Robbed at Disney

[shelleylea]

Our safe was robbed this last week, they took about $325. Everything was very neat, it didn't even look like there was anything out of place. On Tuesday before we left for the parks, we took out some cash, and on Wednesday when we went back for more, there was several bills missing. When we talked to the front desk, they said that they would check the work orders to see if another key was made. Does this happen alot?!??!?

 

[abug'saunt]

I am so sorry to hear about your troubles. We stayed at All star Music in 2005 and I had left my 2 italian charm bracelets in the room when we checked out and when I realize it I called but it was too late. The worst part was one was a gift from my husband a few days earlier - Christmas to be exact. I spent 3 weeks calling and talking to different members of the staff. Never found them. Going back next month to replace what I lost. :lol:

 

[Dwarful]

Sorry to hear about this. We have stayed at all of the values and several of the moderates. We always use the room safe and my husband keeps the metal key in his billfold. The only thing we have ever had 'go missing' was a load of laundry at Pop Century. The whole rest of the trip the kids kept saying "hey, that shirt looks like ours". I checked with EVERYONE to see if anyone ever found it, they didn't.

I had put the laundry in the dryer and went out to the pool area to see if my husband would bring me a refill on my drink. Went back in the other two loads were still drying and the third load was M.I.A. It wasn't busy in the laundry, no one was waiting for machines, there were several empty, but the two women in the laundry didn't notice anything.

 

[wdwmomof3]

I have done laundry before and thought twice about leaving but I did anyway. I have never had a problem. I will stay with it from now on that's for sure.

As for the money missing from the safe and the bag of goodies missing too, I am surprised to hear that. I have left money, my wallet with all credit cards and everything in there before.

For those of us that drive down, would the things that we buy not be safer in the trunk? That's where mine will be next time. As for the cash, I'll have it on me.

 

[sissa216]

The last day of our honeymoon in 2004 at POR, our luggage had been gone through.
We were very particular about having everything closed up and pretty clean before we left every morning; we came back on the day before we were to check out and noticed one had been moved from the wall and opened, with a few things out of place.
We didn't notice anything missing, but were still very disturbed that it had been moved, opened, and looked through when specifically remembered closing it up that morning.
Its hard to believe somebody would be that sloppy; you'd think they would at least put it back like they found it (but then we would never have known)
We told a manager that we didn't want to cause a big fuss since nothing was stolen, but that it needed to be brought to his attention. :shrug:

 

[saltmom1]

If you put cash on a room key, does it give you a running balance each time you use it or do you have to keep track yourself ? This is a great idea.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

It amuses me that people stick credit cards etc in the safe, that can be be blocked if stolen, then have $100s of dollars worth of camera and video equipment just lying that is virtually untraceable and easy to move on thanks to e-bay.

Thieving happens in any organistation that employs 50 odd thousand people, so it is sad but as they say insurance is a waste of money until you need it.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

A couple years ago - we had a bag of souveniers missing from our cabin. I know it was there because the night we brought them home, we went through them to see who got what - we put the items back in the bag and put it in the closet - along with 2 other bags of goodies. We went to the park the next day - did not check our stuff that night, but when we went to pack our car the final day - it was gone. We had kept the receipt seperate, so eventually Disney sent us a check. Before we left, I called everyone, the front desk, security, housekeeping, etc. No one found a bag. That one was located right with the other two in the closet - so I can't explain it's disappearance. It wasn't near garbage, it wasn't near sheets or laundry, etc. My question - how often are there bad mousekeepers? What else should we be looking for or how do we hide our belongings? We're going again soon and I thought the safe was safe , but it must not be?

A couple of years ago we found a big bag of souvenirs on the back seat of the bus on its way to Fort Wilderness, no one cliamed them so hooraaa....spooky

 

[slappy magoo]

If money was indeed stolen (and wasn't just misplaced), and if you were keeping the safe key on you, then it had to be an inside job. Even if someone made a dupe of the safe key, they couldn't get in without your room key. And while I'm sure it's possible, I can't imagine a non-CM being able to both break into your room AND the safe quickly and undetected.

You should've been more aggressive with Disney's security. If they had security cameras set up within the lobby, they would be able to see who went in your room. If it was just someone in Housekeeping, they should be able to see if anyone else has complained about missing items when he or she was their Housekeeper and build a case of circumstantial evidence from there. If anyone else had access (if say, Maintenance went in to fix something), OR if a non-CM managed to open your door, it would show on the tape.

At the very least, I agree that the police should've been called. Even if they determine that $325 isn't enough to warrant a full investigation, Disney security's edict seems to be less "Protec the guest" and more "protect the corporate reputation."

Here's something I wonder, and if anyone's in Hotel Management, perhaps you could answer this question...

All the resort rooms that you a magnetic card-style key...is there any way to determine which key was used and when? Since they usually have those little lights on them to determine if a lock is unlocked or not, they have some kind of power source, yes? And if they have a power source, do they have any kind of memory? And if there is a memory, could it be determined who unlocked a door and when? Whether it's the guest's key (which would only open that door) or a CM who might have access to all doors?

 

[bgraham34]

I am so sorry to hear about that. That is a nitemare of mine. Having stuff taken while on my trip. I usually dont even use a safe. I carry most valuable with me.

 

[maelstrom]

We don't use the in-room safe, I put all valuables that I'm not taking to the parks with me (iBook) in my *locked* suitcase, and we carry all of our cash on us. When my mom and I go alone, she gives me the huge wad of cash that my dad would normally carry. They split it up just in case someone loses their wallet, gets mugged, etc, there's still a fat wad of cash to get us thru.

 

[pluto3198]

We travel with good old fashioned travelers checks. We cash $100 out every morning and leave the rest in the safe. We have never had a problem. If we are ever missing any checks, we would call AmEx, they would void the missing checks and issue us new ones. I never a large amount of cash around.

 

[ImaYoyo]

If money was indeed stolen (and wasn't just misplaced), and if you were keeping the safe key on you, then it had to be an inside job. Even if someone made a dupe of the safe key, they couldn't get in without your room key. And while I'm sure it's possible, I can't imagine a non-CM being able to both break into your room AND the safe quickly and undetected.

You should've been more aggressive with Disney's security. If they had security cameras set up within the lobby, they would be able to see who went in your room. If it was just someone in Housekeeping, they should be able to see if anyone else has complained about missing items when he or she was their Housekeeper and build a case of circumstantial evidence from there. If anyone else had access (if say, Maintenance went in to fix something), OR if a non-CM managed to open your door, it would show on the tape.

At the very least, I agree that the police should've been called. Even if they determine that $325 isn't enough to warrant a full investigation, Disney security's edict seems to be less "Protec the guest" and more "protect the corporate reputation."

Here's something I wonder, and if anyone's in Hotel Management, perhaps you could answer this question...

All the resort rooms that you a magnetic card-style key...is there any way to determine which key was used and when? Since they usually have those little lights on them to determine if a lock is unlocked or not, they have some kind of power source, yes? And if they have a power source, do they have any kind of memory? And if there is a memory, could it be determined who unlocked a door and when? Whether it's the guest's key (which would only open that door) or a CM who might have access to all doors?

It's a value resort, so the rooms are not near an indoor or centralized lobby. I too find this very confusing, as Disney is very prompt in taking care of stolen property. Many guests in this situation are awarded free nights or similar to help with the financial end of things... this just sounds odd. Not that I doubt the validity... but maybe you spoke with a new CM? Did they have an "earning my ears" tag on their nametag? Did you speak with multiple CMs? Anyone with a blue id and a gold-stripe through it?

 

[OneLuckyMom]

Why would you not call the police? Seems like common sense, your robbed, you let the police know, they investigate and try to determine what happened.

No large city police department is going to investigate a lone $325 theft from a hotel room, with no signs of forced entry and no one hurt. The best they will do is take a report for you, mainly for your insurance claim purposes. If alot of people start reporting the same problem, THEN they might investigate.

 

[slappy magoo]

No large city police department is going to investigate a lone $325 theft from a hotel room, with no signs of forced entry and no one hurt. The best they will do is take a report for you, mainly for your insurance claim purposes. If alot of people start reporting the same problem, THEN they might investigate.

However, this might be an ongoing problem that Disney tries to keep out of the public. OR, the police have been getting reports, and this could've been the one to make thek say "OK, there's a pattern here, and we need to check it out more thoroughly." Not saying that's how it would've happened. Just that it's how it could've happened.

 

[KevGuy]

No large city police department is going to investigate a lone $325 theft from a hotel room, with no signs of forced entry and no one hurt. The best they will do is take a report for you, mainly for your insurance claim purposes. If alot of people start reporting the same problem, THEN they might investigate.

Well I'm sorry your misinformed, in fact in most states and at least in mine, theft over $250 is considered a felony and EVERY case reported to local police is assigned to the robbery division and IS investigated. Most insances similar to this the investigating police detective will rely on the hotel security to have done a portion of the investigation and provide security tapes etc to the local police for review, etc. In the case of Disney being so large I would not be surprised if they had a section of that division assigned strictly to Disney related issues. Don't ever think that a reported crime is not important to your local police department, because it wasn't enough money taken or whatever. IT IS VERY IMPORTANT AND SHOULD BE REPORTED!! Unfortunately some people like the quote above are severly misinformed and misinform others as well, leading to untold numbers of unreported crimes of theft and other things. I am a police officer, and if you were robbed in the manner you state, then you should report it and it will be investigated by a detective if it is over the $$ limit for a felony of grand larceny which is usually pretty low.

 

[ssidiouss@mac.c]

i stayed at the Pop Century the past few years and I also stayed at the All Star Sports before that.. ive left everything from wedding rings, nintendo ds's, credit cards, everythign in there and never had a problem.. we take the key with us. I also usually leave about $1,500 to $2,000 in cash in there as well as we only take about $200 with us per day. Im not debating the validity of this topic but my level of trust in disneys security remains at 100 percent.

On a side note i wanted to mention two highlights from my previous trip a few weeks ago:

1. My friend who was on his first trip to disney with us kept his wallet in his back pocket even thought we told him that was a bad idea.. then on the second day it fell out while we were on Soar'n. We were off the ride and halfway out of the building when he noticed it was lost. He started to panic and ran back to the ride which already had another group comming out of it. Anyway, the wallet was found and the CM had it waiting for him and everything was intact including his 400 dollars inside.. my friend was totally happy with one of his first tastes of disney magic.

2. The same friend bought his daughter a cute disney backpack and a one of those autograph books which she carried inside. She had a lot of autogrpaphs built up by the end of the week.. but on thier second to last night of the trip they left the backpack on a bench after watching illuminations at epcot. They felt surely they had lost the backpack as the only way to know who's it belonged to was to open the autograph book inside and read the little "this book belongs to" thing where his daughter wrote her address and name. Anyway, a week after they got home from DisneyWorld a package came to their door.. Disney sent their backpack and book all the way home to their house free of charge !!! :sohappy: They were so happy and amazed by that.. and it really is awesome if you think about it. DisneyWorld is such a busy place but someoen took the time to find that backpack, open it up, read the book, and then take the time and money to send it all the way up to Philadelphia... for nothing! :sohappy:

 

[OneLuckyMom]

Well I'm sorry your misinformed, in fact in most states and at least in mine, theft over $250 is considered a felony and EVERY case reported to local police is assigned to the robbery division and IS investigated.

As a multi-time victim of home burglary and larceny (car) in several states, I don't consider myself "misinformed". The fact is that although every case may be assinged to a robbery or properties crime unit, unless there is some sort of physical evidence or eye witnesses, the case will most often be put aside without any investigation for bigger commerical burglaries and true robberies where there WAS physical threat.

In my current locale, home burglary is such a joke that you don't even get a patrol person to come out and take a report anymore - they tell you to file it online on their website! They will sometimes come out and take prints IF there is clear evidence of forced entry (broken window, etc.), but only if you really bug them about it. I even had a friend figure out who had broken into her home recently through a bizarre chain of circumstances, and when she called the detectives to give them the info she had obtained (incl. the address of the burglars), she was basically told "great, but we're too busy to spend time working on a home burglary case".

But - just for clarity - I never said don't report the burglary. I simply said that if someone expected the cops to come out and do a detailed "investigation" on a $325 burglary with no sign of forced entry they were fooling themselves. As you said, they may follow-up if Disney Security goes through any video tapes and finds something, but they aren't going to do any legwork like that themselves.

 

[bayoutinkbelle]

I'm so sorry to hear about that. I definitely would file a police report. I've had some good and bad while on vacation.

Bad:
Someone kicked in one of my car doors at Universal, which we discovered when leaving CityWalk around 1:30 a.m. Nothing was stolen, but the damage was severe enough that I couldn't open the door. Security finally arrives and takes my info. They refuse to give me a copy of the report, but they do say I'm free to file with the Orlando PD. I do so and the officer I spoke to laughed when I said Universal wouldn't give me a copy of their report. I knew no one ever would be caught for this and the report was purely for my insurance purposes. I didn't press the issue with Universal security because I didn't want the headache and I have insurance. The damage was $1,500. Security wasn't overly helpful, but the two guards were nice and apologized that this happened during my visit.

Good:
I left my Tinkerbell watch, a lung cancer awareness bracelet and four rings (two of which are family heirlooms) in my room at Pop. I didn't discover this until two days later. I was heartsick and figured I'd never see them again. I thought I had packed them in my luggage. I called Pop and talked to lost and found. Mousekeeping had found them and turned them in. They were mailed to me and I had them a few days later. I realize how lucky I was to get them back. I won't be taking them with me this summer.

I've never had a problem with stuff being taken from my room. I do put some things (souvenirs, other valuables) in my car trunk or keep them with me while I'm in the parks. I've never used the safe because I didn't trust it. Makes no sense, but that's me.

 

[spaceghost]

Well, I'm not privy to the realities of law enforcement to know how far anyone will get, but per Florida's website (had to do some digging), here's legally where this theft would fall:

"(c) It is grand theft of the third degree and a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084, if the property stolen is:
1. Valued at $300 or more, but less than $5,000.
2. ..."

So, this would definitely be a felony charge. That said, I echo some of the questions that others had raised, in that I don't understand how the CMs thought that the thief got into the room? The response above indicates that they thought that someone made a duplicate key for the safe, which sure, I could see. But how would a non-CM get into the room in the first place without forcing their way in? Something smells fishy with this - I would have totally pushed things further (and still would) - having money stolen from a hotel room safe while the room is locked and the safe is locked is totally unacceptable. Even if you couldn't get the money back and the thief couldn't be found, I'm sure Disney would have done something eventually to smooth things over...

 

[unkadug]

I don't think we have the whole story here.

Something sounds fishy. Perhaps the OP's other half isn't being completely upfront, perhaps their were mischievous children involved, perhaps there was an expentiture that wasn't taken into account?

Something's just not right. :shrug: