Somebody stealing caches and placing them as their own.

[MisterEFQ]

I have a good friend that I introduced to caching 2 years ago.

 

Recently a "new" cacher took one of his hand made nano caches, and placed it as his own.

 

What can be done about this? It is kinda of hard to prove that it was stolen since a picture of the cache was not taken before it was stolen. There is no denying that it was a stolen cache, my buddy showed me the cache before he placed it.

 

I posted a note on the new cachers page. It was deleted. He said any other contact would be considered harassment.

 

I am going to disable my local cache, because I am worried that mine might end up missing.

 

Any advice would be helpful.

 

Thanks.

[+DragonsWest]

Might be the new cacher is unclear on the concept of the game, which is to not take the container? Sent any polite inquiries, yet? Before throwing down gauntlets, might be worth seeing if there's simply a misunderstanding.

[+The_Incredibles_]

What did your note say?

[MisterEFQ]

He claimed the person who posted a not stole his cache. I pointed out that he didnt steal the cache you took from somebody else.

 

And I say "new" cacher because he claims he is old school and is logging caches that he "found" years ago.

[4wheelin_fool]

It's not a new cacher. It's someone purposely causing grief for whatever reason.

[MisterEFQ]

It's not a new cacher. It's someone purposely causing grief for whatever reason.

 

He sure is putting a lot of work. Placing 30 caches, with bad coords, sometimes in cardboard containers. Then he claims the last person that found it has stolen his cache a few times. One of my favorite local caches was found by him. And he went back a month later and said it was gone. It just makes me wonder if he took that one too.

 

And he has a premium membership.

 

This kind of thing really puts me off. Caching is a light hearted fun activity to me.

[graftedoaks]

This is horrible. I always wondered if some caching communities get destroyed by people with simply bad intentions, like someone going around and just removing all the caches in the area. I'm sorry you have to deal with this.

[knowschad]

This is horrible. I always wondered if some caching communities get destroyed by people with simply bad intentions, like someone going around and just removing all the caches in the area. I'm sorry you have to deal with this.

Yes, that happens occasionally. Search for "Paul Repak" if you want to read about one infamous example. If you want the condensed version, I found one here: http://www.topix.com/forum/city/utica-ny/T2O9Q6UUHIOKKDMSP

[MisterEFQ]

I know of Paul Repak. That guy was scum. Glad he got caught.

 

I am just wondering if there is any action we can take besides ignoring this person and looking out for all of our local geocaches.

[+dakboy]

This is horrible. I always wondered if some caching communities get destroyed by people with simply bad intentions, like someone going around and just removing all the caches in the area. I'm sorry you have to deal with this.

Yes, that happens occasionally. Search for "Paul Repak" if you want to read about one infamous example. If you want the condensed version, I found one here: http://www.topix.com/forum/city/utica-ny/T2O9Q6UUHIOKKDMSP

The comments there make my head hurt.

 

Coverage from semi-locals and locals

[+GrateBear]

I've had a few stolen. After the first two, I put a mark on new caches I place if it's a sort of unique container. That way, if I ever find them somewhere, I'll know they were mine. And, they will once again be mine!

[AZcachemeister]

Sounds like someone was weaned a bit too early as an infant, and now wants to take it out on the world.

[+The A-Team]

I've had a few stolen. After the first two, I put a mark on new caches I place if it's a sort of unique container. That way, if I ever find them somewhere, I'll know they were mine. And, they will once again be mine!

I recently had an ammo can go missing, and only then did I realize that I should do this for my containers. Something like a small, identifiable mark in an inside corner where it won't be noticed. It would have been interesting if I were to later find that ammo can hidden as a new cache.

[MisterEFQ]

It's not a new cacher. It's someone purposely causing grief for whatever reason.

One of my favorite local caches was found by him. And he went back a month later and said it was gone. It just makes me wonder if he took that one too.

 

So he did not take this cache. He just never found it and claimed it as a find. Then sent a NA a few weeks later. Glad I noticed the NA.

 

Checked on it today. Its right where it should be. And his name is not in the log. I contacted our local reviewer.

 

"SH3" In the Nook

[+Crow-T-Robot]

I've had a few stolen. After the first two, I put a mark on new caches I place if it's a sort of unique container. That way, if I ever find them somewhere, I'll know they were mine. And, they will once again be mine!

I recently had an ammo can go missing, and only then did I realize that I should do this for my containers. Something like a small, identifiable mark in an inside corner where it won't be noticed. It would have been interesting if I were to later find that ammo can hidden as a new cache.

 

A UV pen would probably work well.

[4wheelin_fool]

It's not a new cacher. It's someone purposely causing grief for whatever reason.

One of my favorite local caches was found by him. And he went back a month later and said it was gone. It just makes me wonder if he took that one too.

 

So he did not take this cache. He just never found it and claimed it as a find. Then sent a NA a few weeks later. Glad I noticed the NA.

 

Checked on it today. Its right where it should be. And his name is not in the log. I contacted our local reviewer.

 

"SH3" In the Nook

 

He put it back for some reason..

 

I noticed he taped a logsheet to the underside of a live leaf, listed it, and accused the FTF of theft.

 

Perhaps you could take him under your wing and introduce him to an exciting new game involving QR codes.

Edited May 25, 2012 by 4wheelin_fool

[+jellis]

Problem there is the CO hasn't logged on for almost a month. If they are no longer active and you wish to keep the cache going you may have to contact the reviewer and explain to them that is being maintained and by the logsheet you have that the previous finder did not find the cache if their signature is not on it.

[+6NoisyHikers]

Just did a little research... Will someone get that kid a PEN???

[+Mr.Benchmark]

Just did a little research... Will someone get that kid a PEN???

No kidding. Are we sure this is malice and not incompetence? He doesn't really seem to know what he's doing.

[Mr.Yuck]

Just did a little research... Will someone get that kid a PEN???

No kidding. Are we sure this is malice and not incompetence? He doesn't really seem to know what he's doing.

 

The best part about Geocaching is that it's open to everyone. The worst part about Geocaching is that it's open to everyone. I can't take credit for that one though.

 

Geocaching is not rocket science, people. That one, I'll take credit for.

[+Too Tall John]

Geocaching is not rocket science, people. That one, I'll take credit for.

It relies heavily on rocket science, though. How else did all those satellites get up there?

 

And no, don't get them any more pens!!! I'm assuming that a series of caches ending with "Papermate #5" means they had too many pens to start with.

Just did a little research... Will someone get that kid a PEN???

[+6NoisyHikers]

Geocaching is not rocket science, people. That one, I'll take credit for.

It relies heavily on rocket science, though. How else did all those satellites get up there?

 

And no, don't get them any more pens!!! I'm assuming that a series of caches ending with "Papermate #5" means they had too many pens to start with.

Just did a little research... Will someone get that kid a PEN???

 

That's where they went. Every time one fell out of his pocket, he listed it as a cache!

 

[MisterEFQ]

Problem there is the CO hasn't logged on for almost a month. If they are no longer active and you wish to keep the cache going you may have to contact the reviewer and explain to them that is being maintained and by the logsheet you have that the previous finder did not find the cache if their signature is not on it.

 

I already sent the reviewer and the cache owner an email. Hopefully it is not archived because the owner hasnt logged in. But if it does, that's how caches go. Its not like its Mingo.....hehehe

[+NYPaddleCacher]

Just did a little research... Will someone get that kid a PEN???

 

It sounds like he needs to be put into a pen.

 

There was an incident several years ago that a local cacher uncovered when a bunch of coins went missing in a coin trading cache (the cache was about 100' from his front door). He started looking at some of his other caches then others in the area and found several cachers where finders reported coins being missing. After a bit of research, it was discovered that one of the logs prior to the coins going missing said something like, "Great cache...but I didn't find any of the coins in the cache listed on the cache page." Then about 25 caches with nearly identical logs were discovered, all posted over a three day weekend, covering most of western NY. Of course, it couldn't be proven that the owner of the account posting those logs actually took the coins and as far as I know none of the 100 or so coins that went missing were every recovered.

[MisterEFQ]

It's not a new cacher. It's someone purposely causing grief for whatever reason.

One of my favorite local caches was found by him. And he went back a month later and said it was gone. It just makes me wonder if he took that one too.

 

So he did not take this cache. He just never found it and claimed it as a find. Then sent a NA a few weeks later. Glad I noticed the NA.

 

Checked on it today. Its right where it should be. And his name is not in the log. I contacted our local reviewer.

 

"SH3" In the Nook

 

He put it back for some reason..

 

I noticed he taped a logsheet to the underside of a live leaf, listed it, and accused the FTF of theft.

 

Perhaps you could take him under your wing and introduce him to an exciting new game involving QR codes.

 

If you check out his caches, he has accused a lot of people of stealing his caches. He placed cardboard containers, and after it rained they got washed away, and he claimed people stole them.

 

Which makes this even funnier.

 

My buddy has temporarily disabled all of his caches in this area until he is confident they will not turn up missing again.

[+the4dirtydogs]

I remembered the name once I saw the log for "SH3"(which I DNFd ). I think he likes messing with the Piranhas because he always writes notes on why they havent found his caches within a few hours of publishing. I had a good laugh when I saw his Papermate series publish, I thought oh boy.

[MisterEFQ]

I remembered the name once I saw the log for "SH3"(which I DNFd ). I think he likes messing with the Piranhas because he always writes notes on why they havent found his caches within a few hours of publishing. I had a good laugh when I saw his Papermate series publish, I thought oh boy.

 

It is a really hard cache, the container really threw me off, I just happened to pick it up and go, huh?

 

If you need a clue, I can gladly supply one that will not spoil anything. The cache is well worth finding.

[+the4dirtydogs]

I remembered the name once I saw the log for "SH3"(which I DNFd ). I think he likes messing with the Piranhas because he always writes notes on why they havent found his caches within a few hours of publishing. I had a good laugh when I saw his Papermate series publish, I thought oh boy.

 

It is a really hard cache, the container really threw me off, I just happened to pick it up and go, huh?

 

If you need a clue, I can gladly supply one that will not spoil anything. The cache is well worth finding.

Thanks, if I cache that way again I'll hit you up for a hint. Too bad you guys have to deal with this person in your area. Good thing I didn't place any of my BT50 ammocans out that way, but then again I would know that they were mine.

[+Don_J]

Problem there is the CO hasn't logged on for almost a month. If they are no longer active and you wish to keep the cache going you may have to contact the reviewer and explain to them that is being maintained and by the logsheet you have that the previous finder did not find the cache if their signature is not on it.

 

I already sent the reviewer and the cache owner an email. Hopefully it is not archived because the owner hasnt logged in. But if it does, that's how caches go. Its not like its Mingo.....hehehe

 

It will probably get archived. The CO no longer lives in the area and has a history of not responding to Reviewer Notes.

[Mr.Yuck]

Just did a little research... Will someone get that kid a PEN???

 

It sounds like he needs to be put into a pen.

 

There was an incident several years ago that a local cacher uncovered when a bunch of coins went missing in a coin trading cache (the cache was about 100' from his front door). He started looking at some of his other caches then others in the area and found several cachers where finders reported coins being missing. After a bit of research, it was discovered that one of the logs prior to the coins going missing said something like, "Great cache...but I didn't find any of the coins in the cache listed on the cache page." Then about 25 caches with nearly identical logs were discovered, all posted over a three day weekend, covering most of western NY. Of course, it couldn't be proven that the owner of the account posting those logs actually took the coins and as far as I know none of the 100 or so coins that went missing were every recovered.

 

Ah yes. How could I forget? Tnanks NYPC. About 5 years ago, we did in fact have a complete a-hole antisocial unapologetic then n00b thief in the Western half of New York State. He's actually from extreme SW NY, but he took a Finger Lakes vacation to NYPC's area a few months after he started. Dude logged all his finds online, and would steal every Geocoin in sight. It was obvious from the logs, but he was caught red-handed in Western Pa. when someone coming back from a TB Hotel met him on the trail on the way to the cache, and went back 15 minutes later to find 5 or so Geocoins swiped. Another cacher met him on the trail and found a cache with him, and his young children took all the trade items without trading for them. There were notes posted, similar to MrEfq's situation, and dude was being talked about in several regional Geocaching forums. In one of the forums, someone even went stalker, and found out his real name and address, and posted it (in a thread the thief himself posted to). Someone created a sock puppet account, and emailed the owners of his first 100 or so finds (he found one of my caches). I actually exchanged a few emails with the sock puppet.

 

Eventually, through peer pressure, he became a "normal" member of the Geocaching commuity. He even owns one of the 75 Seaway Trail Geocaches like myself. I, however, have never stolen anyone's cache, and placed it as my own, although that sounds like a great practical joke. I also have never placed a cardboard box as a cache.

 

But yeah, keep up the peer pressure, and maybe he'll get a clue and become normal. Who knows, maybe 4 years from now the local Chamber of Commerce will even select him to place a cache for a coin-bearing Geotrail.

[MisterEFQ]

Turns out I know his sister, I was good friends with her in high school and remember her little brother.

 

She is going to talk to him. Hopefully she sets him straight.

 

His logs are now gone on SH3 In the Nook. I hope the review will not archive this due to a false NA.

[MisterEFQ]

Problem there is the CO hasn't logged on for almost a month. If they are no longer active and you wish to keep the cache going you may have to contact the reviewer and explain to them that is being maintained and by the logsheet you have that the previous finder did not find the cache if their signature is not on it.

 

I already sent the reviewer and the cache owner an email. Hopefully it is not archived because the owner hasnt logged in. But if it does, that's how caches go. Its not like its Mingo.....hehehe

 

It will probably get archived. The CO no longer lives in the area and has a history of not responding to Reviewer Notes.

 

Im hoping the reviewer see that it was a false NA and does not archive it. If they do I am just going to hide a cache there myself. It is a great little spot.

[+Don_J]

Problem there is the CO hasn't logged on for almost a month. If they are no longer active and you wish to keep the cache going you may have to contact the reviewer and explain to them that is being maintained and by the logsheet you have that the previous finder did not find the cache if their signature is not on it.

 

I already sent the reviewer and the cache owner an email. Hopefully it is not archived because the owner hasnt logged in. But if it does, that's how caches go. Its not like its Mingo.....hehehe

 

It will probably get archived. The CO no longer lives in the area and has a history of not responding to Reviewer Notes.

 

Im hoping the reviewer see that it was a false NA and does not archive it. If they do I am just going to hide a cache there myself. It is a great little spot.

 

Here's what's going to happen, You are going to convince him that there is nothing wrong and it does not need to be archived. On the warning date, he will acknowledge that in another reviewer note and state that the CO can enable the cache. That note will get ignored and it will never get enabled. In a few months when he does his next disabled cache sweep, the cache will get trapped, the process will start all over again and it will eventually get archived. Part of maintaining a cache is maintaining the cache listing. If an absentee owner is ignoring their listing and reviewer notes, this particular reviewer will archive the listing. In most cases this is a good thing but sometimes a good cache gets caught up in it. An example: http://coord.info/GCCAB9

[Mr.Yuck]

Turns out I know his sister, I was good friends with her in high school and remember her little brother.

 

She is going to talk to him. Hopefully she sets him straight.

 

His logs are now gone on SH3 In the Nook. I hope the review will not archive this due to a false NA.

 

See, you figured out who he is. Not stalking or anything, but when you have a whack-job bursting on the scene, it's rather upsetting to the established local Geocaching community.

 

Yeah, that one cache, if the owner hasn't logged in in a while, is going to eventually get archived. Quickly in some places, slower in others, but it's going to happen, unfortunately.

 

EDIT TO ADD: I definitely see parallel's in these two situations. I'm of the opinion Geocoin thief guy in Western NY was a n00b, and had no clue he would be caught so easily. Cache stealing guy in California is a n00b, and probably thought the same thing. Bzzzzt. Wrong answer in both cases.

Edited May 26, 2012 by Mr.Yuck