unpleasant news regarding low life's in my town!

[horologist]

This morning, I went to see my watchmaker who is quite elderly and now works from home since he is in semi- retired,.  I have known him for some years and has always been very gregarious with a nice welcoming smile and is one of the very few that had equipment that most others  here do not have or use...  He has been working on my 1967 Omega Speedmaster just over a year which suits me, as  the compromise is that the longer I wait the better the deal which sounds fair to me!!!!.  As I was driving close by  in the area, I happened to knock on his door to ask what the status was regarding my watch, but  I was in for a shock to see such an irate and disturbed man until he told me that he had been robbed last week of just about everything in his workshop.  What was interesting was to learn that that my near completed Speedmaster had been left untouched in addition to a few cheap items that he had been working on. This blew me away!!!!  Worse still is that his insurance will not cover. He also claimed that nearly all his tools and all of his personal collection of Omega Constellations were taken !

A bizarre coincidence is that some 18 months ago, when I went to collect my re-soled shoes from my cobbler who also changes watch batteries, happened to  mention to me that his that his watchmaker who also works from home had also been robbed of everything and only a few cheap watches were left in his workshop.  This was some 25 miles away from last weeks incident.  I can only conclude that it had to be someone in the trade or ordered by someone in the trade.  I am no detective criminologist, psychologist nor police officer, but I smell something very bizarre here. Can anyone make any sense out of this as it does not appear to be an ordinary burglary to me??

[Mike on a bike]

Maybe a guy who used them both and saw that they had no safe or just some low life going around asking who does watches in town . Then you bring in a quartz for a battery case the place and well you know. If you have other peoples watches a safe is a must even n the home.

On the Seamaster why would he leave that unless he knew it was a rep..................

[Timelord]

14 hours ago, Mike on a bike said:

. If you have other peoples watches a safe is a must even n the home.

 

I don't think it makes much of a difference!  Years ago I worked as a security guard for a large reputable company which was also monitoring places  where fine art was held.  In one contract where we looked after the malls of high brand products,where there were several of us on duty and a large robbery had occurred just under our nose which could have only performed by ghosts!  A large safe was ripped out of a stone wall holding an undisclosed value of precious stones!  How it was done still puzzles me today!   After months of investigations and all being under suspicion, it was concluded that it was an inside job!  As there is no such thing as a perfect crime this cold case was later solved some 12 years later and in fact turned out to be exactly an inside job!   That is all the information we were privileged with!  An Italian friend once said to me that in his town there is an old saying which says" chi ti sappia ti apri" translating to mean " whoever knows you-  opens you!"

 

As for the theft in horology, this is consistent with the timing of when the swatch group have closed their doors to independents, resulting with the side effect that spares are now rares which will increase this sort of behaviour for those stopping at nothing to fulfil a need or an agenda!  I also believe from the OP that it is someone of the trade!  Sad but true!  

[kernow]

Shocking. Robbing people of their livelihood. Unfortunately it does sound like someone in the business. I hope your watchmaker is okay and can continue with his trade.