Thieving bar stewards

[oliver90owner]

How big a problem is this, is it really as bad as it seems?

More so when it is your bees and kit! If my car had not lost first and second gears this last week, they would have been moved to another apiary, and given some new frames and foundation to work on. So, as it is, about seventy quid to replace the kit.

I shall now need to take another nuc, to move some other bees that are in temporary accommodation. Cannot leave that there or it, too, might be gone as well! Then there is the risk that more kit may be pinched from the site....

 

[Dishmop]

..https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3L5DShJsARA

 

[BeeJayBee]

Cannot leave that there or it, too, might be gone as well! Then there is the risk that more kit may be pinched from the site....

Some people don't realise that the rest of the bees need to be moved elsewhere, in case the thieves decide to come back and try to take more.

 

[Thymallus]

I'd be very tempted to invest in one of those Lidl/Aldi wildlife cameras with infra red. The police might not do anything, but a few pictures might convince them to get involved. If an isolated site position to catch number plate of van/car etc.

 

[oliver90owner]

Its the first and only incident (I think) in about eight years on the site. There are other beeks in the same area. I know of at least seven others within a kilometre.

 

[Helen]

Unless, of course, they nick the cameras as well....

 

[oliver90owner]

Yep, IR cameras are easy to find if you know how. The 940nm picture only (not video) ones are less likely to get nicked but are more expensive and tend to have less range. The 850nm IR illuminators are too visible, for those expecting them, and make for easy pickings.

 

[domino]

So sorry to hear about thefts.

I'm always amazed that beekeepers would steal from other beeks - I guess there are scumbags in all walks of life.

 

[oliver90owner]

I reckon this was not a beekeeper, but someone who is now!

Latest is that the crime investigation has not even been allocated to a police officer to investigate the crime - it's done centrally, apparently. Bees will likely be dead by the time they get'around to it, as all the flying bees are likely back on site, unless it is someone who knows what they are doing. New beeks on any local BKA courses may be one line of enquiry.

I went to speak with one of our local constables on Tuesday. Seemed like he was in the station because another officer was using the car. Yes, the car - they may have two and one was in for servicing, I suppose. No issue with the local officer as he was very helpful and understanding. No issue with the 'allocation seargent' at nearby Bourne station (he rang me back in the last hour). But that lot at Lincoln (OK, not all of them) need sorting out! Duplication and diversionary tactics seem like the norm, to me. Probably a load of civilian employees justifying their existence is my suspicion.

Anyway, logging it all down. Trail may well be cold by the time the crime is finally allocated for investigation. I will be talking to the local Inspector on Monday if there is no progress by then (only Monday because he is not in his office until then).

 

[Erichalfbee]

Time to post it on Facebook.

 

[sean-a]

Do you mark your hives and frames?
Would make it more difficult to sell on.

 

[Erichalfbee]

i think a modified Lang would be easy to identify. Would a beginner know it wasn't standard kit though?

 

[pargyle]

We've had a large number of hive thefts over the last few years in Hampshire and sadly the experience you have had with the Police up there is very much reflected down here ... I think the problem lies with the Police not really having any idea about how they can economically investigate the crime and as such the effort to success ratio is low and as a result its priority suffers. It's not just bees, as far as I can see it's an attitude that pervades a lot of 'countryside' crime .. where the best you can hope for is a crime reference number and some sympathy.

I know farmers whose storage barns now are more like Fort Knox and the days when a tractor was left out overnight are long gone... livestock theft is commonplace and last summer a farmer I know 'caught' a family, one evening, with a couple of bin liners picking their own sweetcorn from the edge of one of his fields. The man's reasoning was 'well, you've got plenty - you won't miss a few' and basically told the farmer what he could do...

Do you not think that there is, in society, an element that have no respect for the laws of property and see the countryside as easy pickings and little chance of being caught.. and frankly, the Courts seem to be more concerned about the welfare of the criminal than the crime victim.

 

[Erichalfbee]

My step daughter is a Plod and she agrees with you, pargyle

 

[domino]

Do you mark your hives and frames?
Would make it more difficult to sell on.

I suspect they burn the hives and keep the bees.

 

[BeeJayBee]

Do you mark your hives and frames?
Would make it more difficult to sell on.

We do tend to trust people who sell 'their own' bees. Unless something is marked with a name and postcode there's no real cross reference to any previous owner of a box of bees and, really, how many would take the time to check?

The best we can do is know what a stolen box looked like when it was stolen, and keep an eye out for it, but boxes of bees are quite easy to hide.

 

[pargyle]

My step daughter is a Plod and she agrees with you, pargyle

I'm not surprised, where I work I come into contact with a lot of Police personnel and there is a frustration that they cannot do more in many cases .. particularly when there is little in the way of an evidence trail to follow.

Communities are not as close knit as they were in times past and because we are so mobile 'strangers' are not as noticeable as they were and in many cases people who do witness events are reluctant to 'get involved'.

It makes life difficult for the Police ... in towns and cities CCTV surveillance and vehicle identification software makes life easier (but incredibly time consuming searching through) for them in some respects but in the countryside .... not so many options.

I think in terms of hive theft from out apiaries the only thing worth a light is to physically secure the hives - it won't stop the determined thief but it may send the less determined ones off to steal someone else's ! (Perhaps not a charitable view but the alternative is ???).

 

[Cussword]

Do you not think that there is, in society, an element that have no respect for the laws of property and see the countryside as easy pickings and little chance of being caught.. and frankly, the Courts seem to be more concerned about the welfare of the criminal than the crime victim.

They try to steal your hive, get stung, & sue you.

 

[pargyle]

If you want a good laugh ... from the inside perspective of a real (if now lapsed) policeman then try this:

http://www.comedy.co.uk/guide/radio/alfie_moore_its_a_fair_cop/

Thursday morning over your cornflakes at 7.30am or Thursday having your tea 5.30pm Radio 4 - Very funny.

 

[Geordie1964]

I'm always sorry to hear that someone has had their bees stolen because we put so much time and effort into keeping them. But I'm fortunate to have what must be the most secure bees in the country. My hives are kept within a 300 year old fortification with walls 15 feet thick, it has its own moats 40 feet deep, infrared cc tv cameras as well as 20 foot high anti climb fencing and a 24 hour guard. That should keep them safe but you never know.....