Being burgled is a harrowing experience - and can leave a victim trembling and weeping uncontrollably. But to help guard against it, a former burglar has revealed what homeowners can do to make their property less desirable to crooks.
The man - who remains anonymous - says he served six months in jail after being charged with 'burglary and residential burglary'. He was convicted at aged 18 - but now works as a security guard after 'turning over a new leaf'.
Taking to Reddit, he said: "I was convicted of two felonies when I was 18. I am 26 now and recently got my felonies sealed. I was in lockup for about six months until I was able to get bailed out. I definitely wouldn't want to go back to jail."
In US law, sealing means a person's "record still exists, but all related fingerprint and palmprint cards, booking photos, and DNA samples may be returned or destroyed".
He invited Reddit users to ask him their burning questions to help them protect their homes and the contents inside.
One user asked: "Are there any obvious places where people always hide money that you learned to always check?
"My house was broken into a while ago and they found some money my mum hid in a place that she thought no one would think to look."
In response, he said: "Yes, places like jars in the kitchen or dresser drawers - even behind the draw itself. [They] were always hot beds for cash as well as closets for some reason."
He says the best thing a person can do to protect their property is to get a dog.
"I wouldn't go near a house with any dog," he added.
"If a house has a dog of really any size that was a deterrent, as well as a house with a lot of people always around - such as neighbours with kids or a stay-at-home wife."
Usually on the hunt for cash or jewellery, the man says he would mainly break in through the window or back door - but would search around for hidden keys in the garden.
"Sometimes people would leave spare keys in their garage or around the house though which most the time was unlocked," he said.
"Otherwise you break the window or kick the door in. As for alarms, not that many houses had them."
When asked what he misses most about breaking into houses, he said: "There was most definitely a rush involved - but now I don't miss it at all.
"The consequences most definitely outweigh the benefits and as I grew a bit older I realised how stupid the things I was doing were."
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