subject: How To Become A Burglar [print this page] So you want to change your job or career and become a burglar? Why not buy a gun and rob stores and banks? Theres a 85% chance youll get caught in armed robbery on your first job. Less than 15% of home burglars are ever caught or serve time in jail.
Professional burglars dont go after sub-division houses normally. They are looking for high-end jewelry, paintings and artifacts. You will likely fall into the semi-pro or amateur category. Youll have to learn about surveillance cameras, alarm systems and lock systems. Youll want to understand what MACE, pepper spray, Tasers and stun guns can do to you when confronted by a home owner armed with these weapons. You will have to understand that you should not carry a gun and if confronted with a gun run or surrender. Not only will you probably not want to kill anyone, but if caught by the police the difference between a burglary and an armed burglary is 5 or 20 years.
You will learn to cruise the neighborhood looking for poorly kept yards and houses with lots of bushes you can hide behind and will give you cover from the street and neighbors while gaining entrance. Your vehicle should be parked close enough to make your escape, but not so close to the scene that neighbors can see it if there is a ruckus. Single-level homes are best as the master bedroom with the owners keys, jewelry and possibly drugs will then be on the first floor. While picking out your target home, look for a security camera and house security system or window sensors attached to the glass.
Next, you will park around the block and walk right up to the house and ring the doorbell. If no one answers, listen for a dog barking inside. With no one answering the door and no dog, go around to the back and find the easiest way to enter the house. Dont worry about picking locks, but be aware of multiple locks on a given door. The quickest way to get in is by breaking the door down with your shoulder or breaking a window. Door bars and glass sensors will deter your ability to break-in or smash a window without setting off an alarm. Plan eight minutes in and out, that will probably get you out of there before the police arrive if a neighbor called them or you set off an alarm.
Okay, okay I am not really trying to make you into a burglar. You are probably a hard-working person that has earned the right to their house and possessions. In spite of losing your valuable things and possibly your flat screen TV the trauma of a home invasion doesnt go away easily. It may take months to be able to sleep soundly after a home invasion. My goal here is to make you think about ways to protect your home while you are asleep or away on vacation or business.
Always make your home look occupied even if no one is there. Keep your yard managed and dont allow over grown shrubbery. Have someone come in while you are gone and collect your mail and newspapers. Pay someone to mow your yard or shovel your sidewalk and driveway while you are gone. Nothing beats a good security camera or full video security system to deter thieves or to use as evidence in court. Dummy cameras have their place in making your video security system appear more extensive than it is. Door braces, window alarms and radios left on or even a motion sensing barking dog alarm make a criminal nervous about breaking into your home. Steel entrance doors with dead bolt locks are best. In a windowed door you need a dead bolt that requires a key from both sides. If you buy a TV or other electronic device such as a camera or computer, dont just leave the empty carton beside your trash can. Take the carton to a commercial dumpster to dispose of it. The store where you purchased the object will gladly let you put the empty carton in their trash.
Do not buy a gun to protect your house or family! Unless you are a trained law enforcement official or trained soldier you will regret pulling out a gun on a burglar. Instead, look into MACE. Pepper spray, stun guns or a Tasers. I could go on for another one hundred pages about what you can do to protect your home from invasion. Instead my goal is to make you think. Every home and every situation is different, but you need to take some time to think like a criminal that wants to break into your home and take your things. Talk to your family and neighbors, they probably have some good ideas or experience. One of the best deterrents is a neighborhood that is aware and willing to question people or call the police when they suspect something. Every neighbor around you should have your phone number and know who lives in your house, and you should have the same information about them.
