In the past I’ve caught a few episodes of the Discovery Channel series It Takes a Thief, and I was intrigued.; however, today I happened to stumble across a marathon of the show, and I literally could not change the channel. I must have sat on my couch for a good three hours today, transfixed.
It Takes a Thief stars two reformed burglars Jon Douglas Rainey and Matt Johnston who help homeowners to understand the necessary security measures that must be made to better protect their homes and keep potential robbers out. The way it gets set up is that the hosts case various upper-middle class neighborhoods and zero in on houses that seem to lack adequate security.
Once the hosts choose a house, they approach the family and explain who they are and what the show is about. When the family agrees, the show sets up hidden cameras all throughout the house– and explain to the family that Jon will return some time in the near future, on a day kept from the family, to test out the home’s security, or lack thereof… as is usually the case.
This is where the excitement begins. Jon returns, usually a few days to a week later, and makes certain that the house is vacant before he does anything. He then acts quickly and very methodically, figuring out the easiest way to get into the house, all the while the hidden cameras are catching his every sneaky move.
Once in the house, which usually takes Jon less than two minutes to break into, he starts running and throwing anything and everything of value into his duffle bag that he can find. He tears apart drawers, flips over mattresses, looks in jars– you name it, he does it. And what won’t fit in his bag, such as electronics, he carries calmly out of the house and puts into his van. In one episode I watched today, with the help of an accomplice, Jon made off with a quarter of a million dollars worth of vehicles: a Mercedes Benz, snow mobiles, ATVs, Harley Davidsons and bicycles all from one house in less than an hour!
Once Jon has taken everything he wants, he leaves. The family eventually returns to find their house in complete disarray, and they are angry, scared and distraught. While they realize it was fake and for the show, their feeling of being violated and vulnerable is completely real. This really is the goal of the show: to scare homeowners into realizing that buglarly can happen to anyone, anywhere at anytime and that they must be prepared.
Shortly after the family gets home, Matt enters. This is where the hidden cameras come into play, and what really makes the show so beneficial. The family gets the opportunity to watch the tapes and see exactly how Jon got into the house, and how easy it was for him to find and steal their valuables– thus making the family realize their weak points. After watching the playback, which is usually very emotional, the family then has the chance to meet the man who broke into their house. I always find this part especially amusing because the family never has kind words for Jon, to put it mildly.
Of course, Jon brings back everything he stole and it is laid out in front of the family so that they can assess how much the goods are worth. Most times there are items returned to them that they didn’t even realize were missing. Usually, it is in the tens of thousands of dollars range, sometimes much more– it all depends on what the family has. After this emotionally-charged meeting, Jon departs and the family is given state-of-the-art security systems and features to make their house impervious to thieves. The real test is when Jon returns, yet again, to test the home’s security in a few weeks.
Jon does everything he can to get into the home, after all of the upgrades have been made, and he cannot. Mission accomplished. The family has learned a valuable lesson and they can now feel truly safe knowing that two former professional burglars can’t break into their house even when they try.
While this show is no doubt entertaining, it is also very informative and offers such important insights. The homeowners on this show make the same mistakes that most of us make, and it teaches us how essential it is to be prepared for the worst. Many of us become complacent, thinking we live in safe neighborhoods; well, this show is a wake up call for all of us. A lot of us think, especially those of us from small towns, that our neighbors look out for us. In every episode, never has a neighbor done anything to stop a break in. Nor have the neighbors called the police when Jon was loading up his van full of the home owners’ valuables. This is probably due to the fact that Jon acts with such confidence, if anyone saw him they would probably assume he was a moving guy or someone that was supposed to be there.
What to take away from It Takes a Thief– it’s not just about protecting our possessions, but more importantly our families. Keep your eyes open, and remember to keep your doors and windows locked. Security systems can be expensive, but isn’t it worth keeping our families and valuables safe? Better to be safe than sorry.
