chalk marks outside home indicate marked for theft

stmol32

Came across this in the examiner

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/reconnaissance-units-stake-out-houses-for-burglar-gangs-227987.html

Quick Google shows it's not a new story and a lot of papers have printed about this in the past three months.

Surely this has all the hallmarks of a big steaming pile of bullsh*t and, as they have done time and time again, journalists have been completely fooled by doing no research.

Any thoughts AH?

gobnaitolunacy

Smacks of cut-and-paste journalism.

I find it hard to believe that there's mass co-operation between petty crims.

Terry1985

Sounds like one part of a burglary team scope out the house and mark it, while others come later to rob it.


http://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/ireland/chalk-marks-outside-homes-indicate-potential-for-theft-590901.html

I think an AH sting operation is called for... in combination with the MMA forum of course!

Kylo Ren

I'll get the doughnuts.

TwoShedsJackson

Yeah I can really see them taking the time to do the 'already been burgled' sign.

anncoates

Pulitzer price stuff.

donvito99

The schoolchildren outside my house have marked out some sort of hopsktoch course.


...the bastards.

DonkeyStyle \o/

Reminds me of hobo code.

Gone Drinking

Hang some old shoes over the phone lines outside your house, they won't break in if they think you're a drug dealer!

Thatnastyboy

I call bullsh1t on the sensationalism of the detail of the markings anyway,

Its not unknown for the Romany gypsies to be at that lark where they mark for cars that are on the shopping list.


I was messing with a can of roadspray and drew a line on the path outside my house, thought nothing more until a few weeks later the mother comes to me and says "think we're being watched to be robbed, be careful"

I says "why"

Replies:
"Theyve marked the path out on the road, see the blue line, that means we're gonna be robbed" :pac:

She nearly threw me out when I told her, she'd been up in arms for weeks :pac:

copeyhagen

most burgulars are junkies. judging by the level of intelligence seen by 'them' on dublins boardwalks, i would be pretty confident that this story is BS.

Hoop66

That's just some shite the Daily Heil printed a while back.

They use chalk? In one of the rainiest countries in the world?

Also, since when did different crowds of thieves co-operate?

gurramok

Mark your own house with chalk, outwit them.

Thatnastyboy

copeyhagen wrote: »

most burgulars are junkies. judging by the level of intelligence seen by 'them' on dublins boardwalks, i would be pretty confident that this story is BS.

Maybe in and around Dublin CC they are, in the rest of the country its mostly,


Certain 'nomadic' ethnic groups, including but not limited to Indigenous ones.

hardCopy

TwoShedsJackson wrote: »

Yeah I can really see them taking the time to do the 'already been burgled' sign.

Must go paint one of them outside my own place!

Duckworth_Luas

Looks like a poorly committed street artist who gets halfway to drawing a 3D boxe and then gives up!

antodeco

For me, its like old school dating. Im going to take a walk around my place later and find all the "vulnerable females who are easily conned"

I have found one of these in chalk outside my house three times since moving in 5-6 years ago.

Something tells me it is not burlary they have in mind.

jack presley

I like fact that they have a symbol for houses are alarmed. Is it too difficult to look up at the alarm on the wall?

humanji

Threads merged

goose2005

I hear they give out free heroin to get the childer hooked Joe.

smash

I'm just going to draw my own 'too risky' sign on my wall.

Along with a few guns and a big dog!

fishy fishy

sorry to tell you but it's true - there have been lots of burglaries in certain areas in my city and the guards have warned about these signs - seemingly they work in groups, the houses are "studied" for a while and marks are put on the pillars of the house (not the footpath) telling the other half of the group when to go in and what to expect. Its very well organized. So don't disregard it.

just letting you know.

My name is URL

If you smear lamb's blood on the door they won't bother you

smash

fishy fishy wrote: »

sorry to tell you but it's true - there have been lots of burglaries in certain areas in my city and the guards have warned about these signs - seemingly they work in groups, the houses are "studied" for a while and marks are put on the pillars of the house (not the footpath) telling the other half of the group when to go in and what to expect. Its very well organized. So don't disregard it.

just letting you know.

Sorry, but if a gang wanted to rob a house they'd talk to each other. Not draw symbols in plain site for everyone to see!

OldGoat

Are they not the scoring marks for hopscotch?

gobnaitolunacy

fishy fishy wrote: »

sorry to tell you but it's true - there have been lots of burglaries in certain areas in my city and the guards have warned about these signs - seemingly they work in groups, the houses are "studied" for a while and marks are put on the pillars of the house (not the footpath) telling the other half of the group when to go in and what to expect. Its very well organized. So don't disregard it.

just letting you know.

Can they not write down a house address? It's not that hard!

Solair

Wouldn't chalk marks wash off in about 10 mins of Irish weather which resembles the inside of a washing machine on super-rinse most of the time ?

Duck Soup

donvito99 wrote: »

The schoolchildren outside my house have marked out some sort of hopsktoch course.


...the bastards.

Don't you recognize a schematic of the neighbourhood when you see it? Look closely and I'll bet you they put the house numbers on it as well.

Have them arrested and waterboarded just in case.

captain caveman

Maybe they've organised some sort of thieves guild ala Terry Prachett's Books...

Truncheon Rouge

DonkeyStyle \o/ wrote: »

Reminds me of hobo code.

Thats an awesome page, who would have guessed.

hobo convention....gtfo

old hippy

Ah, the old chalk talk. Again. These kind of stories have been doing the rounds for years and years.

copeyhagen

fishy fishy wrote: »

sorry to tell you but it's true - there have been lots of burglaries in certain areas in my city and the guards have warned about these signs - seemingly they work in groups, the houses are "studied" for a while and marks are put on the pillars of the house (not the footpath) telling the other half of the group when to go in and what to expect. Its very well organized. So don't disregard it.

just letting you know.

oh god, we have a believer!!!!

hoodwinked

good luck to them trying to find their chalk markings amongst the Many many drawings the local childers have destroyed our place in...



that and if they are stupid enough to use chalk in a wet and rainy Ireland bring them on i say, sounds like they will be as good as the guys in home alone*....



*note to self record the whole break in attempt and sell it to hollywood as a comedy.

Death and Taxes

Thatnastyboy wrote: »

Maybe in and around Dublin CC they are, in the rest of the country its mostly,


Certain 'nomadic' ethnic groups, including but not limited to Indigenous ones.

Any EVIDENCE for that false claim?

LizT

We had to call the Gardai a few months ago after someone came to the house. He rang the door bell and asked if our cars were for sale (which is weird, you can't see them from the road) and then walked away. The guards said what they do is put a green ribbon on the gate if it's ok to go in and a red ribbon means there's someone at home and to skip that house. Apparently they come back later that night.

Don't know how true that is, just what the Gardai told us.

nelly17

copeyhagen wrote: »

most burgulars are junkies. judging by the level of intelligence seen by 'them' on dublins boardwalks, i would be pretty confident that this story is BS.

Heh reminds me of this
(hopefully this will work...)

Thatnastyboy

WileyCoyote wrote: »

Any EVIDENCE for that false claim?

NO, except for a good few empty cartridges in my neighbors yard,

any against it?

donvito99

Duck Soup wrote: »

Don't you recognize a schematic of the neighbourhood when you see it? Look closely and I'll bet you they put the house numbers on it as well.

Have them arrested and waterboarded just in case.

You're fookin right too so you are, the conniving little runts. They've houses one through ten included - a sweep of the street is imminent. :mad:

Wicklowrider

smash wrote: »

I'm just going to draw my own 'too risky' sign

I went looking for an old mate recently. Eventually tracked him down. On his door there was sign " These doors are locked to protect YOU" printed inside crosshairs.

stmol32

LizT wrote: »

We had to call the Gardai a few months ago after someone came to the house. He rang the door bell and asked if our cars were for sale (which is weird, you can't see them from the road) and then walked away. The guards said what they do is put a green ribbon on the gate if it's ok to go in and a red ribbon means there's someone at home and to skip that house. Apparently they come back later that night.

Don't know how true that is, just what the Gardai told us.

Someone knocking on the door to see if the house is unoccupied and then robbing it there and then is a well established practice.

But putting a ribbon on the gate and then coming back later makes no sense.

What if you come back in the meantime?
Why would opportunistic burglars even wait until night time?
Why wouldn't they just remember the house?

I shouldn't be speculating on the intelligence of a Garda I never met but I wouldn't be contacting him or her if you have any Columbo type mysteries to solve.

stmol32

Wicklowrider wrote: »

I went looking for an old mate recently. Eventually tracked him down. On his door there was sign " These doors are locked to protect YOU" printed inside crosshairs.

I always secretly hope these people get robbed the most.

tayto lover

I have a lovely big picture of a double-barrel shotgun outside my house.
It seems to be working fine.

stmol32

Thatnastyboy wrote: »

Maybe in and around Dublin CC they are, in the rest of the country its mostly,


Certain 'nomadic' ethnic groups, including but not limited to Indigenous ones.

Jesus christ man no .... just no.... not today.

First, the thread is about false moral panics and lazy cut and paste media.

Secondly, I've seen this once or twice on Boards "Certain 'nomadic' ethnic groups" and I feel I should point out it's not as pants wettingly witty as ye seem to think.

Just say knackers you know you're really dying to.

stmol32

tayto lover wrote: »

I have a lovely big picture of a double-barrel shotgun outside my house.
It seems to be working fine.

I have the neon Blue Oyster sign from the police academy films outside mine, seems to be working fine.

kylith

I've found noisy dogs to be quite an effective deterrent. Well, I haven't been robbed yet anyway.

Someone spray painted part of my railings blue a few year's back, my mother was convinced that it was a sign we were going to be robbed. It's much more likely to have meant 'bugger all worth the effort of stealing'.

stmol32

nelly17 wrote: »

Heh reminds me of this
(hopefully this will work...)

I know I'm being a tick but can you explain what I'm seeing here

DonkeyStyle \o/

Truncheon Rouge wrote: »

Thats an awesome page, who would have guessed.

hobo convention....gtfo

I know, crazy stuff. I don't know where I first heard about it, but I remember it ended in me watching a whole documentary on hobos it's probably still on youtube.

schnitzelEater

copeyhagen wrote: »

most burgulars are junkies. judging by the level of intelligence seen by 'them' on dublins boardwalks, i would be pretty confident that this story is BS.

The boardwalk boys should have their own TV show.

DebDynamite

A short while ago a friend of mine was saying there was a weird symbol etched in chalk on the footpath outside her house, but hadn't a clue what it meant. Then this morning she emailed me a link to this story to say the symbol that was drawn was the "nothing worth stealing" one :pac:

Guy:Incognito

The good target sign is only a circle away from being a "nothing worth stealing". So make yourself a good target then when they stick an X outside just head out and put a circle on it:)