Robbed by landlord - what should I do?

[BrooklynNY]

Reporting to police that the landlord stole the money would not be a good idea, but you can report that such amount of money has been stolen.

Change the lock and keep valuable items hidden away ans install hidden cameras.

[jacko45k]

My friend had a similar occurrence, cash taken from his rented apartment.

The primary suspect was her wayward son who she would hear no evil of.

If your landlord has keys, you should not be leaving valuables or cash easily accessible.

Nothing can be done now.... lesson learned, adjust your security concerns.

[Mousehound]

I don't trust anyone when it comes to money. I even steal from myself! Can't tell you how many times I have pulled out my wallet to find it is short of the ten bucks I was sure was in it. Put it down to a life experience and move on.

[Colabamumbai]

Go and make a police report that the money disappeared, do not lay blame on anyone do not say that it was the landlord, even if it was. This way if something further happens, you will have already made a report. If this turns into something bigger.. This is how things are done in Thailand.

[Card]

hi anotheroneamerican,

yeah interesting, he has been a bit flush recently.....

just kidding, we have shared finances anyway ;-)

'Shared finances' does not prove anything.

[Card]

Hi skyhi,

I'm sorry this happened to you! I just want to tell you that this used to happen to me quite often, my first few years in Thailand. It was never a maid, never a temp worker, it was ALWAYS a good friend. My "best friend in Thailand" was a woman who was the manager of the hotel where I stayed for long periods when I first came here, first got a house, bought a car, furniture, etc. She was the biggest scam artist ...and she stole money out of my purse regularly. I mean, probably every week for two years! And other things from my house. A lot of things!

And other people, in a position of trust, also stole from me. I won't go into all the details, but a few of them got caught red-handed, and I would do things like have her hold my bag, while I was in the bathroom at a restaurant, and then when it came time to pay, I would notice, hey, it seems like I had 2000 bath more here, etc. I just couldn't imagine that these certain people, would do that!!

So, yes, I would say, look to your B/F first?? It also seems to be quite common, that friends, b/f' and g/f's, sisters, family members, steal from each other. I also know this, because my "best friend" started calling upon me to lie and say "I bought her this new TV" or various other things, because she didn't want to tell her b/f that she stole the money from their business. (Later, they started their own guesthouse, probably mostly with my money.) He also "stole" things from her when he was short of cash, and I have had several other Thai people tell me the same kind of stories.

They seem not to think, that this really counts as stealing, and if YOU are POLITE, you just won't mention it. Or they do think it is stealing and just don't care, I am not sure. But it would be fairly easy, to be a thief and wait until there could be someone else to blame, and then steal, and like now ...you just can't imagine HE did it, but are SURE the landlord did.

I also have a safe, and always have had one, but I used to carry a lot more cash on a daily basis, then I do now. I started writing down everything I spent, and then I started leaving ZERO money in my bag, unless I was on my way out, when I would get it out of the safe. Later, I got rid of all my Thai friends, and never let them in my house, etc, I got pretty paranoid, but since then, nothing has gone missing for YEARS, and I NEVER seem to think, "I had more money when I left home today, than I have now?" I always seem to know exactly how much I have, and am right!

I hope it works out for you ...good luck!

I can't possibly imagine how you let this happen to you all those years by all those people. I've been coming to Thailand for 27 years and lived here 10 years with a partner and I can't recall ever having cash stolen from me by anyone. Not necessarily because they wouldn't but because I have taken basic, simple precautions. You might say 'how do you know"? Well, I'm a Yorkshireman and 1. I choose my friends and associates very carefully, and 2. I trust but verify, 3. All my cash is kept next to my body.

BTW, 'stolen' doesn't mean I haven't spent money on them wastefully - I have loads of times, but stolen? never. They would get the biggest bollocking that Thailand has ever witnessed.

Edited June 21, 2014 by Card

[Card]

My friend had a similar occurrence, cash taken from his rented apartment.

The primary suspect was her wayward son who she would hear no evil of.

If your landlord has keys, you should not be leaving valuables or cash easily accessible.

Nothing can be done now.... lesson learned, adjust your security concerns.

I always change the lock (to a digital one) when I rent a place. then even the owner and condo managers can't get access.

[Dante99]

Sorry if this sounds off, but unless there's nothing of value in there, ALWAYS be in the room when a Thai person is in there working.

Agree, I spend all day with my maid six days a week except when she goes outside to take care of the laundry then I get to go pee.

[glcdc]

Karma

[Thakkar]

hi anotheroneamerican,

yeah interesting, he has been a bit flush recently.....

just kidding, we have shared finances anyway ;-)

My wife of 20+ years stole money from me. We also had shared finances.

My children have stolen money from me.

Not to mention my accountant, cashier, etc.

Don't dismiss it as an option.

Gambling, drugs and just plain greed do funny things to people.

Throughout my life I have found the only people that haven't tried to steal from me (excluding my parents) are those that didn't have the opportunity.

If I were to order the people most likely to steal money from someone,

no.1 would always be the lover.

no. 2 other family members.

A landlord would be way down the list for theft, but high on the list for hidden cameras..

I was at first inclined to say how sad your life must be, but then thought about the stats on child abuse and realized that the most common culprits are found to be close family and friends, followed by care givers, priests and teachers -- all with trusted access.

T

[bristolgeoff]

next time leave it in the bank and not leave any money in the room.or get a safe and bolt it down

[Strangebrew]

Look even when in the US I never left cash in an unsecured drawer have you heard of lock box or maybe a safe? Just a thought. Unless you have video proof of them going through your stuff you don't have a chance.

[stephen terry]

Yes, it is VERY important to change the lock or add a padlock. I wondered why my Thai ex did that when we first rented a place. She said the landlord would have a key - and as it transpired he did, and was most put out when he couldn't get in to 'do something or other'. My ex told him politely that we could manage by ourselves, and the padlock was staying put when we went out.

From your report, I think it highly unlikely that your B/f had anything to do with it - that's a conspiracy theory, and very unkind for posters here to try to undermine trust. Even if it happened to them, not every relationship has a bad apple. I've had several, and not one Thai girl ever stole from me even though they could. I'm not saying it couldn't happen, but the circumstances you described seem to point the finger elsewhere as more likely.

[spidermike007]

Your landlord is right, anybody could have done it.

What should you do? Do not leave large amounts of money in a drawer, try to find a better place. Do not go to the police accusing your landlord. Write it off and move on.

Very true. I would say, generally you were at fault. You simply do not want to create a situation where there is temptation. So, always keep cash, your passport and all valuables locked up. I find just a decent quality luggage lock works wonders. When I travel, I keep everything locked up in my luggage, when I leave the room. Have never had an issue. Even with large amounts of cash. So, you have to be more careful. And no, DO NOT GO TO THE POLICE. It is always a last resort. You have no proof, and you do not know where things can go from there, but generally the police here are unhelpful and incompetent.

[NomadJoe]

Agreed with posters above. There is no way to know who took your money. Burglars are very adept at entering and exiting homes without leaving a trace. And taking part of the money and not all of it is not uncommon. The hope is that you won't notice it right away or you will attribute it to accounting errors. I had a burglar enter my house and steal just money once too, although there were other things they could have stolen. Most do it to fuel drug or gambling addictions and want the easy money and are too lazy to pawn things, plus money is untraceable. But still, are you are 100% sure nothing else is missing?

I still think you might want to make a police report. Don't expect there to be any follow up, but at least it would become a burglary stat in your area which helps the police be aware of problem areas, perhaps help identify if there is a serial burglar in the area, and help in the allocation of resources. It also gets you on record as having lost the money in case they catch a burglar later that, during the course of interrogation, admits to burglarizing your house. Then you would get you money back.

A small pedanticism...a "robbery" is when someone uses force or fear of bodily harm to extract money or objects from someones possession. What you have here is a burglary or theft, depending on the circumstances.

[stephen terry]

BTW - I wrap up my passport, bank books, spare cash etc in a plastic bag and hide them in the bathroom trash bin underneath a coloured bag used for collecting toilet tissues. Even if thieves broke in, I bet not one of them would finger through used toilet tissue. Well, I suppose, like on here, there's always one...

[Pattaya Lous]

^{You must report it to the Police and let them try to sort it out thats why they are there.}

^{You will go round and round on this site asking advice and never know who it was and for evermore you will be thinking was it them or did the B/F take it to feed some habit that I don't know about and this will cause you more stress.}

^{If it was me I would want to know one way or the other and the safest way for that to happen is to call the police; you are then not accusing anybody you are reporting a crime and asking them to do their job; they may even have a history of theft being reported before in the same building.}

^{Please don’t listen to the Willie warmers that are scared of their own shadow who say suffer and move on that attitude is one reason why crime continues, and if thats the case why bother having a police force if crimes are not reported; the perpetrator of the crime against you will do it again and again they do stop if they get away with it.}

[billsmart]

Robbed by your landlord? What should you do? Move!

[smotherb]

Hi skyhi,

I'm sorry this happened to you! I just want to tell you that this used to happen to me quite often, my first few years in Thailand. It was never a maid, never a temp worker, it was ALWAYS a good friend. My "best friend in Thailand" was a woman who was the manager of the hotel where I stayed for long periods when I first came here, first got a house, bought a car, furniture, etc. She was the biggest scam artist ...and she stole money out of my purse regularly. I mean, probably every week for two years! And other things from my house. A lot of things!

And other people, in a position of trust, also stole from me. I won't go into all the details, but a few of them got caught red-handed, and I would do things like have her hold my bag, while I was in the bathroom at a restaurant, and then when it came time to pay, I would notice, hey, it seems like I had 2000 bath more here, etc. I just couldn't imagine that these certain people, would do that!!

So, yes, I would say, look to your B/F first?? It also seems to be quite common, that friends, b/f' and g/f's, sisters, family members, steal from each other. I also know this, because my "best friend" started calling upon me to lie and say "I bought her this new TV" or various other things, because she didn't want to tell her b/f that she stole the money from their business. (Later, they started their own guesthouse, probably mostly with my money.) He also "stole" things from her when he was short of cash, and I have had several other Thai people tell me the same kind of stories.

They seem not to think, that this really counts as stealing, and if YOU are POLITE, you just won't mention it. Or they do think it is stealing and just don't care, I am not sure. But it would be fairly easy, to be a thief and wait until there could be someone else to blame, and then steal, and like now ...you just can't imagine HE did it, but are SURE the landlord did.

I also have a safe, and always have had one, but I used to carry a lot more cash on a daily basis, then I do now. I started writing down everything I spent, and then I started leaving ZERO money in my bag, unless I was on my way out, when I would get it out of the safe. Later, I got rid of all my Thai friends, and never let them in my house, etc, I got pretty paranoid, but since then, nothing has gone missing for YEARS, and I NEVER seem to think, "I had more money when I left home today, than I have now?" I always seem to know exactly how much I have, and am right!

I hope it works out for you ...good luck!

Oh you poor thing. Fool you how many times?

[atyclb]

Some very interesting responses and personal stories.

Fact is polls show a high % of society is OK with corruption as long as they benefit from it. since corruption = stealing it is a fair assumption that many people feel perfectly comfortable with it and practicing it.

I have had valuable things disappear after certain people had visited me. those people are deleted from my friends list.

[dotpoom]

8000 Baht....put it down as a cheap lesson....for all of us.

[jacko45k]

Yes, it is VERY important to change the lock or add a padlock. I wondered why my Thai ex did that when we first rented a place. She said the landlord would have a key - and as it transpired he did, and was most put out when he couldn't get in to 'do something or other'. My ex told him politely that we could manage by ourselves, and the padlock was staying put when we went out.

From your report, I think it highly unlikely that your B/f had anything to do with it - that's a conspiracy theory, and very unkind for posters here to try to undermine trust. Even if it happened to them, not every relationship has a bad apple. I've had several, and not one Thai girl ever stole from me even though they could. I'm not saying it couldn't happen, but the circumstances you described seem to point the finger elsewhere as more likely.

Lucky you.... I would like to say the same, but cannot.

[Pattaya Lous]

Ok, thanks for the comments, it helps to remove any doubt that anything can be done about it. As for accusing directly - not something I would ever think of doing, no matter how sure I may be. Yeah - schoolboy error leaving cash in the room at all, should know better by now!

PS are you serious that this post can be seen as an allegation CMSteve? - i'm assuming it's under conditions of anonymity/hypothetical question. I guess you mean if the guy himself was to see it, right?

Rubbish something can and must be done about it why has Thailand got such a bad name? because decent people don't do anything to improve things.

^{You must report it to the Police and let them try to sort it out thats why they are there.}

^{You will go round and round on this site asking advice and never know who it was and for evermore you will be thinking was it them or did the B/F take it to feed some habit that I don't know about and this will cause you more stress.}

^{If it was me I would want to know one way or the other and the safest way for that to happen is to call the police; you are then not accusing anybody you are reporting a crime and asking them to do their job; they may even have a history of theft being reported before in the same building.}

^{Please don’t listen to the Willie warmers that are scared of their own shadow who say suffer and move on that attitude is one reason why crime continues, and if thats the case why bother having a police force if crimes are not reported; the perpetrator of the crime against you will do it again and again they do stop if they get away with it.}

[mesquite]

Yes, it is VERY important to change the lock or add a padlock. I wondered why my Thai ex did that when we first rented a place. She said the landlord would have a key - and as it transpired he did, and was most put out when he couldn't get in to 'do something or other'. My ex told him politely that we could manage by ourselves, and the padlock was staying put when we went out.

From your report, I think it highly unlikely that your B/f had anything to do with it - that's a conspiracy theory, and very unkind for posters here to try to undermine trust. Even if it happened to them, not every relationship has a bad apple. I've had several, and not one Thai girl ever stole from me even though they could. I'm not saying it couldn't happen, but the circumstances you described seem to point the finger elsewhere as more likely.

Lucky you.... I would like to say the same, but cannot.

Me too. My ex here in Thailand stole from me, and the thought processes, from my perspective, seemed to be as follows:

HER: Stupid farang boyfriend can't remember how much money he left out (or gave me). He has plenty money so I will take and he will never know.

ME: Doesn't she realize I'm going to dump her because she steals from me?

HER: I can't believe he dumped me.

Edited June 21, 2014 by mesquite

[stephen terry]

My father always used to say I was lucky. I said I work hard to make my luck. Same with relationships - I work at it to treat my partner kindly and with respect, and that does rub-off. Having jai-dee (from their POV) makes it more likely that a girl will ask for money rather than take it. And if I can't, I'll make it quite clear that my pension isn't due for say another two weeks, and we must be careful. That also seems to work.

Naive? Well, I mostly think the best of people until they prove me wrong. Like on here...

[mesquite]

My father always used to say I was lucky. I said I work hard to make my luck. Same with relationships - I work at it to treat my partner kindly and with respect, and that does rub-off. Having jai-dee (from their POV) makes it more likely that a girl will ask for money rather than take it. And if I can't, I'll make it quite clear that my pension isn't due for say another two weeks, and we must be careful. That also seems to work.

Naive? Well, I mostly think the best of people until they prove me wrong. Like on here...

Or, perhaps, yours is different.

[Dante99]

Report to the police? I do not think so. It is not much money, it is too old a story and .....

Some Thais, two households at different times, in our neighborhood went on vacations and paid the police special to look after their houses when they were gone. Both got robbed.

[HerbalEd]

You don't actually know for sure that the landlord did it. Let it go ... and find a good stash place for your valuables.

[AnotherOneAmerican]

My father always used to say I was lucky. I said I work hard to make my luck. Same with relationships - I work at it to treat my partner kindly and with respect, and that does rub-off. Having jai-dee (from their POV) makes it more likely that a girl will ask for money rather than take it. And if I can't, I'll make it quite clear that my pension isn't due for say another two weeks, and we must be careful. That also seems to work.

Naive? Well, I mostly think the best of people until they prove me wrong. Like on here...

Lucky, or too daft to know when someone is stealing from you?

Who can tell?

Well, as you used Jai-dee (which is Thai hooker talk) in a post, I made an assumption.

It's really best not to use Thai words if you don't know much Thai (or learn your Thai words in a bar).

Edited June 21, 2014 by AnotherOneAmerican

[realenglish1]

Change the locks and walk away from it Its to late now but he will know not to do it again