.

[Ag Au]

yeah, don't pay for the bike. you didn't steal it, and it is not your fault that it was. insurance will cover it.
our downstairs neighbors lost their old crummy laptop when someone slinked their arm through the barred window and lifted it stealthily out. they were dumb to leave it on their desk so close to the window, but i was really surprised that the physical anatomy of a person would allow such a feat. their apt. is ground floor, but the window is over most people's heads. the neighbors left a nice hate note to the person who stole it up in their window for a bit. not sure if it was a good idea, but it was funny.

[007]

I think you should compensate your dumb-ass neighbor by buying her one of those large adult tricycles (with horn & bell). Nobody'll steal that turd.

:lol::lol:

---------------
Yeah, don't pay.

Also, Don't take up FA on his offer. This would be most unwise.

[Padrote]

Sorry to have a difference of oinion but i would talk to the neighbor and see if you can come up with an agreement. If you share the garage and you are unsure if you did not shut then maybe she will agree it's not your fault. Also, she should know she is responsible even though it's in the garage. If she demands money it may be better to agree to pay a little. there is no sense in saying screw you you lost your bike. but thats just my opinion.