Earlier this week I had a most remarkable thing happen to me. I was at a meeting at our Realtor Association office in Charlotte. Having been on the CMLS and CRRA boards for several years, I was quite comfortable going there without concern for security of my car and property. When I arrived, I parked in a lot near the building, maybe 50 yards from the door and near the street. It was a warm, sunny day. I got my tablet out to take to the meeting but left the briefcase in the floor of the back seat as I have many times before.
When I returned to the car 3 hours later, I noticed some dark glass on the pavement beside the car and thought, “I don’t remember that being there when I got out of the car.” Then I looked up and realized the glass was my broken side window. I looked inside, and sure enough, my bag was gone. The door was never opened, the alarm didn’t go off. My mind raced with ramifications of my loss. I went back into the Association building and asked the staff to call the police who arrived in a short time to ask questions and look over the scene. They said they’ve had a rash of similar break-ins in the area and actually had an unmarked car patrolling the area. They said that a quick flip of a screwdriver in the window frame breaks the window, and the thief can be in and out in 10 seconds.
On the way back to Mooresville, while driving through a rainstorm with my back window broken, I was going through the should’a, could’a, would’a thing when I got a call from a Charlotte Police Detective. He said that they’d recovered my bag with all contents and asked me to come back to Charlotte to identify it. I was shocked and pleased, to say the least. What an amazing outcome! I didn’t give more than a 2% chance of their finding any of my stuff, and they got it all back before I even got home! When I talked more at length with the detective, he said they’d come across my stuff while investigating an individual for a similar theft who was on probation. They even came up with a way to get the thief to drive back to Charlotte to the police station in his own car!
So, my belongings are back, my window is repaired, and I’m in awe of the Charlotte Police Department. I sent a note to the mayor to be sure these officers and detectives get the credit they’ve earned. I guess I’m changed to the extent that I’ve lost a bit of trust in people, but I know this kind of thing happens all the time, both in large cities and small. What a shame that there are people who view theft as a reasonable way to make living.
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Stan Suther's Real Estate and Stuff 