Stories of cops/robbers?

[MikeOregon]

Hi,

I posted a similar thread a couple of years ago and enjoyed reading everyone's stories. If you've been detecting and dealt with cops and/or robbers, tell your story here!

Thanks to everyone for participating/reading this thread,

Mike

 

[MikeOregon]

My buddy R and I were detecting easements in a nearby town. At an intersection, he went one way, and I went the other. After a few minutes, I looked up to see how he was doing, and a police officer was talking to him. I thought, "I can't just let him sway in the wind," so I walked up to see what was going on. Seeing the odds were now two detectorists to just one officer, the officer's partner left the car and joined our little discussion to even things up.

Turns out a neighbor didn't like R's responses to some questions, and had called the police. However, the upshot of the whole thing was that the police called public works, and then verified to us that detecting in the parking strips is perfectly legal in that town, but that (as we knew, and as we did,) you have to leave if the residents don't want you on their particular parking strip.

In the end, the police got an education, because before they called public works, they were using the word "trespassing," and afterwards, they weren't.

Later, in another nearby town, before we detected we went to city hall and happened to catch the police chief coming out of the side door. We struck up a conversation with him and eventually got around to the topic of detecting easements. "Why not?" he asked. "It's public property isn't it?" That made it pretty easy!

I'm thankful I don't have any "robbers" stories to tell.

Mike

 

[DigginThePast]

Funny how that word "trespassing" gets thrown around so easily sometimes. Several years back I had thieves robbing my place of business at night. They would take items from outside, never breaking and entering.

In conversation with several officers I also mentioned trespassing and was told that I would have to place signs every so many feet, at such and such height etc and even then it would be hard to prove trespassing in court. One officer even told me that if the perps truck was pulled off the white line (out of the driving lane) in front of my place with items that I sell in the truck I would still need to have some kind of positive ID such as serial number or an identifying mark of some kind.

Anyway, I'm getting off topic, I find it ironic that they would suggest trespassing to you guys in light of what I've been told when I was the victim.

 

[Tuberale]

First the replies to other posters.

Different states and cities have different laws. Here in Portland, dectecting on the parking strip areas is "usually" legal, but it varies from site to site within the city. The property owner has to "maintain" the parking strip area, but the "city" owns them, and walking on any city sidewalk is not trespass. Look for water counters: they have to have access for checking the water meters. If a city meter reader can do it, it's probably legal for anyone else as well.

But some property owners are "certain" they own ALL their property. Rather than educate these morons, I move on.

My cops and robbers story: while researching old robberies, I found one story not far from me. Seems that back in the 1930's, when city streets were mostly macadam or corduroy, a robbery took place. The felons were apprehended a short distance away, but had already hidden their loot. Nonetheless both were jailed and sentenced for the robbery, and served many years. The site of the presumed cache is still undeveloped at this time. I'll give everyone a single clue: it is in Southeast Portland, and area that encompasses about 30 square miles.<grin>

 

[Dave P]

First the replies to other posters.

Different states and cities have different laws. Here in Portland, detecting on the parking strip areas is "usually" legal, but it varies from site to site within the city. The property owner has to "maintain" the parking strip area, but the "city" owns them, and walking on any city sidewalk is not trespass. Look for water counters: they have to have access for checking the water meters. If a city meter reader can do it, it's probably legal for anyone else as well.

But some property owners are "certain" they own ALL their property. Rather than educate these morons, I move on.

My cops and robbers story: while researching old robberies, I found one story not far from me. Seems that back in the 1930's, when city streets were mostly macadam or corduroy, a robbery took place. The felons were apprehended a short distance away, but had already hidden their loot. Nonetheless both were jailed and sentenced for the robbery, and served many years. The site of the presumed cache is still undeveloped at this time. I'll give everyone a single clue: it is in Southeast Portland, and area that encompasses about 30 square miles.<grin>

Even though it encompasses 30 square miles, if I were in the area, I would still give it a try. I would just have to try to think like a bad guy trying to get away from the cops in a hurry. I would look to see a place where it was out of site of the public eye ( That starts to narrow it down. ). Then I would do the process of eliminating " where I would not want to hide it," and then go from there. That would narrow it the search area down a bit more. I would just keep this process up until I had several smaller search areas waddled down and then take em on one and a time. Grid them off and go for it. If I did not find the loot I bet I would still find some other goodies and have fun all the while doing it. Good luck Tuberale. Dave P.

 

[Tuberale]

Thanks, Dave P. Actually the distance between the robbery site and where the robbers were apprehended was only 15 blocks apart (3/4 mile). Police were trailing them within 10 minutes after the robbers left the robbery site. All of the distance apparently was covered on a single road. And the most likely place at that time (and still today btw) is a single half-block of overgrown weeds where someone with a shovel was not likely to be seen by traffic (grass was 4-5 feet tall at the time). In re-reading my original post, I see I forgot to mention the robbers were caught with a dirty shovel in the back seat. How deep could you bury about $150 face value in mostly silver coins in under 10 minutes while hearing police sirens? If someone didn't already make a recovery and "forgot" to notify the store that was robbed, then the money is likely still where it got hurredly buried.

 

[Dave P]

Thanks, Dave P. Actually the distance between the robbery site and where the robbers were apprehended was only 15 blocks apart (3/4 mile). Police were trailing them within 10 minutes after the robbers left the robbery site. All of the distance apparently was covered on a single road. And the most likely place at that time (and still today btw) is a single half-block of overgrown weeds where someone with a shovel was not likely to be seen by traffic (grass was 4-5 feet tall at the time). In re-reading my original post, I see I forgot to mention the robbers were caught with a dirty shovel in the back seat. How deep could you bury about $150 face value in mostly silver coins in under 10 minutes while hearing police sirens? If someone didn't already make a recovery and "forgot" to notify the store that was robbed, then the money is likely still where it got hurredly buried.

You make a very good point that someone might have forgotten to notify the Store owners or is still in the ground.

 

[Lowbatts]

Sunday morning at 7:00 I was at the parking lot of the BK with Skates, Mayo, Clad and Watercolor and the cops came by to see if we had seen a guy running past. The guy had just stabbed someone a couple blocks away.

I asked the officer if the guy had any money on him, for my part. Hey, I don't work for free ya know!

Officer advised me to use my cell phone instead.

 

[batcap]

This story was told to me this spring, by a guy who said he'd take me to the spot. I'm waiting for fall when some of the overgrowth dies down. . .

Back in the mid seventies, two burglars were robbing a guy's house and loading up the homeowners classic Corvair with the loot. Much of this was old coins, unmounted for the most part. The police were alerted and the two thieves found themselves being chased. At this time some sanitary sewer pipe had just been installed between two neighborhoods, in an area between roads. The thieves managed to slip the Corvair between two baracades - damaging the car in the process, but the baracades were too narrow for the police to follow. The thieves intended to cross the construction site but they slid and crashed into a manhole, disabling the car. They grabbed some loot and fled, coins flying everywhere. They were caught at the bottom of the hill after abandoning the car part way down. Much of the loot was recovered, but apparently some was not. The guy who told me this story (a co-worker) and offered to show me the place had gone out there with just a shovel (no detector). He dug around and found, one at a time, enough coins to fill a"jelly jar". The coins were pocket change dating from the 1880's to the 1950's.

I made a solo expedition, I saw a manhole, but not the one. I didn't lift the cover to see the angles the pipes connected. I did recently write the relevant public works to see if I could get a glimpse of the sewer plans online or find a place to visit to view them. No response yet.

The overgrowth is bad. You could be standing 6 feet from a waist high manhole and not see it. The area is bordered on two sides by steep and densely overgrown hills. You can't randomly swing a detector here - you'd have to locate your spot, clear it a bit, and then swing to see if the story is true.

Once it cools down a bit and some of the vegetation dies down I'm going to have the guy show me the exact location if public works doesn't get back to me.

I swear this story was told to me as truth. I believe it enough to investigate.

 

[Tuberale]

I am friends with a retired sewer worker here in Portland. When he learned I used a metal detector, he started telling me some of the things he had found in sewer lines while they were being "cleaned". Periodically, the lines clog up with debris and rocks, and a high-powered vacuum truck is used to suction out debris from traps. The primo job was standing in the back of the dump truck with a shovel and making sure the load of debris was distributed evenly. He told of finding as many as 10 diamond rings a day, up to 25 wedding bands a day, plus assorted coinage, mostly silver, that would be snatched from the pile before being covered. He's been retired for several years now, and he refuses to let me see any of the loot. Even though he loves making outrageous stories up, I sense he's not kidding about this.

Here's a tip for detector users anywhere: where does your city dispose of its overflow sewage waste? Find out where those dump trucks unload the loads, and you might just find some of the stuff that got covered up before someone could pick it up. If it's into a stream or river, just downstream from that outlet during low water times (like now, for instance) can be, uh, magical. The needles can be a pain, so prepare with protective-soled footwear. This is NOT for the faint of heart or safety conscious.

 

[Dave P]

I am friends with a retired sewer worker here in Portland. When he learned I used a metal detector, he started telling me some of the things he had found in sewer lines while they were being "cleaned". Periodically, the lines clog up with debris and rocks, and a high-powered vacuum truck is used to suction out debris from traps. The primo job was standing in the back of the dump truck with a shovel and making sure the load of debris was distributed evenly. He told of finding as many as 10 diamond rings a day, up to 25 wedding bands a day, plus assorted coinage, mostly silver, that would be snatched from the pile before being covered. He's been retired for several years now, and he refuses to let me see any of the loot. Even though he loves making outrageous stories up, I sense he's not kidding about this.

Here's a tip for detector users anywhere: where does your city dispose of its overflow sewage waste? Find out where those dump trucks unload the loads, and you might just find some of the stuff that got covered up before someone could pick it up. If it's into a stream or river, just downstream from that outlet during low water times (like now, for instance) can be, uh, magical. The needles can be a pain, so prepare with protective-soled footwear. This is NOT for the faint of heart or safety conscious.

I just don't think I could get past the smell and the chance of getting some sickness from the sewers. I would rather hunt any other place than the sewers. Good luck to those of you who do. Dave P.