Our boat was burglarized on the night of April 11, 2010 while anchored in the harbor just west of the village.Multiple items were stolen including a digital camera, TV,Garmin GPS chartplotter, Fujinon and Steiner binoculars, Iphone,Ipod with external speakers, Bose noise cancelling headphones, etc,etc.The thief sent a text and then called my wife who was in the states at the time.He said he deserved our stuff because we are "rich" and he is HIV positive and his girlfriend just had a baby.He had been watching us from where he lives.( That is a clue! )
We have spent a lot of time on Caye Caulker over the past 10 years, at first staying on land and for the past 4 years we have visited on our sailboat. We have made good friends there and we know that the great majority of people are honest and good. This incident, however, has had its effect and I don't think we will be back for a while.Sad.

sorry to hear,,,

That's pretty facey of the thief to text you and scarrey. Sorry to hear that this happened to you.

Sounds as if he went to San Pedro High School. That was the message being trumpeted loud and clear by the previous headmaster.

What do you mean Peter?

Exactly what I say. He made this announcement to a school assembly at least once. Something like "take what you can from the white man - he has so much and you have so little". It was well reported at the time.

Good Lord.

people can't help the colour they are born. That is such crap.

I'm sure he wasn't referring to colour as such, but what it implied for background, education, wealth etc. There is a belief, minority I hope, that ex-pats who come here and lose their money for whatever reason can simply go back to where they came from and get some more.

i'm not siding with the crook, but you know all those missing items will be replaced, eventually.
and allot of folks will want to blame the victims for not properly securing all their stuff.
there is only 2 ways to deter crooks.
1. make it as hard as possible for them to pull off the job whether it be locks, barbed wire, dogs, cameras, chains, or land mines. maybe they will look elsewhere.
2. don't own anything.
and #1 is not full proof.
#2 is.
don't forget this country was founded by pirates, and the current administrations is not helping ease things much.
still,, nothing worse than a thief.

Hope that is tongue in cheek, Barnacle. Not the way most people want to approach a vacation.

#2 and a big dog for me!

he is HIV positive and his girlfriend just had a baby.
Which is mean his gf n baby are HIV? hope dis thief family die soon........shame on these thief to sacre foreigners stay in CC

I think even Inspector Clouseau could find the guilty party given the clues in this case and it being on a small island.

Gaz

The boat was secured as well as a boat can be....all hatches and ports closed and the main hatch pad-locked. Not much protection from a crow-bar. So what if I can replace this stuff!Is it acceptable to steal from someone because they can replace the stolen items? Is this guy some kind of Robin Hood? I think not.
The lesson learned by cruisers is that it is unsafe to leave your boat after dark in CC. Believe me, this will make your island an unattractive destination.

I've done a bit of cruising and know how the word goes out far and wide to warn others of this kind of problem...soon no one will visit.

I'm sorry to hear about the theft, but aren't you all making a bit to much of it? Go anywhere around the world and things like this happen. Are people avoiding New York because thiefs break in cars? Are people not going to Amsterdam anymore, because they might steal your rented bike? And in India no one travels by train anymore because they plunder your backpack.....?

and.... here in Texas, they eat my chili and never come back.

A boat is your home not a bike or car or backpack. It also happens to move so why would you stay where you don't feel safe. Especially when you know they are watching you.

Get the I.P. address and figure out how to get court jurisdiction so as to issue subpoena's for all communications from that computer. That would be a good start. Good luck and I'm sure Marty or other computer whizzes could help get info from that location.

The communication took place with the Iphone the crook stole.Altho it has a gps, I don't believe it would be traceable outside the US.

IP addresses within Belize aren't locked to a single computer either and change each time you log on or off, I think. Many other technical people on here can confirm or deny.

I am truly sorry for this unfortunate incident. However C.C. is still safer than most vacation destinations. We have crime, but statistically much less than other Caribbean Islands. I know it sure doesn't seem as such when it happens to you. Its also frustrating when it seems the culprit will get away with it, it helps to vent and that is one reason the message-board is here.

C.C. is a small Island, I would think some of the items will show up for sale. or maybe the thief is not quite that stupid.

I agree Debbie. I was venting. I looked at the nationwide Belize crime statistics and boat burglary is extremely rare.I live in a city in the US where crime is very prevalent however the only time I have been a victim was in CC. Luck of the draw I guess.
We are getting over it and we will be back. We have too many friends there not to.

Maybe with the new village leadership, along with the scrutiny that the entire Belize police force has been under, things will begin to change.
It seems that many people on the island are realizing that there is real competition for the tourism dollars. In order for Caye Caulker to really compete some things need to change. With the overall drop in tourism worldwide I think that these incidents are really being felt by the residents and businesses that feed their families off of tourist dollars.
While instances like this theft may seem petty, the real costs to Caye Caulker are much greater than just the items that were stolen.
Very few people will take the time to go on a message board and heap praises on a place when everything went good, but the bad experiences make it here quick and spread even faster.
In my opinion there is no better place on earth than Caye Caulker. I hate to hear of things like this theft, wouldn't it be nice if Caye Caulker was known as a place where you didn't need to lock your doors at night.

Whole thing sounds like a crock of you know what to me. ?Some guy has been watching them and by some crazy coincidence is computer savvy enough to send that most excellent text message? With all of the horrible details of his life? Um, no, sorry don´t think so. Any of you that have made the acquaintance of local people that would do such a dastardly deed, probably also realize, it is highly unlikely that they would have the savvy to send such a message, true or otherwise.

I am often surprised at the people (here and in the states) who have Blackberrys, high tech phones, etc who don't have money for their next meal... text messaging is a very common form of communications (?cheaper than a phone call).

It is also pretty likely that crooks use them to coordinate crimes.

Most every local person on the Island has a cell phone...I as yet have never owned one....

Locals may know how to text but their grammar is typically challenged. Texting is often in creole which might be yet another clue....but that said, it's a tough situation all around and I doubt with much conclusion.

WOW!

I wasn´t saying that the perp didn´t have the ability or know how . . .I meant I´m leaning more to where beck is coming from.

Aside from that, haven´t you guys all heard that old urban myth tale about the people that were robbed in their room in Mexico? And after they got home and had their pictures developed they found that the perps had taken pictures of themselves abusing the victims toothbrushes, etc. My thinking on this ¨text¨from the ¨tief¨ is running that way.

Hey catdance...you are not reading to the end, man. If being whatever colour is crap- then why steal from any man-colour be damned? More to the point-stealing is stealing-no? What would Jesus say? And, think on this my bro, if the "white" man- or any man, has riches- maybe he will leave some riches for us ALL!! & return many times- if we respect him...Jesus teaches us to teach a man to fish, not to GIVE a fish...so, ask your self why you are poor and the other man is "rich"? Are you just lazy & not willing to work&think...for yourself?Are you a hater and a racist,man?

Actually that's a Chinese Proverb, not something Jesus taught.

He did say:

I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.

And

One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."

So seems he didn't exalt wealth nor blame the poor as "lazy and not willing to work or think.."

This guy is either extremely stupid or smart.. He may be leading you astray, ever thought of that.. maybe he has a close friend who lives nearby.. he obviously cased the place before robbing your boat, he may have been nearby outside waiting for you to leave and then break in.. he also may have had a partner," that may be his friend living nearby and not him"
the other thing that comes to mind is a lot of foreigners are befriended by the locals and then set up.. you just never know.. and this happens anywhere in the world..
you might look into sharing the cost of a watchman with other sailing or boating enthusiast.. on C.C. or A.C...
I doubt someone would leave their boat alone in Texas for example without any guards or at an open marina..