WOOOOO HOOOO!!!!!! I'd have bet you a dollar that this wouldn't have happened. BUT It's YOUR tenacity that got your camera back. GOOD JOB man!!! Many others would have let it go. I'm glad for you :)
Cory Waters wondering how long it would take to catalog all the serial numbers of everything I'd not like to lose..... ----- Original Message ----- From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, November 13, 2001 3:39 PM Subject: Miracles happens (was shit happens) > Well, dear gang, I'm flying (I'm dreading somebody 'll wake me up). > Everybody knows that last October 14th, I was stolen, and I lost my second > LX, with 50mm 1.7 and 100mm Macro. > I received a great amount of support from this great list (I' ll contact > two members privately in this regard). > Here in Buenos Aires, there is a downtown street called Libertad (freedom, > ironically), that's full of "used" equipment stores, including stereo, > video and photo equipment. Everybody knows it's all stolen stuff, but it > exists (corruption) and will exist forever. > So, since I was stolen, I keep a copy of the police report in my wallet > just in case. And since I go downtown almost everyday for work, I try to > pass by Libertad always I can. > Well, last week I saw a 100mm Macro in one of this stores cabinet, and a > cold wave runned thru my body. I knew it was MY 100mm f4. The LX wasnt > there, just a Spotmatic and some other lenses. I asked if they had more > Pentax gear, and they said not by now. I said fuck! This guy has my camera, > I know, but I can't do nothing (I don't have the serial no. of this lens). > Yesterday, I went again, and in the same store it was, voila, my dear LX, > without the strap, but with my custom shaped and painted Grip A and all the > use marks. Adrenaline runned thru my body. I didn't entered the store and > went right to find a policeman. I find him round the corner and explained > the situation, showing him the copy of the police report. He followed me to > the store, and asked for the camera. Thanks to god, the serial number was > still there, not sanded or scratched (a common resource of this kind of > guys). > But imagine my feelings when the policeman says "This is not your camera". > I say "What? This IS my camera, I have all the papers." He says "but the > last number is a 5 and your report says it is a 6. Legally this is not your > camera". I felt I was going to die, but I was decided to fight to the end. > I said it was my camera and that the difference was obviously a typo (I > took the serial number from the webpage David Chernicoff made when he > selled it to me, and he had written it with a 6) and it was a miraculously > coincidence the lens number was the same (the guy of the store was stupid > enough as to leave the original lens on camera, despite having another 50 > 1.7 and 50 2 in the cabinet). This IS my camera, and you know it. I want to > do all necessary to recover it. The police man said ok I will call > reinforcement and start the procedure. I said ok. > While we were waiting, this policeman told me "They aren't going to give > you it. The serial number is not the same". I said "THey will, believe me". > I was hypernervous.The police car took 45 minutes to arrive. The second > policeman (far more friendly) entered the store and asked for the camera. > The store guy told him "The serial no. is not the same", and this second > policeman, thanks to all gods, was more aged, with worst eyesight, and > told, "yes it is, this is a 6". I told him, no it's a 5 but it's obvious > now that's very easy to misread, and the lens has the same number. He said > I was right, and asked me to leave the store for a moment to make some kind > of "arrangement" with the guy. 5 minutes later, he calls me and tells me > the guy has something to say. This m..fu..er tells me "Give me the 150 > bucks I paid for it and it's yours" I said What? Are you kidding? I already > payed for it. It costed me a month of salary, I had to buy it from usa, a > guy showed me a gun, and now you ask me to pay for something that's already > mine? Come on! (I was starting to really upset. The policemen took a really > passive, contemplative attitude). He told me "Ok, let's share the cost, > fifty and fifty", I couldn't believe it. I insisted I will not pay a cent, > I will take him to court. The situation continued this way for about > another 45 minutes, and finally he accepted he was lost and gave me the > camera. I finally told him: "And please don't tell me I have to pay you, > you still have my 100 macro. In fact it was thanks to it I discovered you. > Don't worry I don't have the serial no., so I can't recover it, but please > don't fuck with me. Bye". He put his best surprise face, neglecting it. I > say "yes, yes, bye". > So, after two hours of fighting, I leaved the store with my camera. The > police asked some more data, a handshake and I went back to work with the > biggest smile and happiness you can imagine. Back in the office, I received > the congrats of all my coworkers, who knew of my situation and were really > happy, but not as happy as me. > Just wanted to share. It seems this world is not so bad after all. > > Albano > - > This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe, > go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to > visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org . - This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe, go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org .
