The Effect Of A Burglary

Someone broke into 68-year-old William Scacciaferro's garage on Oct. 18 and stole a chainsaw, a hunting knife and two Hilti guns. Scacciaferro hasn’t relaxed since.

“I’m scared,” said the Douglas Lane resident. “I’m sleeping with one eye open, my wife slept the first night on a lounge chair... It's on the back of my mind like you wouldn’t believe.”

The total cost of what was stolen was probably less than $1,000, but the violation is the hardest thing to get over, he said. He has since kept a loaded gun near his night stand, and is upgrading his security system.

“I don’t feel safe, I’m thinking about it all the time,” he said. “I don’t feel secure in my own home. It’s a violation, is what it is.”

The Story

On Oct. 18, around 5:30 p.m., Scacciaferro and his wife took dinner to their daughter. They were gone about 20 minutes, and when he pulled back into his garage .

He first noticed the ladder in front of the window was moved, and then saw the glass was broken. He checked around the garage, and saw the thief or thieves had stolen his chainsaw, knife and construction guns.

He called the Waterford Police, and they called the State Police K-9 unit. A dog went into the woods, and tracked the suspects' path to Douglas Lane; although it was clear that’s where they got into a car and drove off, Scacciaferro said.

The Effects

Since the worth of what was stolen is below his deductable, Scacciaferro’s home owner’s insurance didn’t help him replace the items. More important than the cash, though, is losing that sense of security in his home, he said.

“Whenever I come home, the first thing I do is check around, make sure nothing is stolen,” he said. “You don’t stop thinking about it.”

He also put bars on his garage windows, to make sure nobody would break in again. It's ironic that he is the one who has the bars on his window, while the criminal is free, Scacciaferro said.

“My house shouldn’t be a prison,” he said. “I’m behind bars, and the criminal is out free.”

Cops' Take

Waterford Police Lt. Brett Mahoney, who is the head of the department’s investigative division, said . Meanwhile, the violation stays with the person, something Mahoney can relate to.

“The house I lived in growing up was burglarized five times, so I get it,” he said. “You never lose that feeling of looking over your shoulder, wondering if somebody is going to break in.”

Mahoney said the best deterrent is more police on the street. If a burglar sees a cop car in the area, he or she will move along, he said.

“Unfortunately, we don’t have any stats to show how many crimes didn’t happen because somebody saw a police car,” he said. “But there is no doubt it makes a big difference.”

Mahoney also said that people need to take care of themselves. Get a dog or an alarm system, or at the very least lock your doors, he said.

“We have so many burglaries where the person walked right in, because the home owners didn’t lock their doors,” he said. “Burglars are like anything else, they are going to choose the path of least resistance. If you have a shed with a light, they’ll go to the shed without the light. If you have a dog, they’ll go to the home without the dog.”

Scacciaferro, meanwhile, believes capital punishment is the best way to protect oneself.

“If I catch somebody in my house, I’m going to shoot him,” he said. “I don’t care about the law at that point. If you come in to my house, I'm going to shoot you dead, dead as a doornail.”