Stolen Guitars - any help appreciated

Our house was robbed on Sunday night while we was at a super bowl party. He (one guy judging from the footprints in the snow) got both of our macbooks, a bag full of Bosch Litheon power tools, three of my guitars and a banjo. Didn't do hardly any property damage - came in through a window with a bum sash, and only broke the latch on the gate to the alley - and the dog is fine, though obviously pretty useless.

Of everything that's gone, this is the only thing that's more than just a hassle:

This guitar was built in prison in the late '50s and given to my grandfather by the builder. It's literally one of a kind, and irreplaceable. It was an heirloom for my mom's family and the family of the builder (who was later convicted of murder). Fortunately, it's not THE guitar my family associates with my grandfather, but it's still important to all of us.

Anyone who's willing, I'd really appreciate you keeping your ear to the ground in your area for this guitar. Here are some more pictures if you're inclined to look out for it.

I don't have pictures of the actual banjo that was stolen, as I only recently got it back from a friend after a long-term loan. It was a '60s Sovereign (Japanese) 5- string, and it also belonged to my grandfather - we think it was the one he bought after learning to play 5 string on a loaner from one of his daughter's hippie friends.

The headstock and logo look like this:

And the body looks like pretty much any 5 string:

Here's my grandfather Pat and my Grand-cockatiel playing the loaner banjo at the dining room table:

(The crutches leaning on the wall are the ones he used after he had his leg amputated at the hip after being shot in the Pacific theater. He came home, married my grandmother, raised a family and ran an HVAC business, aside from just being an overall badass. All 5'4" of him on one leg would beat this punk's ass if he was still around.)

Also stolen was this mid-'60s Norma, which I acquired less than a year ago. It holds no sentimental value, really, but it's an oddball and quite rare in the states.

This Alvarez RF-30 was also stolen. It's a cheapo, but it's mine, dammit.

If you do the Facebook, here's link to an album of all the instruments, which you're more than welcome to re-share. Facebook album
If that doesn't work, friend me on FB (Alex Carlson in St. Louis) and I'll send it to you there.

I'm going to pawn shops in an increasing radius from my house, and guitar shops are next. Obviously the cops are involved, in as much as they care to be.

Again, any assistance anyone can provide will be very much appreciated. At the very least, please just pass this information around in any way you can think of - the more widespread it becomes, the more likely we are to recover these.

Thanks a lot.

Well dammit, if a mod could make this thread title read 'Stolen Guitars,' that would make me look a little more credible.

To confirm location, you are in St. Louis MO, right?

Alex sorry to hear that . Sentimental value makes them priceless. Can macbooks be traced thru registration/ warranty info? Dirtbag thief may get online at a McDonalds or something

If you see anything pop up on Columbia CL or in a pawn shop or such and want me to have a look...let me know. I'm glad to go bust someone to help a fellow GRMer/Cargeek.

I'm sure you have this on FB too...I'll look there and spread word to my music-type friends.

Clem

Very sorry to hear about the break-in; you're right, it's always the sentimental stuff that hurts the most when stolen. And usually is of least value to the thiefs.

A couple of suggestions: Make the above pics available to the local police. A bit of a "look I know you're busy but" discussion with a detective or local PD may go far.

Ditto the above with any and all local pawn and music shops. Thief is trying to get rid of them PDQ, so the faster you do this the better. Esp with a "I just want it back, no questions asked."

If there are any music scene/entertainment mags, check the for sale ads, and consider putting a reward ad in.

I'd say a 15 mile radius would probably cover the area where they might turn up.

One final note: who knew you wouldn't be home? Of those, I'd call and tell them what happened and ask them if they might know of anyone they might have mentioned it to that would be prone to such theft. Ya; never know who'se got the, "I bet that SOB.____.might have had something to do with it." Woth a try.

Man, sorry to hear that.

aircooled wrote: To confirm location, you are in St. Louis MO, right?

That's correct. I live in the city, in a southern neighborhood called Benton Park.

triumph5 wrote: One final note: who knew you wouldn't be home? Of those, I'd call and tell them what happened and ask them if they might know of anyone they might have mentioned it to that would be prone to such theft. Ya; never know who'se got the, "I bet that SOB.____.might have had something to do with it." Woth a try.

I'm racking my brain on this one, for sure. I get the feeling somebody knows something.

Wow, really sorry to hear that. My collection isn't even very cool, but I would be crushed if it were stolen. I'm 2.5 hours away, but in the off chance they make their way this direction I'll keep on the look out. I've also got a friend that's an instrument builder and he's always looking for parts and such in the surrounding areas, so I'll definitely pass the info along to him.

anybody your dog might not consider an intruder start / increase using drugs lately? sad but true, a junkie will rob his own mother.

Passed this to a buddy who has a knack for finding odd guitars for sale.

I don't think my dog really considers anybody an intruder. He never barks when we get a door knock or doorbell ring, or even when friends come in the house/yard when we're expecting them and leave a door open. He's hasn't lived inside long enough (he was a chained rescue, and he's lived in a house for less than a year) to be territorial about the house. He'll bark like hell at other dogs when they walk by the fence, an sound like a killer, but if any of them came in the yard, he'd be totally submissive. He looks impressive - 65 pounds, big Pit/Mastiff head, cropped tail, all muscle - but he's a huge Bob Costas.

I love the boy like a son, but he's a useless guard dog.

None of this is to disregard your point, of course. Trust me, I'm thinking along those lines. But I usually trust my gut on these things, and nobody's leaping to mind.

If they were that specific, and knew how to not break a window, it tells me the place had been cased beforehand. Most breakins are smash and grabs, it doesn't sound like they did that. that being said, i'll comb CL.

I agree, but I really can't think of anyone who'd have such specific knowledge of my place and the will/motivation to do it. Matter of fact, anybody who knows me or my place well enough was at the party with me, and anyone of them I'd trust with my life. I have a tight group of friends, and I don't have a lot of friends-of-friends in my house.

Trust me, I'd love if I could track knowledge/means/motive to someone I know. But the puzzle pieces aren't falling in place.

Facebook "friends" of friends that knew you would be at party?

mndsm wrote: If they were that specific, and knew how to not break a window, it tells me the place had been cased beforehand. Most breakins are smash and grabs, it doesn't sound like they did that. that being said, i'll comb CL.

True, but it could be he was going to smash that window, then noticed "Hey I can get in without making any noise."

Try to find all pictures/documentation etc for the insurance company as they will determine the value based on what it would cost to replace an item of like value, minus depreciation. Which on old items like, they will likely be depreciated 80-90% until you actually replace them.

And you will only see replacement cost benefits (assuming you have them) if you actually have the instruments replaced.

z31maniac wrote:

mndsm wrote: If they were that specific, and knew how to not break a window, it tells me the place had been cased beforehand. Most breakins are smash and grabs, it doesn't sound like they did that. that being said, i'll comb CL.

True, but it could be he was going to smash that window, then noticed "Hey I can get in without making any noise."

Yeah, I think anyone who knew what they were looking for would have seen the fallen sash and known it was a way in without making unnecessary noise.

Maybe it was a neighborhood kid that saw you leave and knew your dog is all show and not a threat?

I think there's something to the earlier comment about someone familiar with your place. If I broke into a house and saw a dog like the one you described I'd high tail it out of there fast , unless of course I knew the dog was harmless.

Posted on gretschpages.com. Those guys are to guitars what ya'll are to cars: If there's a weird one out there, they'll find it.

This sounds like too much to carry in one trip. What did the footprints tell you? Somebody walking back and forth to his house?

I think you are focusing on the wrong thing.

The Macbooks may be a little easier to find. Where did you buy them? Were they new? Can you get registration ID, etc? What about saved log-ons, or account access ID's? Any new activity on any of these accounts?

Watch Ebay, CL etc. for Macbooks.

The guitars may not be sold online, the Macbooks probably would. The power tools will show up in a pawn shop in a heartbeat. Are you asking the pawn guys about someone selling a bag full of power tools?

I don't think it was necessarily someone you knew. Superbowl Sunday is not hard to figure out who is home and who is not. Most houses are either 20 cars in the drive or 0 and dark. I'm betting on a neighborhood kid.

Regarding the guitars: My Dad used to own a music store. Over the years, quite a few guitars were stolen. They often showed up in local classified sections. He kept the serial #'s' on file. He would go to look at units for sale in the classifieds, especially the cheap ones. He'd bring recent serial numbers with him. Check while he was there, then leave and call the cops. Recovered quite a few.

I'm really sorry to hear about your loss. Good luck!

if you haven't already, I'd start hitting up pawn shops. If you find the guitar or any of your property, the pawn shop will need the name of the detective and the case number. I've found some stolen articles when my parents house was robbed years ago.

Andrew

Thinking that it might be a neighborhood kid I'd walk the neighborhood looking for shoe prints that match the ones left by the intruder. Is there not a trail to follow in the snow?

and encouragement if you don't find the guit-fiddles soon... my inlaws where robbed way back when... prob mid early... stole all sorts of things including a bunch of jewelry... namely mo-in-laws engagement ring... police never recovered it... about 10 years later my father-in-law hit one of those special yeared anniversaries (25 or something like that)... he planned to have the ring re created based on photos and such but the price was VERY high to have custom made... so he spent some time looking at local pawn shops to see if he could find anything close... he found THE ring... apparently the guy who sold it sold it a few years prior but well after any heat... pawn shop guy said he knew sold it and said he was in jail for theft... cut my father-in-law a pretty good deal as I recall...

so don't stop looking even if occasionally even if it doesn't turn up right away

alex wrote: I don't think my dog really considers anybody an intruder. He never barks when we get a door knock or doorbell ring, or even when friends come in the house/yard when we're expecting them and leave a door open. He's hasn't lived inside long enough (he was a chained rescue, and he's lived in a house for less than a year) to be territorial about the house. He'll bark like hell at other dogs when they walk by the fence, an sound like a killer, but if any of them came in the yard, he'd be totally submissive. He looks impressive - 65 pounds, big Pit/Mastiff head, cropped tail, all muscle - but he's a huge Bob Costas. I love the boy like a son, but he's a useless guard dog. None of this is to disregard your point, of course. Trust me, I'm thinking along those lines. But I usually trust my gut on these things, and nobody's leaping to mind.

^^^This part right here SCREAMS of someone who knows that the dog is harmless.

Who in their right mind would come into a house, see a dog of that description and not scram without touching the ground? I'm a dog lover, and get along with any dog...but when caught off guard by an unknown dog...I know to be cautions or even scared...at least respectful.

I think it's possible the person who came across your dog was NOT caught off guard, but rather knew the dot and that he was a "no bark and no bite" type of personality.

Clem