Elderly American Couple Home Invasion Robbery Update

[image1_right] By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - This afternoon I went to interview the couple who were the victims of a home invasion robbery in Altos del Chase at 8:00 pm on Thursday evening, 24 May 2007. Thankfully the couple was not injured in any way during the robbery, not even a scratch. As anticipated they knew the physical security posture of their house was low and they were "taking a chance and rolling the dice" that nothing would happen. As a matter of fact they had ordered their contractor to install razor wire on top of their security wall exactly where the assailants came into their house. All told the thieves got away with one laptop computer, one 17" television, a "boom box" CD player, and three pairs of dance shoes. The couple did not have any cash in the house and the thieves did not get a dime. They took their SUV but that was quickly recovered. Police have one suspect in custody and in his car police found several items that had been stolen in this robbery, including the cell phone of the victim. Police continue to investigate this case energetically and expect to make additional arrests shortly.

Additional Details About the Robbery:

• Eight Assailants: This was a relatively large and well planned operation. It's apparent that the assailants knew details about the property and the inhabitants. They were all dressed as agents of the DIIP and even went so far as to use two vehicles to block traffic on the road in front of the house. A neighbor called police when she looked out of her window and observed one of the assailants who remained with a vehicle in front of the house. They were using a rotating red light on the roof to help create the impression that they were on a legitimate police raid. The neighbor called the police when she saw the "cop" fighting to try to keep the light on the roof, but it kept falling off. Since it was apparent that the were not real cops, she called the police.
  
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• Over The Fence: There were a total of eight involved in the raid. Three stayed outside and five went inside. The climbed over a lateral wall which was about six feet high. There was a pile of construction materials and things like metal and plywood that they used to get a leg-up and over the fence. For someone who is young and athletic, this barrier slowed them down by about fifteen seconds.
  
  
• Through the Door? The assailants first tried to gain entry to the house through the front door. The double door is constructed of solid wood, and it withstood two solid front-kicks from someone wearing boots. Once they figured out that they were not going to get in through the front door, the assailants broke through a large glass window (about 6' high by 4' wide) that was next to the door. They blasted through the window and came into the living room. There was no exterior steel bars on the outside of the window, so the strength of the physical security was reduced to a pane of glass.
  
  
• Shock and Surprise: The female resident of the house was awake and in the kitchen alone when the attack started. The couple has two dogs that proved to be effective at raising the alarm (watch dogs) but did nothing to stop the attack. The woman saw the first guy come over the fence and she called out to her husband who was asleep upstairs in the master bedroom. Then she started to look for her cell phone to call the police (who they had on speed-dial) but she was unable to find the cell phone in the little time she had to react. In less than thirty seconds the bad guys were in the house and had a gun in her face.
  
  
• The Assailants Spoke English: They gave instructions to the victims in English and told them to lie still, don't look them in the face, and to be quiet. Their English was not perfect or fluent, but it was enough to communicate with their victims. The fact that they came through the door speaking English indicates they had targeted this particular couple and knew they were not bilingual. What I mean is, if someone targets me, they know they can come in speaking Spanish and that I would understand.
  
  
• The Useless Safe Room: The couple had a safe room built into a closet on the lower level of the house under a set of stairs. The problem was that the safe room was full of "stuff" and was being used as a storage space so there was no room for a person inside anyway. And, there were no communications inside. Locking yourself into as safe room when confronted with an all out assault like this only works if you have access to communications, land line telephone and cell phone, inside. Also, there should be a way to activate alarm systems inside as well. In any case, the safe room was right there, less than ten feet away, and it turned out to be useless.
  
  
• Two Dogs: The couple has two dogs that did their job. They started barking and going nuts when the assailants started coming over the wall. One of the dogs is a little older and is alert to unusual sounds and activity outside of the house. The problem is that he apparently barks at every passing car. So, he tends to be ignored. In any case, the dogs did their job - "Hey look, bad guys with guns!" The dogs did not attack the assailants, try to bite them or do anything to stop them. They are watch dogs not trained guard dogs. This incident highlights the difference perfectly.
  
  
• Cops On The Speed Dial: Most of the police patrol cars in Panama City have a cell phone permanently assigned to the vehicle. The National Police have the city divided up into zones and sectors, and you can easily determine which police sub-station is responsible for where you live. That sub-station also has at least one patrol car assigned that spends the day driving around the area looking for trouble. You can obtain the number of the cell phone that's assigned to that particular car and call them directly if you have an emergency situation. In this case, the couple not only had the number, but they had it programmed into the speed dial on their phone. So, one button and they have the police on the line - sounds like a good plan. The problem was that when the female victim observed the assailants coming over the fence she started to search for that cell phone to call the police, and she did not have enough time to find the phone, make the call, and explain what's going on. In fact, she never got past step one. Again, the bad guys were in the house with a gun in her face in thirty seconds, and she was on the floor face down providing no resistance at all.
  
  
• One Down, One To Go: With the female victim under control the assailants then moved to control the male victim who was asleep in his bed on the second floor when the attack started. The noise of the breaking glass, shouting men, and barking dogs awoke him and he was in the process of getting his act together when three of the armed assailants came rushing up the stairs and confronted him. He offered no resistance, and they put him on the floor with a gun to the back of his head and simply held him there at gunpoint.
  
  
• Building Secure, Begin the Robbery: With the couple under control there were no other people in the building such as a maid or friends or anything like that, so the assailants began the business of stealing. They loaded several televisions into the victim's vehicle and grabbed other valuables such as a "boom box" style CD player, one laptop computer, and a cell phone.
  
  
• Using Radios to Coordinate: The assailants had hand-held short range radios that they used to coordinate their activities during the assault. The victims described two kinds of radios, and it seems to me that they had one set of radios that they were using among themselves to coordinate their activities, and another radio that they were using to monitor police activity in the area. The police frequencies in Panama City are insecure, and anyone can buy a handheld radio to use to monitor the nets. Also, the use of blaring police radios added to the desired effect of trying to make the robbery look and sound like an actual police raid. In any case, by monitoring the police radio net for the area the assailants would have heard when the call came in for the local patrol car to head to the area to see what was going on in response to the telephone call from the neighbor across the street. And, having their own net using citizens band radios they could coordinate between themselves.
  
  
• Not Supposed To Be Here? The couple had "American Society Installation Dinner, 7:00 pm" marked on their calendar for Thursday evening, 24 May 2007. These guys came over the wall at exactly 8:00 pm. The garage door does not have any windows so it would be hard or impossible to tell from the street if anyone was in the house or not. As it turns out the couple was unable to attend the dinner and were home that evening, and it seems like the presence of the couple might have been a surprise for the assailants. There's a good chance they expected no one to be home, and that they would have as much time as they wanted to strip the house of valuables and leave. But, with the residents present they had to alter their plan and leave in a hurry with all they could carry, quickly.
  
  
• "Where's The Money?" The assailants asked "where's the money" several times. The victims answered that there was no money or cash and that they keep their money in the bank. They offered up credit cards but the assailants did not even take their wallets or purse. In short, they left without a dime in cash. The fact that they did not take the time to even find the victims wallets tells me that they never intended to take them in the first place (because the victims were not supposed to be in the house.) So, in their surprised and excited state, they just held the victims at gunpoint while they hastily took the stuff they expected to take in the first place.
  
  
• Nothing But Costume Jewelry: The female victim prefers to use high quality and attractive costume jewelry as opposed to valuable gold and diamonds. The assailants looked at what was there and left it all behind.
  
  
• Time To Go: The assailants spent about four minutes total inside of the house. They grabbed a few valuables and loaded them up into the SUV owned by the victims. Before they departed, the used a lamp cord to tie the hands of the male victim. Again, the use of expedient materials (those available at the scene) indicates that the assailants were not prepared to tie someone up and did not go over the wall with those materials in their hands. And the fact that they left the woman untied means that they bought themselves about thirty seconds by tying up the man. As soon as they left the female victim ran right upstairs, untied the male, and called the police.
  
  

Lessons Learned: The victims are going to make several upgrades and improvements to their property that will increase their security posture and prevent a repeat of this assault.

• Alarm System: They are going to have a wireless alarm system professionally installed that includes all of the various types of sensors. The most important elements for this situation would have been panic buttons in the kitchen and near the headboard of the bed in the master bedroom. If there had been an alarm system installed in this house with a panic button in the kitchen, then the female victim could have hit the button and notified both police (through the monitored system) and neighbors (siren and lights) practically instantly.
  
  
• Neighborhood Watch: Panama has a comprehensive neighborhood watch system with relies on a "domino" effect. If anyone sees something going on they take two actions - activate their alarm bell and call the police. Any neighbor who hears an alarm bell ringing automatically activates their alarm bell and also calls the police. Pretty soon the whole neighborhood is alerted and the bad guys run away. In this case, the street one block away is covered by the neighborhood watch system, but the street where this house sits is not. Because of this robbery the neighbors are going to get organized and begin to participate.
  
  
• Security Cameras: Overt and covert security camera surveillance of a house acts as a deterrent. If the bad guys know they are going to be caught on tape then they are less likely to target your house or home. In addition, if you have a constant 24/7 loop running then any activity in an area is recorded, and you can hand over the video to police if something happens which will greatly enhance their chances of catching the bad guys. In addition, security cameras allow you to look outside and see who is there before you open the door. This couple is going to install a comprehensive system of video coverage for all those reasons.
  
  
• Razor Wire: The owners had already decided to have razor wire installed on top of the walls that protect the property because they had already been targeted twice by petty thieves who had climbed over the back wall to steal things like aluminum ladders. The addition of physical barriers serve to slow down the assailants, buy you some time, and force the bad guys to make noise to defeat them.
  
  
• "I'm Not Going To Live In A Cage" The house sits on a hill and has a wonderful view of the city. That's the up-side. The down-side is that all of that glass means relatively easy entry from a physical security point of view. Your physical security barriers are as strong as the weakest point so in this case, since the owners are unwilling to install steel bars over the windows, then the weakest point becomes a pane of glass. They will have to make up for that shortcoming with other means and methods. They are considering reinforcing for the front and lateral windows which are easier to access, but still leaving the broad windows on the back of the house that offer the best views uncovered, which would be a pretty good option considering that those windows are on the first floor and hard to access from outside.
  
  
• Make The Safe Room Usable: Most houses and apartments in Panama come with a ready-made safe room known as the "walk-in closet." Since construction in Panama is all cement, the only thing you really have to do is (significantly) upgrade the door and install some additional communications. The victims in this case went through the trouble and expense of having an upgraded door installed on a closet in the living room, but then filled the space with "stuff" rendering it practically useless. In addition, the female victim had the time to enter the safe-room but really didn't have a plan or didn't know what to do. Also, there was no panic button, alarm activation, or additional communications installed inside of the safe room. Having one in the living room is good, having another in the master bedroom closet is better. And, you have to have a plan that you can execute without having to think.
  
  

There Will Be More: Hopefully everyone else can learn from the mistakes made in this case. The victims said they have no plans to either sell their house or leave Panama. "On the contrary, if this had happened in Atlanta or Belize the thieves probably would have hurt us. These guys were actually polite and relatively well mannered." The victims actually said that this experience reinforced their decision to move to Panama because even the crooks are nicer. So, they are going to do the things they need to do in order to increase their security posture and then go about their lives. Good for them.

Copyright 2007 by Don Winner for Panama-Guide.com. As usual, go ahead and use whatever you want as long as you credit the source. Salud.