Northwest Dive Club

Missing/Stolen
Hey Everyone

Janna Nichols had her purse, laptop computer and palm pilot mysteriously disappear today while doing her fish ID class at Titlow Beach. If anyone should happen to hear anything or know of their whereabouts please contact Janna (or me, and I can forward messages).

Purse: grey nylon-type fabric
Computer: Compaq Impressario
Tungsten Palm Pilot



Find the people who did this so I can use them as crab bait...I hate people like that..

I heard that her camera was also stolen!!! I sure hope that first of all her insurance covers her loss but also that the pathetic people who stole the items are not divers!!!!!

Dave wrote:I heard that her camera was also stolen!!! I sure hope that first of all her insurance covers her loss but also that the pathetic people who stole the items are not divers!!!!!

I'd think they would have stolen some dive gear if they were divers. The stuff they stole is the common type of stuff thieves can easily get rid of. How about checking at local pawn shops? Tom, you live nearby, is this something you can do?

This is simply terrible. It couldn't have happened to a nicer person. Janna is one of the kindest, most giving people I know.....not that the pathetic thieves that did this would give a rip about that.

I'm with Dave....find 'em and use them as crab bait.

But hey.....I'm a deep trimix diver.....I can stuff them in holes so deep that they will NEVER be found....except maybe by a six gill looking for a nice, ripe snack.

grumble....grumble....grumble.

- John

John Rawlings wrote:I'm a deep trimix diver.....I can stuff them in holes so deep that they will NEVER be found....except maybe by a six gill looking for a nice, ripe snack.

- John

Remind me not to ever piss off a trimix diver (including...er, especially you).




All kidding aside. I do hope we can find a lead on whoever did this.

I'd think they would have stolen some dive gear if they were divers. The stuff they stole is the common type of stuff thieves can easily get rid of. How about checking at local pawn shops? Tom, you live nearby, is this something you can do?[/quote]

I will e mail Janna and ask her for a list of the stuff taken, and perhaps Bassman and myself can check on a few area pawn shops. We'll give 'er a go...

I dont know what I would do if I saw someone rifeling through my rig or my boat...It would be bad news for them.....Anyway I think the more the word gets out to all the places like pawn shops and fourms like this the better the recovery..Mabee we should set our own little sting opp.. set some gear up on a truck have a couple buddies w/tinted glass pull up across the way and watch..someone would bite on it..If he dont run u just turn him into the police and if he runs track him down and beat his --- then turn him into the cops..Or have some one hold him while we drop a allum. 100 tank on his big toe But that would be to good for them....

Man I think Between dave and John this guy is TOAST
I am sorry to hear Janna's stuff got ripped off. I hope all works out

Hey Mav..Should come up to Alaska to do a little harvesting w/us ahe?????

Hi guys, just wanted to follow up and let you know the outcome of the theft in April. We wound up discovering a TON of our stuff got ripped off out of our van while we were on the 2nd dive.

Laptop computer, Palm tungsten E, portable DVD player, purse, cash, credit cards, new canon digital camera, and more. Those were the big things.

Anyway, it turned out that we had contents replacement coverage on our homeowners insurance, and that covered the theft! We had a $500 deductible, but they took care of everything, and a company called National Vendor just got descriptions of everything and replaced it!

For a few days packages would arrive at my door with brand new goodies each day - a new HP laptop computer, new Canon camera, new everything!

Pretty slick.

So, it all ended OK eventually. The bank accounts and credit cards were a major hassle though, and we have just barely gotten that resolved.

The creeps went out and immediately charged GAS to my credit card - two tanks. I think they were small-time types because they could have done much greater damage had they known how.

We're monitoring our credit reports to make sure nothing else happens.

Thanks for all your support, kind words, and offering to beat up the creeps who did this

- Janna

Boy that's the truth!! It's pretty hard for me not to, since I live 3 hours away from where I was teaching, and couldn't exactly drop my stuff off at home before the dives. :(

I'm sure aware about what I bring with me nowadays though...

- Janna

I'm glad it all worked out Janna, that was a bad ending to an otherwise splendid day. Now that I know you got all your stuff back I can feel a lot better about it.

But if I ever see a jack*ss walking around with your gear I'm going to have to :naka:

Congrats Janna! It's nice to get new stuff, but what a headache in the meantime!

This highlights a dillemma for the majority of us who do our diving from shore... what to do with our gear in the meantime. I remember wanting to hoof extra tanks, etc shoreside so as not to have to hike all the way back to a vehicle between dives, yet being concerned that they would walk away while we were underwater. Yet leaving stuff in the car only makes things slightly safer. What to do?

Ideas anyone? This is something all of us will be dealing with as long as we shore dive without a butler left to watch our stuff!

Non-diving wives!!! Yeah!!! (kidding of course!)

Yes this is an issue - some areas will be better than others, but these creeps know that these cars belong to divers and that the divers aren't coming back anytime soon. "Smash & grab" is easy and fast, but there are a few things you can do to make it less desireable. First, if you must leave valuables in your car, be sure they're out of sight. Locking them in the trunk is the best, but at least put valuables under the seat (and be sure they're out of view). A lock-box that is attached to the car (such as in a jeep) is another great option as it's not "easy & fast." A van poses a more difficult issue - Janna, perhaps you lock your stuff in someone else's trunk or for you I'd recommend a secure, attached lock box (since you're always away from home and don't have an option of leaving stuff at home).

My good friend takes his phone, keys, and wallet with him inside his drysuit which he keeps in a small dry bag in a pocket (incase of a flood). This way he always has his bank-related stuff on him as well as a cell phone for any issues/emergencies and the keys to his car aren't left in that oh-so-secret hiding spot on top of the tire (under the fender).

I think another targeting mechanism is the red/white diver down sticker most divers have on the back of their car. I know most people won't take it off their car, but it's a dead give-away that if the people aren't by their car right now, they probably won't be back for a while.

Those are the quick-fix suggestions - otherwise a monkey in a tree with a tazer is a good solution... entertaining to watch too!

Great Suggestions!

Non-diving wives... now there's a thought. I have no doubt what the main reaction would be!

And don't forget to add a video camera to the monkey-in-a-tree-with-a-tazer plan!

Although Erica (my almost-wife) would GLADLY babysit gear until I get her a drysuit... she did her cert dives in a wetsuit and was miserable. She's a petite girl so the cold cut right through her. She's looking forward to a drysuit... and then I'll be able to get her in the water again!!!

That's certainly an option! My assistant was looking at my computer when I just opened that up and she screeched! Very Funny!

I was talking to Rick Meyers at Banditos and it seems that divers have been discovered by theives.

It is VERY common for divers' cars to get hit at Johnny's in Tacoma. Theives see dive stickers and they know the owners are out on a charter. I was hit last summer, and luckily, they ended up getting nothing. However, a few weeks ago divers from Yakima got hit pretty hard there. 3 cars, windows shattered and theives made off with everything except their dive gear.

About a week or so ago, one of the diver's wives was walking up from the beach at Redondo to see a guy trying to break into their truck. The little jerk got away but not before breaking a window. I talked to someone recently who told me his buddy's car was stolen at Redondo!

And...of course, Janna's car at Titlow.

The only place I haven't heard of a problem is Les Davis but with the extra police force around, most theives aren't that bold.

Rick told me he now keeps someone where the charters pick up/drop off and that has helped, a lot. I know I watch a lot more carefully now and remind everyone I dive with to keep valuables out of site. That helps a lot too. I have been more observant lately too. Hopefully, that will deter these creeps from touching our vehicles!

Great reminder Amy, and welcome to NWDC!

I was on that charter when the people from Yakima were burglarized. I think I avoided the same fate by leaving my car near and facing the road, where burglars could not hide. Their cars were parked so their windows could be smashed, then insides pilfered without being seen. To add insult to injury, about two minutes after the discovery, it downpoured buckets of rain for ten minutes. Glad I did not have to road-trip back to Yakima with garbage bags for windows.

Sounds like the old - take only the essentials with you in a small bag and keep them with you on the boat.

One suggestion I gave people (hikers - not a lot of ocean to dive in around Arizona) when I was a police officer was leaving a piece of paper in plain view with a hand written note saying "there is nothing in this car to steal." It worked very well although sometimes would cause the perp to vandalize the vehicle. It can be argued that while the car will be damaged if it's vandalized, it'll be damaged if they try to steal stuff too - worth the risk of putting a sign? It has worked for people in the past, but is a personal decision.

What you really don't want is to look vulnerable and valuable. Having stuff in the car like bags, purses, phones, etc will catch their interest. When I drive to charters I bring my little beat-up toyota pick-up truck. They can look in the front and back and see there's nothing there to steal... It's better than a sign because it isn't "challenging" them. I leave the nice car & suv at home and bring the beater (runs great and gets great mileage, but looks like crap).

it really sucks when people steal things. i have always been super-paranoid about this and it comes from years of climbing and hearing story after story of people having thousands of dollars of gear and other items stolen while they were out climbing (not to mention having cars broken into and/or stolen over time). my boyfriend thinks i'm being paranoid when i make him put *everything* out of sight - keys, glasses, pieces of paper, whatever. unless it's obvious trash (like a fast food bag with an empty cup), it goes in the cargo area where it is completely hidden. and whenever possible, i take anything valuable with me. i can't believe how many people i know of who left their wallet in their car and had it stolen. i don't know what they were thinking! *DUH* and when i can't take it with me i try to either not bring it in the first place or see if there's somewhere i can leave it where it will be safe - like a nearby friend's house or a climbing shop's back room. if those weren't options, we would sometimes stash it away in the woods somewhere. and like someone said above - try to park your rig in the most conspicuous open public spot where people are always walking by or on/near a busy road. and if you notice people watching you (and you have time to do this) leave and/or keep driving and come back later when they're gone because they sometimes case areas to see what people are putting in their trunks before they leave. (and if you know you need to put valuables in your trunk, it is always best to do that before you get where you're going just for that reason!) ooh; too much rambling on my part now ... just wanted to share some of my madness on the subject. luckily janna had insurance on her stuff - many people don't.