I was burgled.

[termyt]

Twice in the last week, my apartment has been broken into. The first time was last Saturday and they stole about $25 worth in coins.

That was not too big a deal to me. It stinks to have stuff stolen, but it was only money and not that much money at that.

But then, last night, I got hit again. They stole the rest of my coins - probably another $30 or so. Again, disturbing, but no big deal. But this time, they also stole a handgun.

The handgun itself, still is not a big deal to me. Don't get me wrong, it was a favorite possession of mine. As a matter of fact, if you asked which of my worldly possessions I loved most, that gun would be on the short list. But in the end, it is still just a possession.

What bothers me, and the reason I am writing this thread, is that it was most likely stolen by the kid next door to me. A kid who is routinely in trouble with the law and who is neither able nor smart enough to pawn the thing off. It kind of makes me hope his parents are in on the whole theft thing and they pawn it off. Because if that kid tries to use it in a crime, there’s a good chance he, or even worse someone else, will get maimed or killed. So, I’ve basically enable a juvenile to dramatically alter people’s lives for the worse. And any bad sorry-for-myself feelings that generates are only a fraction of those that will be felt by anyone actually involved in the crime.

So, if you feel lead to pray about this, please pray that God’s will be done, and that this leads to the kid gaining wisdom, and ultimately, salvation.

[Mr. SmartyPants]

Did you contact the police? Perhaps you should inform them about your little neighborhood troublemaker you have.

[AsianBlossom]

I'll pray, but I second alerting the police on this; a crime is a crime, regardless of how large or small it is. And if there are lives that are possibly in danger, it makes it all the more important that you do so.

[termyt]

Oh yes, I reported it to the police. The money was less of a concern, but with stolen gun in my neighborhood, any feelings I have about stolen property take a back seat to the interest of public safety.

[Danderson]

Definetly will be praying...

[Mithrandir]

Just... Wow. This situation is in our prayers!

[Blitzkrieg1701]

Indeed it is.

[uc pseudonym]

That's unfortunate. I'll pray this resolves itself well.

[termyt]

Arigato, mina.

Update:

The situation has been resolved!

The local constabulatory got a confession from the kids who did the break in. Apparently, they first thought stealing a gun was cool and then became afraid of it (with good reason) and tried to get rid of it.

There wasn't much doubt around here about who was did it and after getting leaned on by the police they confessed and told the police who they gave the gun to. The police then called him on the kid's cell phone and convinced him to bring the gun back - he was on his way to a neighboring city to get rid of it.

So, eventually, I will get the gun back and a few of the coins they had stolen with no monetary value (I had some Canadian and Brazilian coins and such). I'm out the US currency they stole, of course.

But the best news is that the gun is off the streets and will not be getting anyone shot or killed. That's the best part of the story.

The worse part is that three people, including two juveniles have been arrested for the crime. The two kids have already been in trouble with the school and the police, but maybe having a gun involved – probably the most serious offense of anything the boys have done before by a factor of 10, will work as a lesson to them. We can only hope.

Thanks for your prayers. I really appreciate it. I don’t know if I will learn the fate of those involved or not, but I will update you if I do.

[jon_jinn]

my house was broken into and robbed some 1 1/2 years ago so i sorta get a feeling of how you feel. i'll be sure to keep you in prayer.

[AsianBlossom]

Wowwee. But like you said, at least the gun is off the streets.

[Mithrandir]

[quote="termyt"]
Thanks for your prayers. I really appreciate it. I don’]



God is so cool! I would add more, but I don't really think I need to. He just is. I suppose I could add a bunch of !!1111 to the end, but I just can't bring myself too.

[creed4]

I am glad you got your stuff back, and I'll pray about the situation

[termyt]

Thanks again.

A court date for one of the boys has been set for October 9. I'm not sure if this is just the beginning or if he's the only one being charged with a crime. Anyway, I get to go to court as a witness. The prosecutor subpoenaed me, but if it was going to be some sort of trial, I’d assume that he’d tell me what was going on. Maybe I should be more inquisitive. At any rate, I’m sure I’ll find out soon.

[termyt]

Update:
I went to court yesterday for the hearing.

Both boys plead guilty, so they didn't call me or any other witnesses in. So I sat in the lobby for two hours with half my apartment complex.

On the upside, no one there was blaming me for the incident. The family was apologetic and very supportive. It gave me a warm fuzzy that these kids may have actually learned something from the experience and won't repeat this mistake.

Both of the boys plead guilty to Felony 3's, a relatively minor felony charge, if there is any such thing. The impression was one of the boys probably would not serve any additional time (they've both been in juvie for 2 weeks) but the older one may have to serve additional time.

Someday, in theory, I'll get the stuff they recovered back and the family was required to pay restitution to me - which makes me glad I kind of low-balled the dollar amount taken from me. I see no need to create a financial burden for the family.

I’m not sure if I’ll hear anything further about this or not, so I’d just like to thank you all again for your prayers. It seems to me to be a good ending to the whole episode. My only remaining prayer is that the boys really have learned a lesson now while the cost to them is relatively light – the record will not follow them into their adult lives.