Say Cheese Laptop Thieves

With technology always advancing and security always improving, why is it that so many criminals think they can get away with committing a crime and never be caught? It has always baffled me, but I suppose there is only one real answer – they’re stupid. It’s not often you hear of a highly intelligent criminal, a "mastermind". For the most part, people resort to committing crimes because they are too stupid to make a living like the rest of society or are too damn lazy to work their way thru life. So when the "bad guys" get caught, and they almost always do, I find myself getting a good chuckle out of their stupidity. Perfect case example...

Three roommates discovered their NYC apartment had been ransacked when they returned home to find $5,000 of electronics stolen! Among the items were 2 laptops, 2 flat-screen televisions, 2 iPods, gaming consoles, DVDs and computer games. One of the victims, who works at a nearby Apple Store, received a call from a friend asking her if she was online. The victim said no and was told by the friend that his computer showed her as being logged onto the Internet. The victim signed onto another computer and used the "Back to My Mac" program to determine that her stolen Mac laptop indeed was signed onto the web and that someone was using it to shop online! She then activated the stolen computer's built-in camera, allowing her to "see" what was in front of the laptop.

At first, she saw only an empty chair. But a short time later, she was able to photograph a man, 23-year-old Edmon Shahikian (AKA "Dumbass #1"), sitting in front of her stolen laptop. The victim then was able to find photos of the other thieve, 20-year-old Ian Frias (AKA "Dumbass #2"), using the computer after it had been stolen.

The tech-savvy woman solved the crime herself! After logging into her stolen laptop remotely, she was able to capture photographs of both suspects and turn that evidence over to police. The two thieves were picked up at their Bronx homes and most of the $5,000 worth of electronics stolen in the burglary was recovered. The victim did not know either man, but showed the photos to one of her roommates, who recognized them as having attended a get-together at the apartment a few weeks before the burglary. Apparently, Shahikian and Frias are friends of a friend of the victims. Hmm, some friends.

Shahikian and Frias are charged with second-degree burglary and fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, both felonies. Of course, this isn’t the first time a crook has been caught red handed using a stolen computer. You may recall this man, pictured above, AKA "The Original Dumbass". Apparently the computer he stole was a shared iMac with Flickrbooth installed. Flickrbooth is an app that automatically snaps and uploads photos to the user’s Flickr account, or in this case, the victim’s Flickr account. Obviously the guy didn't know he was uploading images of himself and his awesome tattoos to the entire Internet. Smile, you're busted.

Just a word of advice, if you are going to steal a computer, you may want to be a little more tech-savvy to keep even a glimmer of hope alive in not being caught. It’s not just Apple that is helping users crack down on thieves. Almost all new laptops today have built-in cameras that can be accessed remotely. Manufactures like IBM and Dell even have LoJack recovery systems in place. Hard drive data encryption and self-destructing mechanisms are also options available for many computers. For around $30 you can even pick up a locking security cable to deter someone from swiping your beloved laptop. The list goes on and on. So if you want to beat would-be-thieves, then you need to stay one step ahead of their game. Oh yeah...and not inviting shaddy people to your house parties may be a good idea as well. It's just a thought though.