Profesional Photographer targeted for gear

Rew

My brother was followed from a job today and his car broken into when he stopped for petrol. He managed to grab some stuff back off them but the following was taken:

Nikon D4 camera 2000852
Nikon D4 camera 2001607
Nikon lens 70-200mm AF-S 20191706
Nikon lens 16-35mm AF-S 242405
Nikon Flash SB-910 serial number 2091709

kensutz

It's happening all too frequently now with people being followed and gear stolen from their cars of before they get to the car. Also people are posting up what events they're shooting on social media and what equipment they've decided to buy lately. Fair enough, you've made a purchase but if you go telling the whole world and it's mother, then people will target your movements if it's something that they'll think is worth stealing.

lisatiffany

Sorry to hear that Rew, where did this actually happen? I passed the serials onto some photographer friends in case they are offered or see any of the stolen gear online/etc.

Corkbah

happened in a petrol station near Glasnevin Cemetary (saw the details of it on facebook a few mins ago)

Feckin Scum !!

lisatiffany

"he was on a job in Glasnevin Cemetery and they followed him from there to a petrol station down the road. When he left the car they broke in grabbed the gear. He heard the alarm ran back and managed to grab his camera bag back but the 2 bodies and lens were separate to that and they got away with them. 4 big guts in a renault megan."," Its his work gear so insured by them. He actually tackled them and stopped them from getting away with all the gear so he has number plate and description etc and the gardai are on the case."

facebook - glad they have a plate and description, hope the car wasn't already stolen though.

actually 4 guys? the guy who was robbed the weekend of the bavaria races said it was 4 big guys did he not? = /

Rew

lisatiffany wrote: »

Sorry to hear that Rew, where did this actually happen? I passed the serials onto some photographer friends in case they are offered or see any of the stolen gear online/etc.

Glasnevin, he reckons they followed him from a job in the cemetery to a petrol station then broke into his jeep when he went to pay. He heard the alarm ran back in time to stop them getting everything.

Rew

Warning issued by the various associations:

http://www.photographers.ie/2012/07/criminals-target-photographer/

bullpost

Anyone any idea how they are offloading this stuff?
Sounds like if they are going to the trouble of targetting pros then they have someone ready to take this stuff off their hands for good money - possibly ending up overseas to make it harder to trace via serial numbers?

antoniolgj

bullpost wrote: »

Anyone any idea how they are offloading this stuff?
Sounds like if they are going to the trouble of targetting pros then they have someone ready to take this stuff off their hands for good money - possibly ending up overseas to make it harder to trace via serial numbers?

I would say so, but for us who by stuff from Adverts it’s a very good time to be aware of “good” offers and always make sure we know the origin of what we buy.

Most of the times thieves don’t still things for themselves but because there is a market for it, the harder we make for them to sell the stuff the better will be for us.

thebaz

bullpost wrote: »

Anyone any idea how they are offloading this stuff?

when my camera was nicked , i was told they sell them on for next to nothing, a small bag of gear - 30 euros or so

antoniolgj

thebaz wrote: »

when my camera was nicked , i was told they sell them on for next to nothing, a small bag of gear - 30 euros or so

But I still don't think this is the final destination.

Rew

This seems more profesional then some scumbag randomly stealing stuff and selling it for dugs. Id imagine there shifting it out of the country and selling it for good money elsewhere.

bullpost

Handy website which might help trace them.

Rew wrote: »

This seems more profesional then some scumbag randomly stealing stuff and selling it for dugs. Id imagine there shifting it out of the country and selling it for good money elsewhere.

Kenny Logins

bullpost wrote: »

Anyone any idea how they are offloading this stuff?
Sounds like if they are going to the trouble of targetting pros then they have someone ready to take this stuff off their hands for good money - possibly ending up overseas to make it harder to trace via serial numbers?

I was thinking the same - if there wasn't a market, the stuff wouldn't get stolen.

thebaz

antoniolgj wrote: »

But I still don't think this is the final destination.

couldn't tell you - the lack of interest and inertia from the authorities , I found disturbing , given how strict they are on other more trivial matters , such as over zealous parking enforcement in the area

sebphoto

by the way this doesn't look good. How do you think guys?

antoniolgj

thebaz wrote: »

...given how strict they are on other more trivial matters , such as over zealous parking enforcement in the area

Or if you are writing something “offensive” on Twitter...

lisatiffany

I just saw this on a flickr group. Says April but it was Glasnevin again ..hmm

folks,

bit of an extreme long shot here but i had my camera bag with camera inside, lens etc all stolen from the boot of my car yesterday afternoon in glasnevin, if you happen to see below package for sale on any sites you may browse through looking for camera bits and bobs let me know, thanks:

canon 400d
canon 17-55mm kit lens
canon 17-85 mm lens
canon 50 mm 1.8 lens
sigma 70-300 mm lens
canon 430 ex flash unit

on the look out at the mo for a replacement as i've been literally cleaned out of everything inc cards, filters the lot

handy tool
http://www.stolencamerafinder.com

lisatiffany

another update via facebook

A VERY IMPORTANT message from Alan Betson for all Irish photographers.

It seem the same gang which stole my equipment last wednesday also stole Fran caffreys gear last Tuesday . You might advise the members to watch out for a navy blue saloon Renault megane reg no. 99 d 71236 . With 3-4 male well built male occupants. Be aware of being followed going to and from jobs , leave nothing in your car.

btw - National Reg says its black, so I'm guessing it was resprayed?

amdgilmore

thebaz wrote: »

when my camera was nicked , i was told they sell them on for next to nothing, a small bag of gear - 30 euros or so

There's no way they'd be going to this much trouble for 30 quid a pop.

You'd make more money mugging tourists.

mrboswell

amdgilmore wrote: »

There's no way they'd be going to this much trouble for 30 quid a pop.

You'd make more money mugging tourists.

A neighbour of mine was offered a canon slr for 100 euro about 3 years ago while walking down the road and he said no. The guys said alright 50. He said no. The guy said alright so 20. He had to tell they guy to piss off and called the Garda.

I'd say they will rob anything and for theses guys following someone and popping their boot is not that much trouble. I don't imagine an employer will be ringing wondering why they aren't in work.

lisatiffany

I reckon if someone is going to the trouble of following and then knocking over a photographer than they already have someone to fence the gear for something a lot more than what's been mentioned. There are a lot of people from shoplifters to pro's who steal to order. The guys who are doing it obviously know how much the targeted gear is worth and know the demand for it. Usually if someone robs a camera from you in Dublin and it's not sold to someone on the street it ends up in either a pawn shop or even a charity shop, I'm not mentioning names but I've seen it many times. A regular mugger or junkie/etc hasn't a clue what a camera is worth and wouldn't go to the effort of breaking into a car boot because they know the risk of being seen or being caught, they go for simple opportunity and don't go around in gangs.

The guys who are doing this are getting their moneys worth because if they weren't they wouldn't go to all that effort and all of that risk. The police knowing and the police doing something about it are two different things, if tomorrow tourists were being mugged in high numbers there would be a swifter response from the gardai. Someone mentioned in another thread about how they didn't worry about someone having a supercar stolen, that's the attitude the police have with pro-equipment, they don't care that it cost so much nor would anyone who is not a photographer. There's a high chance that the gear will end up on various sites but it won't be any Irish ones, when the 100,000 worth nikon went walking from the phoenix park it was probably on a ferry within hours. I really doubt this gang is going around trying to flog a bag of camera gear to just anyone they meet for, they must already have buyers, if not here then in the UK.

magicbastarder

interesting to note that the close to €100k worth of gear stolen from jimi's music store was mostly recovered; there were lots of comments that it would have left the country within hours, but i've not heard where it was recovered.

Heard about Fran's gear being stolen. Very unfortunate for him.

That said, I can somewhat understand opportunism in his situation (as the area I'm lead to believe it was stolen from isn't well CCTV'ed or the likes) but the guy who had his gear taken in a petrol station; are those things not plastered in CCTV? Surely there must be a video of them attempting to take the guys gear and making off with it (or the scuffle, as he confronted them when he seen them?).


Was also talking to another photographer recently, who mentioned that he believes everyone who has been targeted recently, have all been IPPA members? I've no idea if that's true or not, though (and if it is, whether it's entirely coincidental or not).

Rew

Deleted User wrote: »

Heard about Fran's gear being stolen. Very unfortunate for him.

That said, I can somewhat understand opportunism in his situation (as the area I'm lead to believe it was stolen from isn't well CCTV'ed or the likes) but the guy who had his gear taken in a petrol station; are those things not plastered in CCTV? Surely there must be a video of them attempting to take the guys gear and making off with it (or the scuffle, as he confronted them when he seen them?).


Was also talking to another photographer recently, who mentioned that he believes everyone who has been targeted recently, have all been IPPA members? I've no idea if that's true or not, though (and if it is, whether it's entirely coincidental or not).

Most CC TV systems are ****e or aren't actually recording and even if you have it in perfect HD doesn't necessarily mean you can find the guys.

mrboswell

Deleted User wrote: »

Was also talking to another photographer recently, who mentioned that he believes everyone who has been targeted recently, have all been IPPA members? I've no idea if that's true or not, though (and if it is, whether it's entirely coincidental or not).

Unless the IPPA recently started fitting their members with GPS trackers then I say its safe to assume that its entirely coincidental

mrboswell

mrboswell wrote: »

Unless the IPPA recently started fitting their members with GPS trackers then I say its safe to assume that its entirely coincidental

Can't be too hard to find out who's an IPPA member, surely?

Members are usually fairly vocal about it, aren't they?

They seem like a useless organisation anyway (though I suppose that's for a different thread, really).

mrboswell

Deleted User wrote: »

Can't be too hard to find out who's an IPPA member, surely?

Members are usually fairly vocal about it, aren't they?

They seem like a useless organisation anyway (though I suppose that's for a different thread, really).

Easy to find out who is a member, yes. Doesn't mean you know what jobs they are going or or where they will be.

It is a coincidence about the members of the PPAI being targeted. They are also full-time professionals so therefore have more of a chance of being spotted with expensive gear and targeted.

The Snipe

There really does seem to be a lot of gear being stolen over the last few months doesn't there! I'll throw the details into the camera stores in Limerick to keep an eye out for em, and to other photographers!

kensutz

mrboswell wrote: »

Easy to find out who is a member, yes. Doesn't mean you know what jobs they are going or or where they will be.

It is a coincidence about the members of the PPAI being targeted. They are also full-time professionals so therefore have more of a chance of being spotted with expensive gear and targeted.

Like I mentioned earlier in the thread, people are advertising on Facebook, Twitter etc what they're buying and where they're going. Makes it easy to target them too and even if the profile is on private it doesn't mean nobody will leak info to the criminals.

Rew

kensutz wrote: »

mrboswell wrote: »

Easy to find out who is a member, yes. Doesn't mean you know what jobs they are going or or where they will be.

It is a coincidence about the members of the PPAI being targeted. They are also full-time professionals so therefore have more of a chance of being spotted with expensive gear and targeted.

Like I mentioned earlier in the thread, people are advertising on Facebook, Twitter etc what they're buying and where they're going. Makes it easy to target them too and even if the profile is on private it doesn't mean nobody will leak info to the criminals.

I highly doubt FB and twitter had anything to do with any of these incidents. It's a lot easier to go to public events spot a photographer, follow them and rob them.

Stalking them on twitter would be a huge waste if time and effort not to mention far more sophisticated then these guys are, they keep it simple that's why they get away with it.

Splinters

Is it just me or has all these recent thefts made anybody else completely paranoid about taking their camera out around Dublin?

As I mentioned earlier in the the thread (or possibly the other similar thread) Ive never had an issue so far and a fairly well built guy, however I still wouldnt fancy my chances against a gang of 4 professional criminals.

Even over the weekend, I recently picked up a Canon 24-70 L lens and was dying to take it for a test run. I went for a stroll on Friday evening and I must admit I experienced a level of paranoia that I never had before. It actually made it difficult to enjoy it.

I suppose Id rather be paranoid and more careful then blissfully ignorant and have all my gear stolen. Still though, its a very unpleasant situation.

Kenny Logins

Splinters wrote: »

Is it just me or has all these recent thefts made anybody else completely paranoid about taking their camera out around Dublin?

As I mentioned earlier in the the thread (or possibly the other similar thread) Ive never had an issue so far and a fairly well built guy, however I still wouldnt fancy my chances against a gang of 4 professional criminals.

Even over the weekend, I recently picked up a Canon 24-70 L lens and was dying to take it for a test run. I went for a stroll on Friday evening and I must admit I experienced a level of paranoia that I never had before. It actually made it difficult to enjoy it.

I suppose Id rather be paranoid and more careful then blissfully ignorant and have all my gear stolen. Still though, its a very unpleasant situation.

Run a black marker around that red band. The quality of your photos may suffer, but you'll feel safer.

Splinters

Ive heard of a lot of people doing this recently. I wonder if it really works. Generally (but I guess not always) you can spot expensive gear just by its size.

Im sure if any criminal spotted a photographer with what appeared to be a large camera with a large bulky lens would they really be deterred by the lack of a red ring. I suppose anything you can do to minimise the chances of it happening is worth a shot but Id wonder just how effective this really is.

DaireQuinlan

Splinters wrote: »

Ive heard of a lot of people doing this recently. I wonder if it really works. Generally (but I guess not always) you can spot expensive gear just by its size.

Im sure if any criminal spotted a photographer with what appeared to be a large camera with a large bulky lens would they really be deterred by the lack of a red ring. I suppose anything you can do to minimise the chances of it happening is worth a shot but Id wonder just how effective this really is.

Or do this


My only regret if someone were to grab this from around my neck would be missing out on whatever was on the roll of film inside it.

Rew

Splinters wrote: »

Ive heard of a lot of people doing this recently. I wonder if it really works. Generally (but I guess not always) you can spot expensive gear just by its size.

Im sure if any criminal spotted a photographer with what appeared to be a large camera with a large bulky lens would they really be deterred by the lack of a red ring. I suppose anything you can do to minimise the chances of it happening is worth a shot but Id wonder just how effective this really is.

Yeah I highly doubt these guys know the difference between Canon, Nikon and Kodak let alone an L versus a kit lens!

amdgilmore

DaireQuinlan wrote: »

Or do this


My only regret if someone were to grab this from around my neck would be missing out on whatever was on the roll of film inside it.

You are clearly a man of taste and class.

Spotmatic owners... assemble!

darragh o meara

Scrotes tried it on me in Waterford this weekend. Thankfully a cop passing spotted him trying to undo the buckle on the back of my black rapid strap and frightened them. He told me there was a few attempts on camera gear this weekend. He said they open the buckle and give you a dig into the lower back and swipe the camera while you try figure out what's going on. It was a Roma crew that tried it on me. I wouldn't mind but they had the cheek to try it with a crowd around.

Borderfox

Always easier with a crowd around especially if its their crowd.

darragh o meara

Oh and pawn shops are usually a good spot to look if you have the serial number and can prove its yours. I remember being in a cash converters in the uk and seeing a lad trying to sell them a 1d mk3 or 4 with 70-200 lens and no charger and was just about to accept an offer of 350 quid from the teller before the teller got suspicious and called the cops on the quiet. The seller made a quick exit when he realised what was happening.

I don't know what the procedure is to get your property back from them if they inadvertently bought it and it turns out stolen.

Rew

There is an offence in Irish law of being reckless in buying goods that are likely to have been stolen. So if you buy a D4 off a guy with no charger for 500 quid and you should know the value is much greater you can be done.

As far as I know once you can prove its yours you can reclaim it regardless of whether or not the new owner new it was stolen. A guy in the motors forum got back a car stolen a few years back when someone applied for the log book.

Paulw

Rew wrote: »

As far as I know once you can prove its yours you can reclaim it regardless of whether or not the new owner knew it was stolen.

Correct. Once you can prove it is yours, you will get it back, and the "shop" will just be out of pocket, for buying stolen goods.

monosnaps

If they are working the Glasnevin area its likely they are watching the Botanic Gardens, very popular for weddings, and they may also be watching the local churches.

I know its over the top but fitting steel tool boxes in larger vehicles will help protect your gear. For cars hide your gear as best you can in the back of your car, cover it with common boot trash like colourful Tesco shopping bags. A friend who was done few years back sticks an old camera bag in the middle of the boot with a bit of junk, its covered with a few camera stickers.

SinLight

Now this is really scary stuff.

As stupid as it sounds in these circumstances...anybody knows of some good insurance companies around for Irish/UK market that you would recommend?

Paulw

SinLight wrote: »

As stupid as it sounds in these circumstances...anybody knows of some good insurance companies around for Irish/UK market that you would recommend?

www.camerainsurance.ie is the place I use. Derek (co-owner) is a member here on boards.