MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
We will be in touch
Not at my work (as far as I'm aware) but at the soon-to-be-mrs Pinetree's office (at a large uni in the south-west)
This may seem fairly small, and insignificant, but I think it's a bit disconcerting:
My missus buys a box of porridge sachets and takes this box to her office, and places it in her desk drawer. It contains 24 sachets, and she has 1 for lunch every day (so it's basically a month's worth of lunches.)
It started out with 1 or 2 sachets going missing which, while annoying, was ultimately harmless.
A couple of weeks later she noticed a good handful had been pinched, so she put the box in a locked drawer and the thefts stopped.
The next month, she bought two boxes of porridge and took them into work, forgetting to put them in the locked drawer. She took a week off and arrived back to work to find one box (which she'd opened) completely empty, and the other box (which was left sealed) half empty and the lid replaced to look like it had never been opened!
To top it all off, she took in a pack of biccies yesterday, put in the top drawer unopened, and arrived in this morning to find they've walked too!
I find this absolutely galling- just because something's not locked in a drawer doesn't make it fair game!
Given the grand sum of the thefts totals under a tenner, it hardly seems worth kicking up stink over, however I'm of the opinion that theft is theft. Also, that's now £10 she's had to spend twice to replace the ones which have been pilfered.
We're pretty sure it's one of the night porters or cleaners, as they're the only people who have access to her office after hours, but as the office doesn't have CCTV, it's impossible to prove. I doubt the uni services would be willing to install CCTV for the sake of a few boxes of porridge and a pack of biscuits.
Theft of property (of any kind) from anyone else is an instantly sackable offence at her work, so although it's a fairly small theft, the consequences for the culprit, if caught, would be quite significant.
We're not really sure what to do with the whole situation, as she'll feel a bit stupid going to the campus management about something so small, but this really can't be tolerated.
Other than making sure her desk is locked, and preventing the thefts, does anybody have any ideas?
leave a tenner in the drawer and see if that goes? Might make her feel more comfortable reporting it.
Lace the porridge with rat pioson. See who doesn't turn in for work the day after.
I am not a doctor.
Home made cakes laced with laxatives.
Lace the porridge with [s]rat pioson[/s] picolax
& stand well back
paint that 'stop biting your nails' stuff all over the chocolate on the biscuits?
put a large sign on her desk asking whoever keeps stealing her things to stop it. worked for me. 😀
She needs to lock her stuff away and put a quick email to the campus security manager.
I'm a college security manager amongst other things and I can tell you that its most likely the night cleaners and there's no way you will catch them and it won't stop even if you do.
Lace the porridge with rat pioson.
[url= http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/9967782/Detective-facing-jail-after-lacing-Lucozade-drink-with-screen-wash.html ]Not screenwash though[/url]
She should report it to her boss. It maybe many other people are having things going astray to but all think "it's just a small thing is it worth mentioning?"
It is pretty shit that this happens but it may not necessarily be the cleaners either unless no-one else ever works late and doesn't have access to the office.
Somebody ate my pot of yogurt once at work. Not a sealed pot but an already opened one.! Who the hell eats an already opened pot of yogurt.?! I purchased and ate half of another pot of Greek yogurt and left a sample of my DNA in it and popped it back in the fridge. Much to my annoyance nobody helped themselves to it.
wheres the picolax !
Happened to me at my old work place with food.
I spoke to my bosses, they laughed it off.
I kicked off and demanded they do something about it. Turned out it was a director doing it and thankfully it then stopped.
[i]left a sample of my DNA in it and popped it back in the fridge. Much to my annoyance nobody helped themselves to it. [/i]
maybe you left it too salty?
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That would annoy me. Seems easily fixed by just locking it away, its not like your going to get it back and I would not want to get someone sacked over it.
[url= http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Spy-Camera-Clock-Audio-Video-Recorder-Hidden-Security-CCTV-and-Motion-Detector-/350656840808?pt=UK_Gadgets&hash=item51a4c6c468 ]clicky[/url]
Leave a note in the drawer asking the criminal to smile for the camera and giving directions to the dole office.
Report it to the security people. It might be an isolated incident but probably not. I'd suggest after she's done that to leave a note on her desk saying she's done it.
I find this absolutely galling- just because something's not locked in a drawer doesn't make it fair game!
Thatcher's Legacy 🙂
Mrs Logical has had money taken from her purse. Total of £60 altogether. She knows who it is as that person is the only other person who has been in at the same time. She won't say anything though and I don't know why.
BTW these tales of spiking food/drink reminded me of this tragic cautionary tale.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1510198/Antifreeze-prank-left-man-deaf-and-blind.html
Thatcher's Legacy
That would be stealing it and then asking the original owner if they wanted to buy it back!
Some sort of motion detection webcam left hooked up to her PC?
we had snacks going from our office honesty box, upstairs office had had thefts and installed a camera, our office cleaner was recorded stealing from them, got sacked, stuff stopped going from our honesty box. cool story bro!
there's no way you will catch them and it won't stop even if you do.
I hope you're not a Police person/detective/investigative journalist. 😯
Hidden cheap ebay mini cam. Copy of evidence to perpetrator and employer. No joy go public with the footage & story.
Edit: Just read you're a college security manager. Right, well, can I have your job you've just lost please.
Something like this, assuming no admin rights are required to install new software?
http://lifehacker.com/5233052/motion-detection-is-an-effective-dead-simple-security-camera-app
I would report it - if someone is going through the drawers to nick food, then what if someone leaves something more valuable in their drawers, could be a pain (we've had work mobile phones go missing, and heard of laptops and things going walkies).
If you want to do catch them yourself, just stick a webcam on the computer if there's one on the desk, and leave it on, running something to detect motion, something like this: http://secure-cam.en.softonic.com/
(or others http://technoloread.com/free-webcam-motion-detection-software/
). Doing surveillance is probably naughty and bad though, I suspect there are laws about what you need to do relating to signs and how you store the video.
Oh you could have fun with this, i know i would!
We once had a long term issue with pens going missing in the office.
We went through them incredibly quickly. Buy a new box, distribute them out, two days later, none left. People became paranoid about who was doing it. Arguments were starting to take place.
then one day someone was looking for a stapler or something and he opened one of our colleagues drawers who was off sick. Everyone in the office heard him swear.
One of those huge, old fashioned desks with the massive bottom drawers on each side, both were filled to the brim with biros. Storage was clearly becoming an issue for him because we also found a load secreted in a laptop bag he had under his desk.
I was asked to attend the initial interview as an intermediate and as soon as the guy was told we'd found a load of pens in his desk he slumped in his chair in relief. He was grateful that he'd been caught. He actually said at one point during the interview "Once I started, it was impossible to stop. I couldn't see any way to make it better".
Brilliant.
PICOLAX PICOLAX PICOLAX PICOLAX !
this thread needs more PICOLAX !
we had a similar theft issue.
Set up a web cam on the PC & configure it turn on & record automatically.
[i]motion detection webcam[/i]
they're pooing in desks too 😯
When I worked in a cinema, we had a staff fridge into which everyone left their food and drinks. We found that labelled bottles of Coke were being drunk by someone else.
When a cinema screen needs cleaned, the quickest way to do it is pour all the remnants of fizzy drinks into one cup and then chuck that down the sink. If you instead pour that cup into a bottle, the thieving stops 😀
equine laxatives FTW.
This needs to be brought to the attention of everyone. Emails circulated etc. It might start with theft of something trivial like food, but if they're getting away with it it could get worse. 5 wallets went missing within my work a few years back. You need to get investigating! Set a trap 🙂
As has been said, try a note first, saying 'please stop stealing from my desk, thefts have been reported'. Might be enough to stop them. If it carries on. Get a spy cam set up on the desk.
Or just lock everything up. Sad that you have to do this, but it will put a stop to it.
Its bizarre what goes missing, I leave a pair of trousers in the shower room at work and somebody once stole the belt!!
I hope you're not a Police person/detective/investigative journalist.Hidden cheap ebay mini cam. Copy of evidence to perpetrator and employer. No joy go public with the footage & story.
Edit: Just read you're a college security manager. Right, well, can I have your job you've just lost please.
😆
Firstly you need to understand who the night cleaning teams usually consist of. Then you need to understand how much money they get paid. Then you need to balance out how much they give a shit about being sacked and the likelihood of the new person that replaces them being any different.
The security team onsite can disrupt petty pilfering using a variety of methods. Covert cameras, unannounced patrols and bag checks etc all play a part but it doesn't stop it completely. Never has, never will. The best way to keep your stuff secured is to lock it away. Always has, always will be. The OP's wife should defintiely report it, as I previously advised, it may be part of a bigger issue that the security team are already aware of. It happened at my place about 18 months ago and culminated in a £30k theft of computers by a very nasty bunch of career criminals who had some inside assistance. Unfortunately for all concerned we had our suspicions and the whole thing was captured on carefully positioned cameras and the property recovered within a week. Several prison sentences also.
Using your own camera might satisfy you but without the consent of the company data controller and without an agreed surveillance plan it will count for nothing at a formal disiplinary, you might even find yourself in trouble.
You can have my job if you like. You sound a little wet behind the ears though to be honest. 😉
I audit premises as a part of my job and one of the question is 'Does anyone other than staff have access to the premises?' Nearly all answer no until I quiz them about the cleaners. It is a security loophole in many companies and stealing isn't the only issue - for instance the cleaner at a old workplace of mine that was caught watching porn on a unlocked computer and having a ****. This was whilst sat at my mates desk 😆
OK, I don't need to 'understand' anything. I've been a shift manager/key holder for three companies. Two of which high security (video new releases). Theft buck stop was me. Including petty theft. High temp workforce (mostly foreign with poor English) on low pay in one firm. I found them it stopped. It was an ongoing mission obviously.
You make whatever excuses you want.
Wet behind the years? LMAO. Where do I send my CV? I trust its £45k +?
Webcam on top of monitor, sign saying 'CCTV monitoring in progress', and leave your computer on.
No need to record anything, that should be enough. Put a few more webcams about the office, no need to plug them in.
Porridge packet opened and left, 2 days later a note explaining what you did to it. See who is still there
you do sound a bit volatile TuckerUK, but very employable I'm sure.
Bake some space cakes.
Assassination often works well.
my experience.
medium sized uni in SW, items started to go missing, from food to expensive items.
cameras used, caught cleaner red handed.
police called and we were accused of entrapment and told the camera footage was irrelevant. only course of action is 'localized resolution'. basically sack the cleaner.
sacked cleaner, with no job he decided to enrol on 1 of our courses.
was recognized after a few days and escourted off campus.
now we have been told he is receiving legal aid and is pursuing a compensation claim against the uni for denying him his human right to an education. obviously there is no record or conviction for the thefts, just the camera footage!
police called and we were accused of entrapment
It's only entrapment if you start leaving stuff out for him specifically to nick, isn't it?
It's only entrapment if you start leaving stuff out for him specifically to nick, isn't it?
I can't remember the exact terminology but its about not presenting someone with an opportunity to steal that wouldn't have otherwise existed. This is why its hugely important to set up surveillance formally and not to try and lay traps.
Put a dead (or toy) cockroach/ mouse/ rat in the box/ packet/ drawer!!
I heard a story once about somebody who used to do environmental health training courses in London, he usually carried a stuffed rat (dead one) in his bag!
If he aver saw anybody eyeing up his bag he would open it and have enough of a rummage around that the rat could be seen! 😕 😯 😀
Putting any kind of substance inside food/packaging that might be detrimental to a person's health could get you arrested for administering poison or something, and that carries a bit of a lengthy jail sentence.
Why not just leave some buscuits out for the cleaners? and lock your own stuff in the drawer? far less fuss.
Web cam set to detect movement and record a clip. Caught a security guy nicking electrical stuff from one of the technicians offices, at a previous university I worked at.
It's only entrapment if the person is encouraged to commit the offence, simply presenting them with an opportunity to do so isn't.
A colleague of mine used to leave his lunchbox in the communal fridge. In the lunchbox was a Kitkat which started getting nicked on a daily basis. One day said colleague had enough of this and took his Kitkat to the bog. Whilst in the bog he wiped his (chocolate) starfish with the Kitkat. This was when they were wrapped in foil and easy to unwrap and wrap back up. He put it back in the lunch box and got on with his work. Lo and behold it wasn't there by lunch. He let it be known that afternoon what he'd done. The rumour was that one person went very pale when told and the Kitkat never went missing again.
Take one packet of biscuits, open them and carefully take out each biscuit (helps to be a packet that is easy to get them back into).
Go out and rub each one on a dog turd.
Stick it back in the packet and place in your drawer.
Watch gleefully as day after day the biscuits vanish.
Then place a packet of worming tablets in the drawer with a note that the last packet had dog poo on and the tablets may be required.
Make sure you hide any future biscuits/food to ensure they don't try to get some revenge.
Disclaimer: Given the current litigation culture you may find yourself being disciplined for rubbing your own biscuits in dog poo. You could claim that you have a wierd fetish and what you do with your own biscuits is up to you. The worming tablets were put in the drawer because you were concerned about the wellbeing of the person taking your biscuits.
Just lock her stuff away as simple as that no need to retaliate because if the thief can steal her stuff, s/he would be doing the same to others so sooner or later the person will get into trouble. Just don't leave stuff lying around. I always clear my desk after work to avoid agitation.
Or just keep the drawer door locked, it's a sad state if affairs but the same could be said for having to keep your doors at home locked.
People will be people.
You need a glitter bomb.
If its the cleaners , which it prob is, Make it harder for them to clean up.
Buy a box of party popper. Remove the cardboard top and the lame streamers . Re - fill the party popper with an assortment of choice ingredients. You could use glitter , flour , talcum powder etc. If you are a little more creative ( evil ) use 2 x poppers and see if some ink could be put inside the party popper as well .
Attatch 6 in a fan arrangement inside the drawer so once opened the whole lot go off in an amazing glitter / flour ./ ink spectacularo explosion
The cleaner who walks around looking like a Smurf with glitter in their hair is probably the culprit
Does she work with any bears ?
The cleaner who walks around looking like a Smurf with glitter in their hair is probably the culprit
We use talcum powder bombs to mark suspected dealers. We put little talcum bomb devices above suspended ceiling tiles in the male toilets in a couple of blocks where we know gear is getting knocked out. Then it's just a case of spot the student, they'd have no other reason to be lifting ceiling tiles other than to stash gear.
mrmoofo - Member
Does she work with any bears ?
POSTED 15 MINUTES AGO # REPORT-POST
Well she is a woman, and we know women attract bears
Like one of the earlier posts we were having random things happening at work, stuff going missing but reappearing weeks later. We had an instance where our milk changed, we normally have semi skimmed but then there was full fat in fridge, of course you question yourself on if you mistakenly bought the correct one, but it happened a couple of times, why? Ever stranger some work for a customer had been painted green and was left overnight to harden off, when we came in the next morning they were black!
The guy who paints for us was sure he'd painted them green but he convinced himself he must have made a mistake?
We all had a warning that this Tom foolery had to stop ( my MD actually used those words) but a few minor things still went missing over the next few weeks and the management stepped up its security and it all stopped.
Anyway about a month later I'm at a wedding and I'm telling the tale to a lad who use to work with us and he says they didn't ask for the keys back when he left and just smiled at me, he later admitted it was him who came in at night just for devil ment and a laugh! He hadn't actually stolen anything it was all hidden in the works, I found it where he said it was, but I've left it alone to be found by some other person. He actually told me of other things he'd done that we hadn't even realised, he'd moved all the pictures in the offices and boardroom round and nobody noticed:-)
Mad as a hatter.
How about some sort of permanent ink / dye so that they can't avoid getting it on their fingers when they go stealing?
Just dust the biscuits with the hottest chilli powder you can lay your hands on, or get some ghost chillis, slice them, (carefully, wearing gloves), and put the slices on the bikkies for a couple of days, to let them 'marinade', then replace them in the packet.
The person going purple and running for the nearest cold water supply is likely guilty, and unlikely to do it again. 😈
We had stuff go missing at work and it got worse and worse, dewalt drills, laptops, money etc. etc. Then someone said a friend of a friend had seen one of the cleaners trying to sell the stuff down the pub. We got the police involved who ended up doing a raid on Christmas Day. However nothing was found. After the raid he phoned in, gave a load of abuse about mistrust, ruining his Christmas etc. and told us to sick the job as he didn't want to work with a company who didn't trut him. However a the thefts stopped after he left!
On the practical joke side. My wife and I once called in at my parents house and they were out and for some reason we thought it would be funny to change all the clocks in the house an hour forward. They never realised for ages and were getting confused as to why all the tv program's were wrong and only clicked when the 9 o'clock news came on at ten.
I'd completely forgotten about this, but I thought it was due for an update, seeing as there's been some significant developments over the past couple of months.
Firstly- the security staff at the Uni came in and placed hidden cameras in the office a few months ago, and left them there for over 3 weeks. Someone must have tipped the thief off about it, as nothing went missing during this time.
After 3 and a bit weeks, the cameras were moved to a different office in the same building, where thefts had been reported.
A week later, and a thief has been caught! 😀
Turns out it was what we thought all along- one of the night porters. Apparently a few of the people in my missus' office knew who he was (a right scummy wee bastard)
When they told him he was being sacked for theft, he started kicking off, threatening employment tribunals etc...
When he was shown the footage and the stack of evidence, and then given the offer of going quietly, or police involvement, he settled down a bit.
So, he's buggered off now with a permanent black mark on his CV. I don't like reveling in the demise of others, but this guy had it coming.
I still reckon they should have got the police involved, but he's not there any more, and nothing's gone missing since, so there's maybe not a great deal of point.
Oh well...
Cheers!
id hazard a guess at security guards? at night if they have them? or the fat bastid who's always eating ??
i hate thieves especially the ones who think its just food and i want it so im taking it attitude..
id sack em personally but my staff dont do this sort of crap
So nicked your Mrs' porridge.
But didnt actually get any for being caught.
There is something deeply depressing about people feeling the need to steal porridge 😥
Ro5ey - Member
So nicked your Mrs' porridge.But didnt actually get any for being caught.
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Goldilocks hater.
Just stick one of these in the drawer and see who doesn't have a head when they attempt the theft:
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I had similar happen once. I kicked off, turned out it was a director helping herself (and giving other staff) food from my drawer. It was laughed off by her so I took it to the chairman - she only got a ticking off but I got an apology (and her continued disdain). It was a shit place to work.
My friend used to keep energy drinks in his beer fridge in his garage. His teenage son in law kept drinking them with alcohol etc so when he needed them for riding he wouldn't have any and it really pist him off. He warned him several times.
In the end he drank half a bottle and then topped it back up with wee and strategicly placed it back in the fridge and again warned him.
He took great delight in telling him after he ignored him.
He then told him he had a few ringers in the fridge. This stopped the problem.
Maybe a few laxatives etc in the porridge would solve the problem?