Thieves Clear Out NJ Apple Store In 31 Seconds 459
theodp writes "An amazing surveillance tape of a burglary in progress at a New Jersey Apple Store shows five perps in masks smashing the plate-glass doors at 2:05 a.m., signaling to the security guard that they had a gun, and clearing off the display tables with the efficiency of a Indy 500 pit crew. The take: 23 MacBook Pros, 14 iPhones and 9 iPod touches in 31 seconds flat. Estimated value, based on average selling price: $46,345. No word yet on whether Microsoft's Laptop Hunters have alibis."
On the bright side... (Score:5, Insightful)
...Apple has received a million dollars worth of free publicity for the low cost of their insurance deductible.
Re:On the bright side... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:On the bright side... (Score:5, Funny)
Yes but those iPhones were treated incorrectly by the perpetrators. The one that exploded in the one guy's pants pocket was not supposed to be carried outside of a fashionable case. Everyone knows that sheesh.
Re:On the bright side... (Score:5, Funny)
I didn't notice them picking up any chargers either, man are they gunna pissed when the batteries run out!
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The insertion force of a power adapter, magsafe or no, is not much compared to that of an ethernet jack, which they forcibly yanked out of place for each portable. The damage from the power connector comes when the portable falls to the ground, and impacts on the jack, forcing the DC input to come apart from the DC-in circuitry of the power stage. When you are pulling, the likelyhood of damage is minimal, since this is not really different from removing the power adapter the normal way, that is, pulling on
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The insertion force of a power adapter, magsafe or no, is not much compared to that of an ethernet jack, which they forcibly yanked out of place for each portable.
Why would the Apple store use ethernet when each mac has built in wireless? I've visited quite a few apple stores and I can't recall Ethernet cables sticking out of the sides of their laptops. It would be unsightly and Apple is very concerned about appearances. Heck. If they were going to use ethernet they might as well have plugged in a Kingston lock (on the right side close to the ethernet on my MBP).
The damage from the power connector comes when the portable falls to the ground, and impacts on the jack, forcing the DC input to come apart from the DC-in circuitry of the power stage. When you are pulling, the likelyhood of damage is minimal, since this is not really different from removing the power adapter the normal way, that is, pulling on the cord end.
Sure. If you pull the cables straight out, regardless of connector, there is little likelihood of dam
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Why would the Apple store use ethernet when each mac has built in wireless?
Interference. Put two laptops within a couple meters of each other and you'll notice it. I can't imagine how bad it would get with 3 or 4...Also, bandwidth.
Re:On the bright side... (Score:4, Funny)
Probably however if Apple was really smart they woudln't have put an Apple Store in New Jersey... What where they thinking.
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A physical description of some guy selling a laptop out of the trunk of a car off Route 22 isn't going to help much, and if they're pros there's no way they're selling these themselves.
What you're describing is how the really stupid thieves get caught. The ones who have any kind of brains would fence them.
People who buy brand new laptops out of car trunks generally know that calling the manufacturer is the same as admitting you bought stolen goods and asking if they could please send an officer around to ta
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The robbers who cleaned out the Apple store were in such a hurry because it was almost happy hour at the gay bar.
You're not kidding, check out CNN's take (Score:5, Funny)
Quoth CNN's article [cnn.com]:
MacBooks: Laptops for a better class of criminal!
Comment removed (Score:5, Informative)
Re:You're not kidding, check out CNN's take (Score:4, Funny)
I'm guessing all the display model serial numbers are recorded. First time someone attempts to sync with iTunes, the device locks itself and displays the message that it is stolen property and should be returned to the hive mind...
You've got JAIL!!!!
Re:You're not kidding, check out CNN's take (Score:5, Funny)
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And surely Apple is going to know what the serial numbers of the machines are?
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You're aware that there is security cam footage of this heist, right? Watch it.
Re:On the bright side... (Score:4, Insightful)
Low cost?
Low cost per month but how many months?
Insurance costs are always looked on as low giving the short term cost but never the accumulated costs.
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I live in New Jersey, and I didn't even know we had an Apple Store. I didn't think my state was hip enough.
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god dammit, we all know the SI unit for shit is the Couric
ObComment (Score:5, Funny)
Apple Store's next product release: iRobbed.
Re:ObComment (Score:4, Funny)
Re:ObComment (Score:5, Funny)
I expect the price Apple sets for iRobbed will be iWayrobbery.
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It had better be durable enough to withstand the chafing of hard plastic and metal because everyone knows that the only things Apple users like to make love to are their Apple products.
We also love your mum. However, unlike your mum, my Mac has no viruses, infections or diseases
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Amazing? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Amazing? (Score:4, Insightful)
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Maybe you make that in a month, but for someone making minimum wage, 5k is half a years worth of after-tax pay. Heck, even after a healthy raise, 5k is almost 3 months after-tax wages for me too...
$5k is an awful lot of money when you're earning less than $8 an hour. I don't ever want to risk going to jail, but I can completely understand why the equation might go the other way for someone. Especially in a situation like this where unless another security camera caught an image of their getaway car, or some
Re:Amazing? (Score:5, Insightful)
intelligence != morality
I'll probably get modded down as a troll or something for this, but...
morality != respecting property laws (necessarily)
Most people would disagree, but a respectable argument could be made that stealing from a wealthy corporation is morally neutral.
Re:Amazing? (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Amazing? (Score:5, Funny)
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The newscaster's commentary made my brain bleed. (Score:5, Funny)
He talks about the burglars being "savvy enough to wear masks" and being able to distracting an unarmed security guard. Last time I checked, these sorts of tactics qualified as being "not retarded," but not quite "criminal mastermind."
Re:The newscaster's commentary made my brain bleed (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Amazing? (Score:5, Insightful)
I was amazed (Score:3, Insightful)
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Re:Amazing? (Score:5, Insightful)
Yeah. And the way they were slapping them closed and handling them, I'd be surprised if a few screens and drives didn't work well after this. It'll make it hard to fence them.
Because people who buy stolen property from the back of a van are known for thoroughly testing it first?
Re:Amazing? (Score:5, Interesting)
Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Amazing? (Score:5, Funny)
You expressed my thoughts perfectly. I don't have any mod points, so I bought you a "mod you up" spell. It should begin to take effect within 30 days. I'm afraid I haven't had a mail yet, but it's such a powerful spell that I'm sure that she'll be "completely drained" for the next several days.
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Do not meddle in the affairs of ebay wizards...for they are powerful and quick to anger.
Besides, there's plenty of people on this planet willing to pay good money for a little sweet talk.
Yes, but (Score:5, Funny)
Upgrade cost (Score:5, Funny)
And will cost $52,838 to upgrade in another eight months.
Re:Yes, but (Score:5, Funny)
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Well, the ads do say "Get a Mac", not "Buy..." (Score:5, Funny)
Some thieves broke into my college's computer labs and stole all the four-year-old iMacs. They turned their noses up at the brand new Dell Precisions in the same lab...
Re:Well, the ads do say "Get a Mac", not "Buy..." (Score:4, Funny)
Machine sucked. Couldn't handle the snatch and grab. Would not steal again! F----------!
That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:5, Insightful)
Using a gun in the commission of a felony usually gets you extra jail time... and these guys did this for $46,000 worth of gear, which probably has a value of about $3000 with a fence?
If all I'm gonna get is $3000, I might as well... oh, I dunno, WORK for the money and not have the years in jail.
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:5, Funny)
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:4, Funny)
Or better yet, the iChair.
Unemployment in New Jersey 9.6% (Score:5, Insightful)
Add in their race, which looks like African American from the video, that adds quite a few more points on to their unemployment issues - for various reasons that I won't get into and which we all know.
Now, I'm by no means condoning what they did: I'm just trying to promote some understanding. When folks get desperate, they do desperate things. Just getting a job, for many, is not an option - especially in one of the worst economies in decades.
There are some doing to support substance abuse, which being an addict precludes employment. They need help.
Now, there's the crowd that does this shit because "it's cool". They're just punks they should get their asses shot off.
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It's hard to remember how people talked in different times, isn't it: [cnn.com]
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:5, Insightful)
Mod parent up. If you're going to commit a felony that will result in significant jail time, at least rob a bank or a high end jewelery store. Instead they steal an easily tracked, serial-numbered product with a ridiculously low fence-to-retail value. Furthermore, their crime is newsworthy enough ("Look at those shiny macbooks disappear!") that they manage to get coverage on major websites and news outlets.
Finally, they incur the wrath of apple fanboys everywhere now determined to track them down: "Did you see how they handled those MacBooks! They might even have scratched the case!!!"
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:4, Insightful)
What are the fanboys going to do? Throw their frappuccinos at them? Picture a bunch of apple fanboys trying to intimidate you. You just giggled out loud, right? I mean, we're not exactly talking offensive linemen here...
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:4, Insightful)
Banks are nearly impossible to rob and get away with (unless it's an inside job and then you can really only do it once).
Jewelry doesn't have that high a black-market or second-hand value. I don't know this from experience, but just look at craigslist and ebay. All the engagement rings that sold for thousands of dollars retail get pawned second-hand for an order of magnitude less. Plus jewelry stores are harder to rob since almost all of them are in well-secured shopping malls these days.
Second-hand Apple products on eBay, however, fetch almost what you'd pay retail for brand-new ones. Couple that with the incredibly weak physical security of most Apple stores and it's hard to think of a more tempting target.
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Mod parent up. If you're going to commit a felony that will result in significant jail time, at least rob a bank or a high end jewelery store.
I guess it depends where you are, but certainly in the UK most bank robberies don't net that kind of money. Largely because the cashiers only have a certain amount of cash immediately on hand - most of it's in a safe which you have to punch in a code and then wait some time before it will open.
This is why you often have to give the bank some notice before you withdraw a large amount of cash.
Most jewellers aren't much easier - and the value of most jewellery is actually pretty terrible. The main reason it
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:5, Insightful)
My Daddy was a cop. He always told us all, if you are going to steal, steal big, the penalty is about the same.
Good ole Bernie proved this to be true, didn't he. Has anyone ever scored more than he did? He scored big for what, few short years in jail before he dies? All those years living large probably filled him with enough memories to last several life times. Wouldn't those memories make Bernie's time a lot easier to do than the time given to urban ghetto punks like these.
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:5, Funny)
WORK for the money and not have the years in jail.
Nah, they aren't worried about spending too much time in jail. Last week they stole some iPhones and found out how easy it is to jailbreak.
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:4, Informative)
Well the made the Security Guard think they had a gun to scare him. Where they did or not would be hard to prove unless it was caught on camera.
The law often doesn't make a distinction between making your victim think you have a deadly weapon and actually possessing one.
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:5, Insightful)
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Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:5, Insightful)
A better analogy would be me selling you a gun, then accusing you of being armed and running you over in my tank.
Then killing a hundred thousand people.
And still not finding your gun.
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:5, Insightful)
Trouble is, it's fairly easy for even a public defender to get a jury to the reasonable doubt point on the matter.
I wouldn't call that "trouble". That's the whole point of the system. The government SHOULD have to prove something beyond reasonable doubt before they are allowed to force someone into prison (where they are likely to be assaulted, raped, and possibly killed). I thank my lucky stars that I live in a place where, at least in theory, I can't have my life ruined simply because some cop with a grudge thinks I might have had a gun in my pocket.
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:5, Funny)
"ass rapings. You know, from using the Macs."
They have the rounded corners, to make that slightly less painful.
Always thinking of the user Apple....
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:5, Insightful)
$3000 in 31 seconds is $351,000 an hour.
No, your math is based on incorrect assumptions. That's like saying a custom-crafted software application earns the writer $50K/hr because you paid $25K for it and it took 30 minutes to install--- even though it took 2 months to write
For a crime like this, you need to include the time spent planning, fencing, and then looking over your shoulder for the next 10 years (or sitting in jail 5 years if you're caught)... and also divide by the number of people doing it.
$50k/hr for fencing huh? (Score:3, Funny)
you need to include the time spent planning, fencing, and then looking over your shoulder
I spent 5 hours last week fencing, and all i have to show for it is a bunch of bruises and a broken sabre. Where's my $250,000?
Re:That's pathetic! They get dumber every day. (Score:5, Funny)
I'd go so far as to say...
GP was pointing out that, because they are black, they may have a harder time finding jobs (though, Jobs might just find them, after this). I doubt GP would be so brazen as to say because they are black they don't WANT jobs.
I mean, they stole Macbooks. They want Jobs. Very much.
Yeah, but- (Score:5, Funny)
It wasn't a robbery! (Score:5, Funny)
Stupid (Score:3, Insightful)
Gone in 31 seconds (Score:5, Interesting)
Not sure if still unsold iphones are somewhat in MobileMe or something like that as extra security.
iStupid (Score:3, Funny)
smash (Score:5, Funny)
Once again, a dramatic demonstration of Windows failure. I'm getting a little tired of these attack ads.
quick release power connectors (Score:5, Funny)
Steve Jobs notes the quick release power connectors, making the job up to 3 times faster than a PC.
A more useful URL to the start of the action... (Score:4, Informative)
Skips over the newscaster BLAH BLAH BLAH:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qER69SvyYV8#t=0m48s
No bars behind the glass? (Score:3, Informative)
I can't remember the last time I saw an electronics store that doesn't have a retractable security gate (bars):
http://www.securityshuttersolutions.co.uk/retractable_gates.html [securitysh...ions.co.uk]
That would have at least cost the thieves some time and not make it so "knife through warm butter" easy.
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Probably for aesthetic reasons. Apple should have specced shatter proof glass. In fact, that's probably why the laptops were left unsecured in the store-- to tempt people into visiting during normal working hours.
Re:No bars behind the glass? (Score:5, Insightful)
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They just need to cover the steel bars with a matte black cloth, topped with a gently pulsing white light.
Labor Day Sale! (Score:3, Funny)
It's a Blowout Labor Day Mac Sale on newjersey.craigslist.org! If you miss this, you'd better be dead... or in jail... and if you're in jail, BREAK OUT!
I've heard this one before (Score:3, Funny)
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Someone's head is going to roll...... (Score:4, Interesting)
As someone who works for a computer store............
I hope to god someone gets canned for this. There were so many ways to prevent this that cost maybe 1/4 of the value of the merchandise stolen. Laminated glass instead of plate on the doors, Kensington locks, or even just locking the product up in a cage or safe after hours. One of the most important rules of retail is control of the product. Further more, you can see that they don't even have pylons in the front of the store to prevent someone driving their car through the glass. The guard wasn't armed, either.
If these machines were insured, there is no way in hell an agent would approve the claim. Those products were pretty much offered up on a platter. I have worked for several retailers, most of them computer stores, and I have NEVER seen a laptop whether Mac or PC without a Kensington lock on a sales floor.
Re:Someone's head is going to roll...... (Score:4, Insightful)
Your post is a great illustration of why Apple Stores beat the pants off most computer stores in terms of revenue per square foot. You're all worked up about so-called "loss prevention" that you've forgotten about getting people to actually buy the stuff. Apple Stores have been operating for how many years and this is the first one that's been hit like this? Meanwhile locking the product away after hours so nobody can see it would have cost Apple far more than a piddling $45,000 in profit over that time.
The goal in retail is to make money, not to prevent theft. Theft prevention is simply one way to achieve that goal. Every security measure you take must be weighed against potential lost sales. Some of your advice would make little difference, like laminated glass, but pylons and locked-up merchandise are extremely unfriendly and are likely to backfire in terms of profitability.
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Apple Stores have been operating for how many years and this is the first one that's been hit like this?
You think this is the first?
Believe it or not, stores getting robbed isn't international news headlines. Even when it's Apple.
And I love how you twist the expense of their products as being a good thing - of course they make a lot of revenue per square foot.
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I am surprised it is legal to use plate glass in a door or street level window, it is illegal to fit in such locations here in .au.
Cost of merchandise vs. cost of glass (Score:4, Informative)
I can tell you as an Architect, the cost of replacing the window will more than outweigh the cost of the computers for Apple.
Apple Security (Score:5, Funny)
Windows FAIL (Score:5, Funny)
Well it was catastrophic Windows FAIL that let the crooks into the secure area in the first place!
News?? (Score:3, Interesting)
When was a robbery of a retail store news? Maybe because they got footage of the whole thing it became sensational--so naturally to have to air it then.
Real story should be "Security guard fired when robbers smash large glass door just as he leaves the room." How could the guard not hear that? Sounds like an inside job to me.
-m
example usa news report? (Score:3, Funny)
if thats a prime example of a usa news report, no wonder the nation is "weird"...
Apple: Big Target (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:No security cables (Score:4, Interesting)
Most people who buy laptops aren't going to be tethered to a desk. A big honking security cage or even a simple security cable prevents a prospective buyer from getting a feel for how portable the laptop is. Perhaps Apple should follow the lead of jewelry stores, and lock up its merchandise after hours. To be fair, most jewelry stores are designed with this closing procedure in mind, whereas most at most Apple stores, the laptops would have to be stored in back room-- which may not be more secure in any meaningful way [appleinsider.com]
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Re:Too bad (Score:4, Insightful)
Well... no, it sucks for the reseller. Or if the reseller is smart, then it sucks for the insurance company.
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When you refer to an individual that "perpetrated" a crime, without knowing who they are, perp[etrator] is the proper term to use. We don't suspect that these guys robbed that store - we know they did - now to find them.
However, when the cops finally pick up a person they "suspect" perpetrated the crime, they are a suspect.