GPS Stolen, think I found it on Ebay...

[melarky]

I had one of those portable GPS units (portable in the way that you could move them to any car and plug them into the cigarette lighter).  I noticed a few days ago that it was missing from my car.

I pretty much had no hopes of it ever showing up again, and at first didn't even bother to file a police report, but then I figured I would check ebay and see if I could find it.  I'm pretty sure I found it:

Ebay Item Link

He lives about 15 miles from me, and as you can see he states in his description that he "found" the item.  He also had 2 other items he was selling around the same time that he conveniently "found".  Lucky guy keeps finding stuff to sell

So anways, by the time I found that, the auction was over and someone had  already won it.  I contacted the seller (asked him where he "found" it) and the buyer (told him the situation and asked if he could see if there were any identifying marks or addresses left in the address book that would prove it was mine).  The buyer wrote back really quick and told me he had not gotten the item yet, and the seller had not responded to his e-mails, the seller finally wrote me back like an hour ago that said:

i found it outside of maverick by maceys in logan but it's already sold sorrry.

I just wrote him back the following:

That sounds pretty fishy, you had 2 other items for sale that you also just found. I filed a police report yesterday, and showed them the auction that you had up. I also contacted the buyer, and he said that you hadn't sent it yet and that you weren't replying to his e-mails.

I think you need to do what's right here before any more authorities get involved and you make a big mess for yourself. You've left a paper trail on ebay (your history shows the items you sold that you say you found, if I'm not the only one that filed a stolen item police report, it shouldn't be long before they connect the dots).

If you still have the item (since the buyer says you haven't sent it yet), you have a chance to make this right, and I'll back off. If you don't have the item anymore, you can re-imburse me, and I'll drop it.

I did in fact file a police report yesterday (after contacting ebay, they basically told me that they wouldn't help me unless I did).  The officer who took the report has already handed it off to a detective, but I'm pretty sure a $300 GPS is pretty low on their priority list, but it just bugs me that this guy is so close, and obviously the theif.

Any suggestions on what more I could do?  I almost don't care if I get the GPS back, but would rather this guy get busted (but it would be nice to have the GPS back ).  Would appreciate any opinions or advice.

[Dartful Dodger]

If the guy who bought your item isn't willing to help you out, you can tell the seller who left him a negative response if he still has the guy's name and address.

[fredster]

Well, you did the best you could.  And you did the right thing.

How do you think it was stolen? Out of your locked car?

[melarky]

No, I don't think the car was locked, my wife drives that car mostly, and I'm betting she went to wal-mart (or some other store) and someone was probably going car to car looking for stuff (since he sold 2 other items that he said he "found", he probably does it all the time).

We live in a pretty small town in Utah, I don't usually worry about locking the car door to tell the truth, so even if I was driving the car at the time, I probably wouldn't have locked the doors (I don't have power locks or anything like that on the car, so they usually remain unlocked).

I wonder if the guy will respond to my last e-mail.  I hope the detective will at least contact him and ask him about it, would hate for it to just be ignored.

[ChadTower]

From the other side, that sounds like what would come from a potential scammer.  So I doubt you'll get much luck either way if either party even cares.

It's probably stolen, odds are low that it's actually yours, but it's possible I suppose.

[Dartful Dodger]

From the other side, that sounds like what would come from a potential scammer.  So I doubt you'll get much luck either way if either party even cares.

The buyer cares.  That's why he responded.  He now knows he can lose his money and item. 



As for the seller.  No buyers have left feed back for him, and he only has a handful of sellers leaving feed back, so I'm guessing he's new to fencing things on eBay. 

On the plus side, your inquiring emails have taught him a valuable career lesson.

He needs to sit on a hot item a few months, before trying to sell it on eBay.

[RayB]

How about contacting the GPS service and tracking the exact location of the device! (oh i guess it needs to be turned on?) ;-)

[clanggedin]

I live in a town of 5000 in Utah and I lock my car doors every night. I even lock my house doors when I leave because it doesn't matter where you live anymore, even in a small town (in Utah) your not immune from theft anymore.

[melarky]

I live in a town of 5000 in Utah and I lock my car doors every night. I even lock my house doors when I leave because it doesn't matter where you live anymore, even in a small town (in Utah) your not immune from theft anymore.

I learned that the hard way 

[SithMaster]

be a vigilante.

[AlanS17]

Do you have any serial number or other identifying marks for this device? Otherwise you can't prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

[ChadTower]

That's why he asked about specific data within the unit.

[mpm32]

Get a couple of friends and go knock on his door.  Maybe his mom will be home and you can tell her the situation.  Bring a video camera to tape the whole encounter (for legal purposes).  You'll scare the crap out of him and you might get your unit back.

What a dope saying he "found" it in the auction.  Yeah sure, it fell off a truck.

[ChadTower]

Or he'll get stabbed on the front porch.  Bad idea to walk into a situation you know nothing about and instigate an incident.

[crashwg]

Make sure you bring a camera if you confront the guy at any point.













It'll be like that episode of Cheaters when the host got stabbed on the boat! 

[gnateye]

just to be the devils advocate here, so far all you have is here-say, not real evidence. it is really a strange coincidence that this guy listed the same thing you had stolen and stated he found it, but sadly in the land of the free, that doesnt really PROVE anything. did you register the product or have the serial number or paperwork of any kind? that is goin to be the only way that you can prove without a reasonable doubt that it is yours.

imagine how bad this could turn if you took the (in my opinion) poor advice to go to this guys house or to confront him with some vigilante action only to discover that it isnt yours, or yours turns up somewhere else or the police find it or, or, or. there are far to many variables in this for you to take matters into your own hands. you have done the right thing, you have gotten the police involved, now let them do their job. i guarentee that they would not be happy if they were investigating this guy, were close to nabbing him and then you storm in and start something that ends up switching the roles and this guy can get you arrested or sue you or some other really bad thing. this kind of lameness happens a lot. there are people who use the loopholes in the law to their advantage, dont let that happen to you.

now that you've involved the police, go back to ebay, call your insurance company about replacing it. all the LEGAL routes open to you, and by all means be helpful to the police and call regularly to check on your case, but dont sink to the level of the perp.

just my advice, i know how frustrating these situations can be and i would hate to see it become a double loss for you.

just my 2 cents, if it is the guy then i hope he pays the price for his crookery, if not its better to have a clear conscience.

[mpm32]

I agree, my reply was tongue in cheek (mostly) 

[shardian]

Unless you have the product registered, have the instruction booklet with the serial number written down, or some pictures of the actual item with visible serial number, you are SOL. I'm pretty sure you have to give that info anyways when you file the police report though.

[sphetr2]

Situational evidence means (or SHOULD mean) nothing.

[melarky]

Just a little update, I heard back from the buyer, he said he got it yesterday in the mail (he was really suprised because the seller was not responding to his e-mails and sent no notification that the item had shipped).

He said that there were still Idaho addresses programmed in (my brother-in-law borrowed it the last time it was used to visit relatives in Idaho).  I am trying to verify that they are his addresses, but if they are, that should be proof enough that it is mine right?

The guy spent the time to erase the Utah addresses I had programmed in, but not the Idaho addresses, seems weird.

I will not be going to the guys house (can't even if I wanted to, I don't have his address or name even, just the ebay username).  Once the buyer confirms the addresses (and if they are mine) I'll give that info to the police and that should be enough for them to go question the seller.

It would be really great if this ended up working out, but I still have my doubts.  I would be happy to send the buyer the rest of the GPS parts (paperwork, CD with docs, and a wall plug) if he can help me catch this guy.

[SithMaster]

sounds strange.  why spend the time erasing one and not the other.  he might be really stupid or it can be an elaborate plan or rouse.

your saying you would let the buyer keep it?  i would want it back unless you get a cash settlement from the seller.

[ChadTower]

I am trying to verify that they are his addresses, but if they are, that should be proof enough that it is mine right?

Absolutely not.  It would be supporting evidence for something that is stronger, though.  A court would not consider that in and of itself a convincing body of evidence.

[SithMaster]

Why not?  I mean if the addresses are all places the buyer has not been to but the owner (rightful) has then wouldnt it be enough?  you would have to prove youve been there though.

maybe save the ebay listing.  him saying he found it is like saying he is selling something he could have stolen.

melarky maybe see if you can get video tape from the parking lot.  not sure if they havent overwritten it but maybe worth a shot.

[ChadTower]

Why not?  I mean if the addresses are all places the buyer has not been to but the owner (rightful) has then wouldnt it be enough?  you would have to prove youve been there though.

It would have to be more than that, like one of the addresses being his Brother's house.  Something specific to his identity. 

[melarky]

yeah, my brother-in-law had his parents, sister, and bothers address programmed in for sure, but there may have been others in there too.  I haven't heard back from the buyer, we're going back and forth through the ebay mail system (I've given my e-mail and phone number to him, but he always just responds through ebay) and now ebay won't let me send anything else to him (because we haven't actually done business, it says I need to take it off their site...)

Hope he writes me back or calls me.

[Dartful Dodger]

His brother's addresses are in my GPS too.

[ChadTower]

His brother's addresses are in my GPS too.

His sisters' are in mine.

[melarky]

Another update, I just got an e-mail from the buyer:

After looking at the info on the GPS, it would appear the unit is the one you lost. I sent a note to e-Bay with the facts. I don't know where to go from here, Ideas?

So I called the detective who is working my case, and then caught him up on the rest of the ebay stuff (he had only previously talked to the officer who took my report, so he didn't have a bunch of the other details like the other 2 items the person sold that he also "found" etc...)

The detective said he had already contacted ebay for the contact info for both the seller and the buyer and to just let him contact them from now on (find with me, I'm sure they will be more willing to cooperate with him than me).

The detective said when he got the info on the seller, he would go to his house and ask him all about it, and he would also cross check to see if there were any other reports of stolen items from peoples cars that matched the descriptions of the other items he sold.

He said he was guessing that the seller was probably a juvenile that was using a parents account without permission to sell the stolen items because the ebay account was 3 years old and had no prior stuff like this (sounds feasible to me).

I can't beleive this may actually turn out ok, I really figured I would never get "justice" on this (not because I don't beleive in our system, but because it's for a GPS worth $300 and there are far more important things to worry about this holiday season).  Still crossing my fingers!

[screaming]

what would "justice" be, in this case?

[Dartful Dodger]

I'm not sure it's a kid.  By the sound of the negitive responses, I think he's just a d!ck who needed some cash for the holidays.

Either way, melarky isn't someone you want to mess with.

[AlanS17]

That's just awesome. Good luck with all of that. At the very least, you have solid grounds for a civil case.

How much did it sell for on Ebay, what was the original retail value when it was a brand new model, and what did you pay for it? You mentioned $300, but what does that mean? You could teach this guy a lesson and get a much nicer GPS all at the same time.

[shardian]

Just curious, but how did you get ahold of the buyer? I just tried to get ahold of a buyer today. The seller is selling a board as-is, even though it is the same one I returned to the guy as dead! Anways, ebay blocked my message to him.
I would like to warn him if at all possible.

[Texasmame]

I had one of those portable GPS units (portable in the way that you could move them to any car and plug them into the cigarette lighter).  I noticed a few days ago that it was missing from my car.

I pretty much had no hopes of it ever showing up again, and at first didn't even bother to file a police report, but then I figured I would check ebay and see if I could find it.  I'm pretty sure I found it:

Ebay Item Link

He lives about 15 miles from me, and as you can see he states in his description that he "found" the item.  He also had 2 other items he was selling around the same time that he conveniently "found".  Lucky guy keeps finding stuff to sell

So anways, by the time I found that, the auction was over and someone had  already won it.  I contacted the seller (asked him where he "found" it) and the buyer (told him the situation and asked if he could see if there were any identifying marks or addresses left in the address book that would prove it was mine).  The buyer wrote back really quick and told me he had not gotten the item yet, and the seller had not responded to his e-mails, the seller finally wrote me back like an hour ago that said:

i found it outside of maverick by maceys in logan but it's already sold sorrry.

I just wrote him back the following:

That sounds pretty fishy, you had 2 other items for sale that you also just found. I filed a police report yesterday, and showed them the auction that you had up. I also contacted the buyer, and he said that you hadn't sent it yet and that you weren't replying to his e-mails.

I think you need to do what's right here before any more authorities get involved and you make a big mess for yourself. You've left a paper trail on ebay (your history shows the items you sold that you say you found, if I'm not the only one that filed a stolen item police report, it shouldn't be long before they connect the dots).

If you still have the item (since the buyer says you haven't sent it yet), you have a chance to make this right, and I'll back off. If you don't have the item anymore, you can re-imburse me, and I'll drop it.

I did in fact file a police report yesterday (after contacting ebay, they basically told me that they wouldn't help me unless I did).  The officer who took the report has already handed it off to a detective, but I'm pretty sure a $300 GPS is pretty low on their priority list, but it just bugs me that this guy is so close, and obviously the theif.

Any suggestions on what more I could do?  I almost don't care if I get the GPS back, but would rather this guy get busted (but it would be nice to have the GPS back ).  Would appreciate any opinions or advice.

"Found" the item.  What a mother ---smurf---.

Be sure that you actually filed a formal report with police.  Easiest way to do this is to go to the PD and get a copy of it yourself.  May cost a few bucks, tho.

Screw this guy to the fullest.

G'luck!

[More Cowbell]

If I apologize and give you the money that I received from the auction, will you drop all this? 

[missioncontrol]

If I apologize and give you the money that I received from the auction, will you drop all this? 

 

 

nice reference

+fu to you...

[melarky]

what would "justice" be, in this case?

The guy getting caught would be justice to me.  I almost don't care about the GPS (it would be nice to have back, but I would much rather see the guy who stole it get busted and either re-imburse me or be fined or whatever happens with small time theives...)

[melarky]

That's just awesome. Good luck with all of that. At the very least, you have solid grounds for a civil case.

How much did it sell for on Ebay, what was the original retail value when it was a brand new model, and what did you pay for it? You mentioned $300, but what does that mean? You could teach this guy a lesson and get a much nicer GPS all at the same time.

I bought it for $250, but they usually seem to sell for around $300 (I got a good deal, Amazon had them refurbished for cheap).  I haven't had it long, less than a year.  I reported it's worth as $250 on the police report though.

[melarky]

Just curious, but how did you get ahold of the buyer? I just tried to get ahold of a buyer today. The seller is selling a board as-is, even though it is the same one I returned to the guy as dead! Anways, ebay blocked my message to him.
I would like to warn him if at all possible.

I just clicked on the winning bidders username from the top part of the screen (where is says "Winning Bidder: Username").

That loaded up a page with info on that user, and on the top left area, there is a link that said "Contact Member".  I just clicked that and sent him a message through ebays message system.

You probably have to logged into your ebay account to do that.

[melarky]

I had one of those portable GPS units (portable in the way that you could move them to any car and plug them into the cigarette lighter).  I noticed a few days ago that it was missing from my car.

I pretty much had no hopes of it ever showing up again, and at first didn't even bother to file a police report, but then I figured I would check ebay and see if I could find it.  I'm pretty sure I found it:

Ebay Item Link

He lives about 15 miles from me, and as you can see he states in his description that he "found" the item.  He also had 2 other items he was selling around the same time that he conveniently "found".  Lucky guy keeps finding stuff to sell

So anways, by the time I found that, the auction was over and someone had  already won it.  I contacted the seller (asked him where he "found" it) and the buyer (told him the situation and asked if he could see if there were any identifying marks or addresses left in the address book that would prove it was mine).  The buyer wrote back really quick and told me he had not gotten the item yet, and the seller had not responded to his e-mails, the seller finally wrote me back like an hour ago that said:

i found it outside of maverick by maceys in logan but it's already sold sorrry.

I just wrote him back the following:

That sounds pretty fishy, you had 2 other items for sale that you also just found. I filed a police report yesterday, and showed them the auction that you had up. I also contacted the buyer, and he said that you hadn't sent it yet and that you weren't replying to his e-mails.

I think you need to do what's right here before any more authorities get involved and you make a big mess for yourself. You've left a paper trail on ebay (your history shows the items you sold that you say you found, if I'm not the only one that filed a stolen item police report, it shouldn't be long before they connect the dots).

If you still have the item (since the buyer says you haven't sent it yet), you have a chance to make this right, and I'll back off. If you don't have the item anymore, you can re-imburse me, and I'll drop it.

I did in fact file a police report yesterday (after contacting ebay, they basically told me that they wouldn't help me unless I did).  The officer who took the report has already handed it off to a detective, but I'm pretty sure a $300 GPS is pretty low on their priority list, but it just bugs me that this guy is so close, and obviously the theif.

Any suggestions on what more I could do?  I almost don't care if I get the GPS back, but would rather this guy get busted (but it would be nice to have the GPS back ).  Would appreciate any opinions or advice.

"Found" the item.  What a mother ---smurf---.

Be sure that you actually filed a formal report with police.  Easiest way to do this is to go to the PD and get a copy of it yourself.  May cost a few bucks, tho.

Screw this guy to the fullest.

G'luck!

Yeah, I got a copy of their "Voluntary Statement Form" yesterday, the detective said that he needed me to fill it out and hand it back into him (along with all of the e-mails I've been sending and receiving) because that would be the first thing the prosecuters would ask for.  It didn't cost anything for me, they actually had a copy available to download from their web page.

[More Cowbell]

If it's a kid, he has to absolutely be crapping his pants right now. Your email would have scared me to no end had I stolen it.

[shardian]

You should ask the detective if you can be there with camera phone in hand when he knocks on the guys door. Comedy gold, I tell ya.

[Texasmame]

I had one of those portable GPS units (portable in the way that you could move them to any car and plug them into the cigarette lighter).  I noticed a few days ago that it was missing from my car.

I pretty much had no hopes of it ever showing up again, and at first didn't even bother to file a police report, but then I figured I would check ebay and see if I could find it.  I'm pretty sure I found it:

Ebay Item Link

He lives about 15 miles from me, and as you can see he states in his description that he "found" the item.  He also had 2 other items he was selling around the same time that he conveniently "found".  Lucky guy keeps finding stuff to sell

So anways, by the time I found that, the auction was over and someone had  already won it.  I contacted the seller (asked him where he "found" it) and the buyer (told him the situation and asked if he could see if there were any identifying marks or addresses left in the address book that would prove it was mine).  The buyer wrote back really quick and told me he had not gotten the item yet, and the seller had not responded to his e-mails, the seller finally wrote me back like an hour ago that said:

i found it outside of maverick by maceys in logan but it's already sold sorrry.

I just wrote him back the following:

That sounds pretty fishy, you had 2 other items for sale that you also just found. I filed a police report yesterday, and showed them the auction that you had up. I also contacted the buyer, and he said that you hadn't sent it yet and that you weren't replying to his e-mails.

I think you need to do what's right here before any more authorities get involved and you make a big mess for yourself. You've left a paper trail on ebay (your history shows the items you sold that you say you found, if I'm not the only one that filed a stolen item police report, it shouldn't be long before they connect the dots).

If you still have the item (since the buyer says you haven't sent it yet), you have a chance to make this right, and I'll back off. If you don't have the item anymore, you can re-imburse me, and I'll drop it.

I did in fact file a police report yesterday (after contacting ebay, they basically told me that they wouldn't help me unless I did).  The officer who took the report has already handed it off to a detective, but I'm pretty sure a $300 GPS is pretty low on their priority list, but it just bugs me that this guy is so close, and obviously the theif.

Any suggestions on what more I could do?  I almost don't care if I get the GPS back, but would rather this guy get busted (but it would be nice to have the GPS back ).  Would appreciate any opinions or advice.

"Found" the item.  What a mother ---smurf---.

Be sure that you actually filed a formal report with police.  Easiest way to do this is to go to the PD and get a copy of it yourself.  May cost a few bucks, tho.

Screw this guy to the fullest.

G'luck!

Yeah, I got a copy of their "Voluntary Statement Form" yesterday, the detective said that he needed me to fill it out and hand it back into him (along with all of the e-mails I've been sending and receiving) because that would be the first thing the prosecuters would ask for.  It didn't cost anything for me, they actually had a copy available to download from their web page.

Excellent.  Keep at it - it'll take time and, as you said, it's not on the top of the cops' list.  But, with all the evidence you've provided, they might appricate your efforts and step things up a bit.  YMMV.

[JackTucky]

I'm waiting to see how Chadtower, esquire, weighs in on these recent findings.

-J

[ChadTower]

Yeah, because "show up on his porch with a camera and tha homiez" was such great advice.

[miles2912]

I am sure the thief thinks that you will never FIND his house..  having swiped your GPS and all.    Can't wait so see how this turns up   

* miles2912 grabs his popcorn (insert popcorn eating e-mote here)

D-

[jbox]

.

[SirPeale]

You guys do know a GPS doesn't have the capability to be tracked *back* to it, right?

[ChadTower]

Some do.  It's becoming more and more common in them.

[SirPeale]

Some do.  It's becoming more and more common in them.

Really?  Interesting.  Got an example of one?

[FrizzleFried]

Yah Chad...I am very interested in reading about these devices.  Please...provide a link or two.   I've only been able to find dedicated devices to do this...not a general GPS.

[screaming]

Any cell phone reports its location that can be read by any 911 agency, for one. It was a big controversy a couple years ago when the FCC was aiming to regulate it.  There are are ton of articles on it.. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2001820367_track21.html

Also, any ocean-fairing boat would have one of these GPS receivers that report its location to other ships in the area. It does this to make their location known to avoid hitting other boats.

[shardian]

Any cell phone reports its location that can be read by any 911 agency, for one. It was a big controversy a couple years ago when the FCC was aiming to regulate it.  There are are ton of articles on it.. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2001820367_track21.html

Also, any ocean-fairing boat would have one of these GPS receivers that report its location to other ships in the area. It does this to make their location known to avoid hitting other boats.

It was my understanding that sea worthy vessels were equipped with radar...

[SirPeale]

I'm talking about your average hand held GPS here, not a nautical model.

[ChadTower]

You probably want to specify the type of device you mean, then, since the term GPS generally refers to the technology and not any specific device.

Examples of two way GPS devices would be most new cell phones, the OnStar devices in cars, tracking systems in boats. 

You're right that usually the handheld Geocacher type devices cannot send signals, they are antennas/processors only.  The GPS devices in cars, though, are commonly two way.  That's how they download updated maps if they have that capability and anything with a "subscription" service would have to be two way.

Radar is entirely different, a signal broadcast from the source and reflected back to the source, it doesn't depend on an external communication the way GPS does.  Radar wouldn't help someone find you if you were the one with the radar.

[Dartful Dodger]

Radar wouldn't help someone find you if you were the one with the radar.

Radar detectors can find radars.

Do they have detectors to detect radar detectors?

If so, I'll need a detector to detect radar detectors.

[ChadTower]

Watch your verbs.  They can detect radar devices.  They are not necessarily able to find them.

[crashwg]

Yes, they do have detector detectors.  That's why some of the newer models have cloaking of some sort or another so they become "undetectable".

I'm guessing this is for states/provinces/countries that don't allow radar detectors.

[Jess--]

thats it...
I'm off out tomorrow to buy a radar detector detector detector detector detector detector

That'll Learn em

[Edgedamage]

thats it...
I'm off out tomorrow to buy a radar detector detector detector detector detector detector

That'll Learn em

aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh  your avatar is FREAKING me out!!

[spriggy]

Thats fricken gold!!    Good job Matlock!

[patrickl]

Yes, they do have detector detectors.  That's why some of the newer models have cloaking of some sort or another so they become "undetectable".

I'm guessing this is for states/provinces/countries that don't allow radar detectors.

Actually, the cloaking doesn't seem to work. They can only detect certain types of antennas though.

[Ed_McCarron]

Yes, they do have detector detectors.  That's why some of the newer models have cloaking of some sort or another so they become "undetectable".

I'm guessing this is for states/provinces/countries that don't allow radar detectors.

Actually, the cloaking doesn't seem to work. They can only detect certain types of antennas though.

Not necesarrily the antenna... The local oscillator in the RD tends to 'leak'.  This is what the RDD's sniff out.

Higher end RD's can sense the sniffers and shut the LO down while alerting.  I think a few years back one of the FCC's design specs changed to require lower emissions from RD's, thus making the RDD less useful on new RD's.

Phew.  Any more TLA's and I'd have screamed.

[shardian]

Can we get back on topic and talk about the poor kid who is about to get busted for theft? I'm dying to hear the outcome of this.

[ChadTower]

He's going to sit in a little dark room with IE's web standards compliance officials.

[shardian]

He's going to sit in a little dark room with IE's web standards compliance officials.

ooooohhh...but will they rape first or last?

[ChadTower]

The raping will continue until morale improves.

[melarky]

I'm dying to find out what happens too

I've handed in the paperwork to the police, and the detective told me that he would contact the seller and buyer once ebay releases the info to him.

I haven't heard anything since then, and I'm dying to know if he's talked to either yet.  I will update this once I know more.

[spriggy]

If this chimps an adult..... let's hope the only thing he'll be selling, is his ass in jail!

[DrewKaree]

I'm talking about your average hand held GPS here, not a nautical model.

Based on the thread topic, nobody was unclear as to what you were talking about Peale, except those who got caught acting Millhouse.

[patrickl]

Yes, they do have detector detectors.  That's why some of the newer models have cloaking of some sort or another so they become "undetectable".

I'm guessing this is for states/provinces/countries that don't allow radar detectors.

Actually, the cloaking doesn't seem to work. They can only detect certain types of antennas though.

Not necesarrily the antenna... The local oscillator in the RD tends to 'leak'.  This is what the RDD's sniff out.

Higher end RD's can sense the sniffers and shut the LO down while alerting.  I think a few years back one of the FCC's design specs changed to require lower emissions from RD's, thus making the RDD less useful on new RD's.

Phew.  Any more TLA's and I'd have screamed.

The new RD's use a phased array (closed) antenna instead of an open horn antenna. So they don't leak at all and cannot be detected (with a RDD) even when it's switched on. That's what I meant by "antenna".

Sorry to the thread police (who then start chit chatting about completely unrelated nonsense) but indeed I'm interested what happened with the GPS.

[NiN^_^NiN]

Alot of the newer GPS units have cellphones in them with Vodafone Yearly Sim cards u can use the simcard atleast one a year to keep the phone number and thats usually a test function they do on the unit each year to make sure u recieve the sms.

What it does is you can sms to the gps unit for it to go into an alert mode where it will send you a GPS co-ord of where the car is right now once the unit is turned off its still in alert mode where it sms you the last known co-ord.

It is available on afew units down here in australia i don't use one myself i have a carpc and have hooked up a sms unit so i can disable the cars ignition by a relay and get the GPS co-ord of where it is exactly and can call the cops in that area.

[patrickl]

I'm guessing that by newer "GPS units" you mean "GPS navigation systems" (that are built in to a car)

[ChadTower]

IIRC some of the aftermarket GPS navigation systems can be contacted in the same way.  They can't disable the ignition, of course, but they do have a bit of query/response ability.

[clanggedin]

There are some GPS tracking systems for Fleet and BHPH (buy here pay here) companies that will allow you to track in real time and allow you to disable the ignition of the vehicle. You can also set boundaries and if they go out of the boundary you will be alerted by text or email. You can also have it alert you if they drive over a certain speed limit.

[patrickl]

On the other hand, the GPS discussed here is a Magellan Roadmate 360

[melarky]

I think this actually may work out after all, I just got the following e-mail from the detective working on the case:

I received all the information that you handed in and have put it in the case file.  I have contacted the buyer of the GPS.  He and I have arranged to have the unit sent to me.  I have also interviewed the seller who is sticking to his story that he found the items at Maverick.  At this time I do not have sufficient evidence to say he didn't.  He is willing to pay the money back and make things right.  Thus far he has been cooperative.  I will review the case with the Logan Prosecutors office for possible charges.  I will keep you up to date as more happens.

Now, ultimately it would be great if the seller got in more trouble than just paying back the buyer, but it's still better than nothing.  I assume that once the detective gets the unit, it will eventually find it's way back to me, but he's never been 100% clear on that (he says in the above e-mail that "I have arranged to have the unit sent to me." but doesn't mention anything about me getting it back).

I really thought this guy was going to get away with it scott free, so this is pretty good news I think.

[shardian]

I bet that detective will enjoy his new gps unit.

Seriously though, this has been a pretty neat story. What were the odds huh?

[ChadTower]

The detective cannot give you the unit until he decides not to charge the seller with anything.  If he does, he needs it as evidence. 

[Dartful Dodger]

It'd be nice if that turd had to sweat it out in front of a judge, but I'm glad you're getting your GPS back.

Keep us posted.

[NiN^_^NiN]

I'm guessing that by newer "GPS units" you mean "GPS navigation systems" (that are built in to a car)

Nope i'm talking bout the small units u can pop onto the cars windshield on any car like th eTom Tom Navigators.

It's becoming quite common now they our touting it as a car phone for bluetooth aswell as a bluetooth speaker for your mobile aswell.

They are trying to combine everything into one i also believe (altho not sure) that a new option of having the persons phone number in the address book on the gps so you can call them if your being late or being able to call them so many miles/km from them to tell them your almost there so they hurry up.

It's really starting to take off

And congrats melarky hopefully he will get charged with stolen property if he found it shouldnt he have taken it to the police and the fact he deleted all the addresses hopefully they will give him a fine atleast so he's actually lost out on this whole thing

[patrickl]

Amazing story! Hope you get it back in the end.

@NiN^_^NiN,

Several PDA's have indeed got both a phone and a GPS (my brother has a Mio A701 which has both) and some portable GPS units (like TomTom) can work as a carkit (does not have a phone on board for that though). On the other hand I haven't heard of a portable GPS or PDA that can go into tracking mode, but it would be a cool feature.

[NiN^_^NiN]

All the tracking mode is when you send a SMS to the unit it goes into alert mode so it sends u the GPS co-ords so you can type them in on google etc.

the alert is when the cars turned off it will send you the last position the gps had or when it looses signal.

It updates u ever 1min or so depending on the setting

I myself have built this into my carpc using a old nokia 3210 where when it recieves a sms the pc will poll the phone and read it and if its one of the commands it knows it will do what it needs to do in my case i've got it to turn on a relay to disable the car and send a gps position of where it is.

I've got the same kinda thing i built at home aswell i sms home with a command to turn on the AC so its cool when i get home.

I got a DIY sms controller kit for $50 best $50 i ever spent

[patrickl]

A friend of mine once had a service truck of his company recovered with those GPS tracking things. They could completely follow where the car was going. They could even see where the tools where unloaded along the way. Amazingly most of the tools were already gone by the time the police got there, but the car was still fine.

[ChadTower]

Fleet trucks have had that ability for 10-15 years.  Of course, the units cost a hell of a lot back then, but pretty much as long as there have been car phones there have been GPS trackers in fleet trucks.  I worked with one of the guys a while back that designed the first ones... according to him, they were active and present in the trucks long before any of the drivers knew about them.

[Jess--]

nin do you have any details of how you hooked up your carpc with the 3210 or any code for it kicking around?

[NiN^_^NiN]

nin do you have any details of how you hooked up your carpc with the 3210 or any code for it kicking around?

They way i did it was through the serial port usinf a data cable but mine is very messy and basiclly have VB Script to get data from the gps program and send it through to my mobile

Easier way is the nokia SDK Kit

Nokia Forum Link

U can use this to create a program (if u know programming) for it to do anything you need using sms

It only supports older phones which are cheap to come by like the 51xx and 32xx series and abit higher up aswell

Here is a semi free Active X module
http://www.kylixsoft.com/products.htm

It allows you to send and recieve sms and read the first 10 people in the phone book it also adds the website to the start and finish of the message but if its to just control stuff its perfect.

There are quite alot of free programs out there i basiclly got one that saved text messages to a directory as a txt file and got VBSCRIPT to read that folder every min or so and then it would check the text see if it was a command and run another script for that command and delete the text file of the sms

For the non PC control i used hardware in a kit i got from a place in australia

jaycar Link

It does allow you to buy from usa if u really wanted it but u need to know how to solder

Sorry to thread hijack

[AlanS17]

He found the items at Maverick? What's that? And here's some evidence... you didn't leave it at Maverick. Ultimately, it's your word against his, though. In criminal court you need to be found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. But in civil court, you only need a preponderance of the evidence. In other words, the jury think your case is just stronger than his. So even if it doesn't work out in criminal court, you can always have a better chance in civil court. That's what happened to OJ Simpson.

[Dartful Dodger]

I think it means the guy is claiming somebody else stole it and left the pieces there.  He just "found" them.

It also sounds like the guy is going to pay back the buyer, and return the GPS, so you can only sue him for any damage done to your car, which probably isn't going to be as expensive as the lawyer you'll need, and that's only if you win.

Prooving he didn't just find it might be hard.  I doubt the CSI team was called in over this.  Although melarky may still have some more cards left up his sleeve.



Has this been put on any news sites?

This is a great story, you should call your local paper.

[NiN^_^NiN]

But he found it should he had try to give it to the police or try to find who the woner was instead of selling it stright away

He actually knew it was stolen cause even if he found it that means it belongs to someone so he stole it and tried to sell it so isn't that a crime in itself?

[AlanS17]

If a misplaced item is recovered and the true owner can't be found, it typically becomes property of the place where it was found, not the person who found it... at least that's how I recall it from my law class.

[patrickl]

Lol, he "found" a GPS navigation device and he cannot find the true owner? 

[crashwg]

If he gets charged with anything it will most likely be "receiving stolen property" unless you can prove otherwise, it's the only case that will get anywhere in a US court.

[leapinlew]

Man... I loved this story. I'm from the midwest and around here, I doubt the cops would've got involved at all. Trial by ass whoopin. Some people need some sense knocked out of them, before they can have any sense at all.

[mr.Curmudgeon]

I haven't browsed through this entire thread...but I just saw this linked on FARK (super high traffic site) and thought I'd share.

L.I. Man Finds Stolen GPS Device On eBay
http://wcbstv.com/local/local_story_008143808.html

[JackTucky]

Just read that too.  Is that you OP?

-J

[saint]

Slashdot

http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/01/08/2335249

[dek]

OP is in Utah. Saw a clip on the news talking about this, figured it was the OP's story, but saw it was someone else.

[saint]

Ah, ok! Was wondering

[melarky]

Yeah, I saw that on Slashdot today, kind of funny.  Maybe I should submit my story

I don't have any updates on this yet, as soon as I hear anything new, I'll post...

[NiN^_^NiN]

Its almost as good as P-P-P Powerbook

New story called G-G-G GPS

[vide0bug13]

as a last resort, if you cant get him arested, cut his power, or mabe put super glue in his car locks, or give him an un marked box filled with roches or some thing.
be creative
hope you get your gps back.

[SirPoonga]

Interesting story.  I am mainly replying so it shows up in my unread replies so I can keep track of it

[patrickl]

Interesting story.  I am mainly replying so it shows up in my unread replies so I can keep track of it

Can't you just click on the Notify button?

Still waiting to see what the final outcome will be here too

[SNAAKE]

His brother's addresses are in my GPS too.

His sisters' are in mine.

 

[melarky]

I can't beleive it, I got a call from the Detective, he has my GPS sitting on his desk waiting for me to come pick it up!

I'll be swinging by after work to go get it and meet with him.  I always hoped this would be the way it worked out, but I always kept that bit of doubt at the front of mind to help soften the blow if I never saw it again.

Thanks for all of the comments on this, I will update this if anything else happens, but I think it's smooth sailing from here (and I'll put my GPS in my house when I'm not using it )

[leapinlew]

I can't beleive it, I got a call from the Detective, he has my GPS sitting on his desk waiting for me to come pick it up!

I'll be swinging by after work to go get it and meet with him.  I always hoped this would be the way it worked out, but I always kept that bit of doubt at the front of mind to help soften the blow if I never saw it again.

Thanks for all of the comments on this, I will update this if anything else happens, but I think it's smooth sailing from here (and I'll put my GPS in my house when I'm not using it )

WOW! Congrats! Now... sell it on ebay! 

[NiN^_^NiN]

Hey congrats man thats great news glad it worked out

What about the guy who stole it? something has to have happened to him saying he found it and putting it up on ebay stright away shouldnt go unpunished.

[ChadTower]

Awesome.  Sometimes the system works.

There has been a huge rash of car breakins in my town, almost all of them to get a brand new GPS from the dashboard.  I have no idea why think it's safe to leave an expensive item stuck to their dashboard in plain view.  The paper said something like 20 cars were broken into over the weekend.  How many people bought these things and are also dumb enough to leave them in the car?

[melarky]

Thanks everyone.  I have the GPS back in my possession finally

I met with the detective briefly and he shed some more light on the subject.  He confirmed that it was a kid, aparently he has had some problem with the law in the past (nothing as serious as theft, but has a lead foot and a temper and gets into fights pretty often).

He said he was sure the kid stole it, but didn't have enough proof to make it stick, so they are just going to keep their eye on him.  I asked if anyone else had reported the other stolen items he was ebaying, and he said no.  I told him I almost didn't report mine, but ebay required it, he said never hesitate to report these things (no matter how small they seem), because usually the theif never just steals once, and when he finally does get caught, they sometimes have a bunch of other stolen items that the theif can't remember where he stole them from, and if no one has filed a report, there's no way to get the items back to the owners (makes sense).

I plugged the GPS in to make sure that it still worked as soon as I got out to my car, and it came right up, but somewhere along the way, someone set a Password on user 1 (will have to contact the manufacturer and find out how to reset that).  Again, I'm really happy that I got this back, I never expected to see this thing again, and I can't believe I actually have it back now.  Thanks again to everyone for the comments and help.

[shardian]

I plugged the GPS in to make sure that it still worked as soon as I got out to my car, and it came right up, but somewhere along the way, someone set a Password on user 1 (will have to contact the manufacturer and find out how to reset that). 

But you are sure it is yours, right?

[ChadTower]

The user1 password is "all your locations are belong to us".