So last week, someone broke into our cars. I’ve been going through our camera footage (we set it up the day after the break-in), and I saw something weird last Friday. There was a guy in our neighborhood taking pictures of our house a few times.
He heard the camera warning that it was recording him, looked kind of startled, but then kept taking pictures of our mailbox. He walked up the hill, then drove his truck down and stopped in front of our mailbox, getting out to take more pictures of the house. The whole thing took about 6-8 minutes.
What made it even weirder was that the guy was driving a big white commercial truck, like the ones you see for Fedex or UPS, but this one was totally unmarked. He wasn’t wearing a uniform, and it was around 6:30 in the morning, pretty bright outside.
I only saw him taking pictures of our house and maybe one other neighbor’s house, but I couldn’t see everything on the camera.
I’m already feeling stressed about the car break-in, but now with this happening, I’m feeling even more anxious. I’m just a college kid living with family and I’m worried about my family’s safety. Any advice or should I be concerned about this? Thanks a lot for your help.
This happened to a friend of mine in the UK, but it was at night. The camera on the phone can usually detect the IR lights from CCTV cameras to see if they are on or not.
Maybe the guy was just taking photos for an insurance company. Sometimes they take pictures of homes for claims, especially when the fall season is coming so the leaves cover more stuff. Or, he might be setting up a fake AirBnB scam where the photos will show the house as being for rent. You might just have to turn away anyone who shows up thinking they’ve rented the place.
That does sound unsettling, especially right after the break-in. I’d definitely report this to the police to add to your case. Having a record of his behavior, especially with timestamps and photos, could be really useful if anything else strange happens. It’s also a good idea to keep an eye on things and maybe add some extra security for peace of mind. Stay safe!
I really hate those camera warnings. It’s annoying because you’re already being recorded, but then it calls out to anyone walking by. Can’t even walk around my neighborhood without hearing those cameras beeping at me.
It’s definitely suspicious, but one possibility is that he’s an insurance adjuster looking into the car break-in claims. If you filed a claim, check with your insurance company to see if they sent anyone over.
As someone who’s been involved in robbery and planning, I’d say you should be worried and prepared. The guy is probably looking at those pictures to figure out the best way to steal your stuff.
Julius said:
As someone who’s been involved in robbery and planning, I’d say you should be worried and prepared. The guy is probably looking at those pictures to figure out the best way to steal your stuff.
But if he’s dumb enough to ignore the cameras, he might not be very smart, so you could easily stop whatever he’s planning. Or he might just find a different target altogether.
Could be a tax assessor or someone working for them. They drive around taking pictures of houses to verify what’s been claimed for taxes and to assess values.
Does he have bad intentions? Hard to say, but what he did is definitely strange! If his face or truck plates are clear in the footage, print out some flyers with big screenshots of his face, truck, plates—anything you can, and offer a small reward for information. Post them around your neighborhood. It’s better to be proactive!