Police Officer Preparation & Law Enforcement Resource - Archive

I own a company (Corporation with 90 employees), and have noticed things missing over the last couple of years and always knew someone was stealing from me, but never had any proof. Well, last week, several chainsaws went missing from our Supply Room, and we decided to put cameras in (they are not in yet, but will be next week). However, today (coincidentally), I received an anonymous phone call from a woman who says that a guy that works for us has a garage full of our equipment and is trying to sell it. (She saw our company name on a tag that was attached to a piece of the equipment). She described all of the equipment that he has, and it is things that we have noticed have gone missing, and the value is at least $10,000. She gave us his name and address, and it's definitely one of our employees. We called the police today, and they said there is nothing they can do without proof of him taking it. Any suggestions on where I go from here? Located in Pennsylvania. Thanks!

You would need to know who the woman is, and convince her to tell the police what she told you.

Without a witness, they will be unable to get a search warrant for his residence.

She said her husband is friends with our employee, and wouldn't give her name. I do not have a way to get hold of her, but if she does call back, am I allowed to offer her a reward to participate?

Yes, you are allowed to do that. Go ahead with the camera idea though. If you catch him stealing, the police have better grounds for a search warrant in any case.

I think they're saying they need proof that the employee is the one who physically took the equipment, not that he just has it.

Definitely set up the camera and good luck...

Thanks

And the police said they would not be able to obtain a search warrant with the story I provided here, so there is nothing that they can currently do.

They probably could technically go and try to get consent and if he gives it and they find the stuff then you at least have Receiving Stolen Property, but if he doesn't consent to it then you can kiss that stuff goodbye by the time the police can get the warrant and that's IF they get one.

Check the camera footage. You now have a name so you have a place to start to look.

Also make sure you have some paperwork to document the theft losses.

Please tell me that you have been reporting the thefts as they have occurred and have been providing serial numbers for all the stolen items... ??

Please tell me that you have been reporting the thefts as they have occurred and have been providing serial numbers for all the stolen items... ??

I can guess the answer would be, serail numbers "maybe they can be found...Reporting each theft, NO..

Sounds like the usual to me..

Also make sure you have some paperwork to document the theft losses.


Please tell me that you have been reporting the thefts as they have occurred and have been providing serial numbers for all the stolen items... ??

Yeah, good points, for RSP you must first show the stuff was actually stolen. Guess I assumed he did...

Hire a Private Investigator.....preferably a retired cop who looks like he knows what he is doing. He can do some tracking, befiorend the guy, and get in that garage with a hidden camera. Then call the police with the evidence.

Worst case, pull the guy in...confront him......give a few hours to return the property and you "won't call the cops." Ask him to sign a note saying he took it and will return it within a few hours. After he returns it, fire him.

How does she know he is trying to sell the equipment? Craigslist? Ads in the paper? Pawning them? If we received information like that I know that we would be more than willing to have an undercover officer contact him and attempt to meet and buy the equipment, only to then arrest him. That said, you need to obviously have proof that it's yours and that it was stolen. If you have had over $10,000 of equipment stolen over the past couple years but have never reported any of it then you're likely not going to get that type of police assistance and should do exactly what Joey said.

It perplexes me that you say you have noticed all this equipment going missing over the years but you never had proof someone was stealing from you. Isn't the missing equipment proof enough? It's not like chainsaws can get up and walk away on their own.