Possible Stolen RED Epic Dragon #07766 in Burbank, CA

[David Carstens]

One thing I don't understand (And this is not to knock anyone who had stuff stolen, i'm actually curious) aren't you guys requiring renters to have their own insurance? Wouldn't it be much more difficult to do this if a requirement for rental was a dated COI listing their name with your name listed as 3rd party insured on some type of floating inland marine policy? At least for first time renters?

The problem is that insurance covers accidents/theft, but not fraud, which is what these non-returns are classified as. Ridiculous.

[Remington Chase]

It will cover fraud/conversion if you ask for it. Most brokers won't mention it as it's the most likely thing to happen and they don't like to pay claims.

[L. Langer]

We've made some progress. I won't say anything at this time other than this was very likely organized/pre-planned and carried out by what appears to be a group of very young criminals - literally children - tied to the street music and fashion industries who might be trying to set themselves up as professionals or are using the gear for their own purposes. Everyone who is renting gear out or has it out with a rental house needs to have greater control over whom they rent to and not just rent to anyone who shows up. Using the fingerprint recording I suggested earlier will save you a lot of heartache if your gear goes missing, because you'll have evidence of who stole it.

[ericyoung]

One thing I don't understand (And this is not to knock anyone who had stuff stolen, i'm actually curious) aren't you guys requiring renters to have their own insurance? Wouldn't it be much more difficult to do this if a requirement for rental was a dated COI listing their name with your name listed as 3rd party insured on some type of floating inland marine policy? At least for first time renters?

Professional pro kit thieves/frauds are well versed in the high end gear, and come prepared with very convincing fake IDs and legit insurance that they've obtained using the fake IDs, so legit insurance doesn't safeguard against the professional scumbags. Sometimes they even complete a lower value rental beforehand, and leave a fairly large deposit, to build trust, and then disappear.

The guys in this case seem too young to be amongst those though, so a COI may have added a level of hassle which could deter the more casual frauds.

[Christopher S Johnson]

They ever catch this guy? I remember this was like the first thread I ever saw on RU and still think about it from time to time...

[L. Langer]

I don't think they ever caught him, but Derrick did get his stuff back after it was confiscated by Police. A gang-banger turned music video shooter and creative named Damien Sandoval - possibly the same Damien Sandoval who once posted here on RedUser - had Derrick's gear and after digging into him, I discovered that he has long-standing ties to Jake Patti, the aspiring rapper and leader of the Boston/LA crew that Eric/Evan Beasley is a known member of. Eric himself has close ties to Jake and did photography for him before the gear theft. According to Damien's portfolio and online media offerings, he shot multiple videos for Jake Patti over the years and may have done some work for him with the stolen gear, if the production dates line up. From what I can tell, some of/the rest of the stolen gear may be with John Leo Patti, Jake's wannabe actor/film maker brother, who has been using it for his own creative efforts and another wannabe in Boston who works under the name Rex De Palma. Both Patti brothers are the sons of John Patti, a former mob stooge who flipped for the Feds, so they used their dad's reputation to start a gang of their own, with Pop's assistance and connections. Near as I can figure out, they have been involved in their father's drug dealing business while he had been in prison and after he was released, allowing them to amass significant cash funds to pay for whatever they want. I'm not sure why they would steal gear, but for self-centered trash like that, any criminal activity is just another "Fuck you!" to the rest of the world.