July 09 2012 12:51AM (Read 1971 times)
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Registered: 10/31/11
Posts: 47
This weekend i was on a fishing/camping trip south of hills, iowa between the campground there and the 22 bridge near riverside. We were camping out on an island/sandbar and having a great time until our battery on the boat died. We had someone pick us up and take us to charge it. When we came back the site was WRECKED. My first thought was coons. Our food was thrown all over the place, the tarp was SHREDDED and there was mud everywhere. But then i noticed our cooler, tents, sleeping bags, 4 fishing poles, 2 tackle boxes, my friend’s watch, my phone, propane tanks, etc were ALL GONE. Also the guys who were setting their bank poles across the way from us got at least 4 bank poles stolen and at least 2 large flatheads taken (we were camped across from them and i saw them flopping) I called the sheriff’s office and the deputy took an incident report but told me to not get too excited and check Craigslist and pawn shops. Incredibly angry and out hundreds of dollars of fishing/camping equipment, I just went home and called it a day. Well someone called my phone and told me it was on and I called sprint and thanks to their fantastic GPS service we got real time updates of a satellite feed accurate to within 9 yards! We got the sherrif’s deputy down to the river junction campground south of riverside, we literally sat at the boat ramp and watched on a smartphone as my phone sat in the tacklebox and beeped its way downriver! They denied everything until we showed them their own stolen phone on GPS, and i opened the tacklebox producing all my property!! The look on their face was priceless!!
When they finally got to shore it was about 15 people, most on tubes, but some crammed into a 16 foot jon boat, with NO lights, no life jackets, drinking heavily (our beer i might add) and it was 11 o clock at night. The deputies got them to pull in where 3 of us identified the entire boatload as our stolen property. My friends watch was in the driver’s wife’s pocket, but sure enough my phone, fishing license, and receipts paid with a credit card (my name on them) were in the tackle box. Needless to say their goose was cooked! Worst of all was one of their kids was with them, some poor young boy about 8 years old was in tears as the deputies yanked their boat away and threw out item after item of our stolen property.
Anyway the main reason I am posting on here is I need to get the poles back to their rightful owner. I know the poles were tagged originally and I know the guy is from Hills. But those scumbags took the tags off and threw them overboard before the cops could confiscate them. They were made out of fiberglass golf poles like what goes in the cup, and spraypainted green stripes on them, and the original tags were metal i think because they really had a glare to them even across the river. I called the DNR after I reported our property stolen because I knew of the fellow checking ditty poles and I knew it wasnt him that took them. If someone who reads this owns the poles or knows the fellow that does, give me a call at 319-651-2243, the deputy who helped us catch the guys brought them to me because he said he couldnt drive around with them in his car, and he didnt have room for them. I have them with me and I live in Iowa City.
Also, watch your property near Hills, the deputy told us a couple of the people busted were “frequent fliers” in the backs of johnson county sheriff cars!!
Great story to start my day out with! Theft is no fun for anyone but at least it turned out decent for your party. Karma!