Reward for Information
Leading to Arrest and Conviction of
Phone Booth Thieves

This is my 40-foot ocean cargo box full of my stuff.

This is my 40-foot ocean cargo box no longer full of my stuff, after thieves used some sort of torch to cut their way into it, steal whatever they felt like stealing, and trash whatever they felt like trashing. They also stripped and trashed my camper.

This was a well-traveled booth. Here it is making an appearance at Def Con.

In 1999, my phone booth even visited The Mojave Phone Booth.

Here's one of the Five Mile Men helping to move my Country Flame brand wood burning stove (model S-6, freestanding) into storage. Never even got a chance to use it. Maybe you have had the experience of spending days and days moving your possessions to your new place, only to have them carted away by thieves. It stinks. That stove is plenty heavy -- it took four of us to move it, and even then it wasn't easy. The fact that the thieves were able to steal that as well as the phone booth (which always took at least four people to move) means that there were at least four thieves.

Microwave oven? Gone. Woodburning stove? Gone. Deuce of Clubs candy machine? Not gone ... but trashed.

All the camping equipment I had -- gone. At left you can see the propane barbecue grill the thieves stole. The blue object is my Quickdraw brand tent, which I used to stay in before I had the camper down there. It pops up automatically, sort of like a shade screen for your car window, except way more expensive. Now there's no tent and the camper's been vandalized pretty much totaled, so there's no more place to sleep there.

Here's what the tent looks like open. These aren't real common. I had to mail-order mine. And here's what the tent looks like closed. (That's no one I know, btw; just a cheesy corporate promo shot.)

All the tools that I had -- gone. This was my Wagner chainsaw.

Tons of personal stuff was taken. I can't imagine why they would bother to steal things marked with a Deuce of Clubs. They had meaning for me, but what meaning could they have for the thieves? I just don't understand. They left behind the boxes that had contained stuff I had gathered over a lifetime.

Nearly all the clothing I had was stolen. Coats, jeans -- everything. The worst loss is all my imprinted t-shirts -- probably 150-200 -- that I had collected over the years. Mojave Phone Booth, (Death to) The Pixies, The Thing, K-15 radio, &c. &c. &c.

The Mojave Phone Booth shirt, given to me by Lorene's sister Sharon.

This Art Deco lamp is also gone, probably to the relief of those of my friends who found it painful to look at. But I liked it. And now it's gone.

Some of the more recognizable stolen items include: Freeplay brand solar-powered radio. Has a crank handle for nighttime use. Housing is clear plastic. Many, many boxes of personal papers, photos, and personal items of value to no one but me. The contents of several file cabinets filled with personal records. Full set of weights and other gym equipment. Camping equipment: shade structures, cots, chairs, lanterns, flashlights, stakes, sleeping bags, blankets. Everything. Tools of all kinds Shovels, picks, axes, sledgehammers, &c. Antique cedar chest, filled with clothing. Mojave Booth glass -- nearly all of it

There is a story that Diamond, a dog who lived with Sir Isaac Newton, knocked over a candle while Newton was out. The fire destroyed many years' worth of Newton's work. When he came home and saw this irreparable loss, Newton wisely did not get angry because, as he remarked, the dog could have had no idea what he had done. Thieves and vandals, however, do know the effects of the evil they do. If you have ANY information whatsoever about this theft, the thieves, or the whereabouts of my stolen possessions, please contact me. Thank you.