Regarding stolen Paintball Equipment

I am Police Officer. This Post Is for some people who might be interested in reporting stolen equipment to police.

1. If you maker or equipment stolen totals more than $1000
MOST states consider that a grand larceny. If it is stolen out of your vehicle no matter how much its worth it is considered B&E auto.

2. The most important thing is serial number or OAN (Owner applied Numbers) this is a PERMENANT number you applied somewhere on your equipment. Make sure you write them done somewhere safe. If you dont have these you are up @#$%@ creek with out a paddle!!!!!

3. When you report this to the police be nice dont give them a hard time. I know that i put effort in to just about every case i get but some officers dont but if your nice to him maybe he will spend more time on it.

4. When doing the report describe in detail everything ie. color brand model any special features. Ask the officer NICELY if he is going to enter the item stolen in NCIC which is the nation computer system that stores items as stolen(YOU MUST HAVE THE SERIAL MAKE AND MODEL NUMBER FOR THIS TO BE DONE NO IF ANDS OR BUTS ABOUT IT!!!!). this helps if someone tries to sell you maker at a pawn shop which must submit a form to the police for every item that they purchase and plan on selling or if an officer decides to check it if he found the item on someone that he doesnt think owns it and is important if you want to get it back i cant stress how important the serial number is.

5. To those of you here that are minors varies by state you might have to have your parents or guardian file the report.

If anyone has questions pm or email me

HEY LETS KEEP THIS UP TOP FPR A LITTLE WHILE SO ADD A POST IF YOU READ

mb brings up a DARN good point.

These markers have no serial number on them but the one on the valve. And as we know thats easily changed and NOT the most expensive part of that X Mag.

I gonna have to do this myself. Somewhere on my inner workings of my markers is going to be an etched number and duly noted by me.

I would suggest using an engraver on the bottom of the body where it meets the rail as well as the top of the rail where it meets the body. Can engrave the frames under the grip along side the hole cut through it. Barrels can be done where it will be inside the body under threads if a cocker thread. Be sure to engrave them with either all the same number or corrasponding set. I engrave alsmot all my tools and will be doing my paintball guns now as well. Good idea would be to copy your valve serial # on the parts.

Good idea man. Thanks for the post. EVERYONE with a marker they care about should do this. You could probably get it done at your local proshop for maybe $50, 'specially if you explain why you want it done. And putting that number as a copy of the serial number ain't a bad idea.

Another way in additional to the oan is a program that the police use around here. I am not sure if it is everywhere but they do it around here. The community policing officer gives you a # and a special pen. You mark everything you own with the number. The police and even the pawn shops have the ability with equipment to read the markings. It is usually put on computer equipment and such but would work well and may not be noticed and ground off. Consider in addition. No B@E here only felony theft or misdemeanor criminal trespass to vehicles. But the usual threshold is the $1000 mark unless it is a bunch o thefts then maybe by common scheme.

upp

This is such a good point / post. I am going to "mark" my mag tomorrow to protect it from the hands of evil!

mbyankee10, with your permission I'd like to forward a copy of your post to every Paintball forum I'm on.

If it's ok with you.

I am now going to mark my Mag thanks for the idea.

no offence... but... OH WOW, a helpful cop!!!!! There's a change of pace.. thanks!

up

just a note on my story:

my gz timmy was stolen a couple weeks ago. we filed a police report talked with the officer etc.

as you guys may or may not know timmys dont have serial numbers so i took the initiative and carved EM306 on the inside... the serial from my emag easy to remember, hope i can get my liscense plate to say it too lol.

we described every little part of the gun from memory, every event of the day where parts of the field are, where i was sitting, where my gun was, where i was, i had the names of the kids i was with who knew the person who happened to steal it i got their phone numbers they were called by the police they id'ed the kid (this may not happen in most cases i got lucky) i talked with the field owner he gave the police a copy of his waivers (turns out the kid didnt fill out one and didnt pay either, that was smart now hes banned for life from every field in rhode island)

now i never would have thought to have done this my parents are cops though and they told me what to tell them what they dont need to hear about (like me knocking over a hyperball bunker one game)

when a cop interviews you give him every thing you can think of regarding information, make sure you know that information about your gun, make sure you have easily identified markings on your gun (turns out my gun being in such poor shape was a good thing bent trigger plates, missing screws, random chrome parts and black parts, etc all made the gun easy to identify)

you can always ano the serial number to your gun :)

Anno can be stripped and easily replaced so that rules that out, whether you were serious or not. And let's hope you're not trying to invade other threads with cheap plugs for whatever anno company you're affliated with, you'll get on the bad side of alot of people here if you keep doing that.

The same serial number engraved on set places on all key components of the marker (valve, frame, body, ram, VA, etc) would be a great idea, it needs to be consistent for all identical makes and models of that marker though so if it gets stripped off by the thief to remove it anyone who knows the marker will know exactly where to look at that if its been milled there then it's most likely a stolen item. Setting them in obscure places and not using contrast color like the number on the mag valve, maybe on top of the trigger frame underneath the rail for example, would work well since a thief may not even know it's there unless he really knows the marker. If he tries to sell it and a pro looks there, the guy is toast. Alot of thieves will just do their homework, but if it catches one more crook out of 1000 thefts then it's a step up and if a company is putting out a new marker they don't have to tell anyone where they've put all the numbers. All it takes is for the thief to miss one to get him busted.

mbyankee10, really great idea. Theft in PBall is out of hand and making it a really risky move for thieves is a great way to reduce it.

well if someone see's the serial number on your gun clearly they will think twice about stealing it.

BETTER - Put a large sticker on the bottom of your gun or anywhere on your gun displaying your name. It will look bad (unless you make it look good :p ) but would you rather have someone steal your gun?

People will avoid your marker if it has your name on it in a open and obvious area of the gun. You can go to your local walgreens or sports store and get a key bike lock. It takes only seconds to lock your trigger frame to the pole of a table or any stationary object.

NEVER leave your marker unattended

Quote:

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NEVER leave your marker unattended

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Why anyone would set there thousand dollar marker on a table and walk away is beyond my belief. Would you leave a thousand dollars cash on a table and walk away.

wow thanks for the tis guy. going to mark everything i have right now:D

Mbyankee, I can definitely see the argument for not letting your sole marker out of your line of sight. Mine always stays near. But in the case of dealers with all their inventory and people who bring an alternate gun to the field, it's tough being out playing and expecting someone to always be watching it.

And suicidal, I will give you points for the bike chain idea, it would be tough for them to discretely remove it or even any part of it. Hoppers, tanks, barrels, and stuff like that wouldn't work for this though. And the sticker wouldn't work. As soon as they have made a clean break they can take it off and then it's hopeless. They're not going to steal the marker and play the rest of the day with it. But the bike chain idea is something.

Thanks for the info!