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Of bungling burglars & stupid thieves
The other day, I read in a newspaper that a burglar in a town of Switzerland, having done a very neat job in a house, accidentally left behind a card that carried his full curriculum vitae. His name and address and other particulars were all written on it, which made it an easy task for the police to get on his trail as quickly as they could. And the burglar, too, was not much surprised when the cops descended on him only a short while after he had reached his den, for by that time he had realised the blunder he had committed. Come to think of it, there
are numerous interesting instances of thieves and burglars who, despite
being very cautious and vigilant, were foolish enough to bungle at the
most critical moment in the execution of an operation." Edward
McAlea put on a stocking mask and barged into a jewellery shop in
Liverpool. Pointing a revolver at the three men behind the counter, he
growled. This is a stickup! Get away! To his shock and dismay, none of
them stirred from his place behind the counter, for all of them had
noticed the red plastic stopper in the muzzle of McAlea’s toy gun.
After a brief scuffle, McAlea escaped but not before his mask was pulled
off by one of the salesmen. They recognised him. Only a day before, he
had come to their shop as a customer. |
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How a burglar once came very near to being burnt alive is revealed through this story. During the early morning hours of May 6, 1982, Carlos Aralijo attempted to burgle a MacDonald’s restaurant in Los Angeles by sliding down an oven flue. What Aralijo discovered a bit too late was that although the vent was 14 in. square at the roof, it narrowed to 8 in. square above the stove. Aralijo got stuck in the pipe, which was heavily coated with grease, and spent four or five hours screaming for help before someone heard him. It took fire fighters and paramedics 30 minutes to free him, by which time he had suffered second and third degree burns on his feet and lower legs. In Los Angeles you have to be on your guard against muggers, particularly during the evening hours. It was Hollis Sharpe’s daily routine to take her poodle out for a walk in the evening. A responsible citizen, she carried with her a newspaper sheet and a plastic bag to clean up the mess after the poodle. One day when her poodle had finished his business and Sharpe was walking home with the bag in her right hand and the leash in the left, a mugger attacked her from behind, felled her to the ground, grabbed the plastic bag, jumped into a waiting car, and drove off with the spoils of his crime. Sharpe’s arm was broken in the fall, but afterwards whenever she would relate this incident to her friends, she would good-humouredly say, "I only wish there had been a little more in the bag." |
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THIEVES
and burglars, as a matter of principle, are painstakingly careful not to
leave behind any telltal proof of their identity as they tiptoe out of a
house or shop with the booty. But, once in a while, even the most shrewd
member of their fraternity can commit a stupid mistake and, as a result,
get caught by the police.