VALLEJO BOTTLE SHOW THIEF IDENTIFIED

[glass man]

THIS IS WHY MY WIFE AND I TAKE TURNS STAYING AT THE TABLE. THE SMALL ITEMS WOULD BE EASY TO GRAB AND PUT INTO A POCKET. EXAMPLE,MY FRIEND HAD A STOPPER STOLEN FROM HIS AYERS HAIR VIGOR,WHILE NO BIG TICKET ITEM IT STILL DECREASED THE WORTH OF THE BOTTLE. LOT OF SMALL POISONS,PONTILED MEDS. ON AND ON. IT IS EASY TO GET DESTRACTED WHEN A OLD FRIEND COMES UP AND YOU GET TO TALKING.OTHER ITEMS ARE IN DANGER ALSO,MARBLES,TRADE CARDS ETC. KNOCK ON WOOD I HAVE NEVER HAD ANY THING TAKEN. I HAVE OFTEN WONDERED IF A PERSON GRABBED A BOTTLE AND STARTED RUNING OUT WITH IT WHAT WOULD BE THE RECOURSE WITH NO SECURITY AROUND,"STOP THAT THIEF,MAY FALL ON DEAF EARS AS SOME WOULD NOT WANT TO GET INVOLVED OR REALIZE IN TIME WHAT IS GOING ON. OR IF A BOTTLE IS BROKEN CAN THE PERSON BE MADE TO PAY> WHAT IF THE PERSON JUST WALKED OUT REFUSING TO DO ANYTHING? IS THERE A BROKE BOTTLE LAW? THERE ARE INSURANCE CO. THAT WILL COVER DEALERS.BUT DOES ANY ONE KNOW HOW GOOD THEY ARE? JAMIE

 

[Oldtimer]

Have pictures of the best ones displayed in place of the bottles, any one who needs to see one has it handed to them, and put back in the box behind the table if they do not buy. Only thing better would be locked display cases, and those are not very practical for larger set ups.

 

[RedGinger]

That's a great idea Oldtimer.

 

[Miles]

I dunno about that- the convience of ebay is that you can buy bottles without having to leave your home, although you go without seeing the bottle in person. And although it may reduce stealing, it would also reduce spending, and if someone is going out of their way to a bottle show, they have every right to look at these bottles in person without their experience ruined because of a few crooks.

 

[capsoda]

Kick his ass man. Then send him to jail.

We had one too. He became so over confident that he tried to steal a house full of antiques. Someone reported him (every digger in town) and he went away for 5 years for fleecing the elderly, theft of property, fraud and a bunch of misdemeanors. He is out now and I heard that his voice is much higher than when he left on his little vacation. []

 

[ajohn]

Not only bottles! Red Wing pottery

 

[div2roty]

It seems possible to me that the Red Wing break in was by someone that was close to the people. The burgler had probably been in the house, obviously they knew where the people lived, but its possible they knew the layout of the house, and knew that the people would be gone all day to that show.

 

[glass man]

I KNEW A PERSON THAT WAS VERY LIKABLE,BUT HEARD HE WOULD STEAL. WELL I GIVE ALL A CHANCE. WE MADE SOME PRETTY GOOD DEALS TOGETHER.[NOW I WONDER ABOUT THE PONTILED BOTTLE I GOT CHEAP] WELL ONE DAY HE CAME OVER AND SAW A CHEAP INK I HAD AND ASKED IF HE COULD TAKE IT AND PAY LATER. I THOUGHT EVEN IF HE NEVER PAIS I WOULD BE OUT $3 AND COULD ALSO FIND OUT IF INDEED HE WAS A THIEF. TIME WENT BY AND I CALLED HIM ABOUT THE INK JUST TO HEAR WHAT HE WOULD SAY. HE HELD THE PHONE AWAY FROM HIM ,BUT I COULD STILL HEAR HIM AS HE DESCRIBED THE INK TO HIS WIFE AND ASK DID SHE WANT TO KEEP IT. WELL HE GOT BACK ON THE PHONE AND SAID HE DID NOT KNOW WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT,HE NEVER GOT AN INK FROM ME! I TOLD HIM TO KEEP THE "NON EXISTING INK" BUT NEVER CALL ME AGAIN OR COME AROUND ME. IT TOOK SEVERAL PHONE CALLS FROM HIM TO GET IT ACROSS TO HIM I WAS SERIOUS. BLEW MY MIND SOMEBODY WOULD NOT SNEAK SOMETHING ,BUT TAKE IT OUT KNOWING WE BOTH KNEW ABOUT IT AND THEN INSULT MY LITTLE BRAIN SAYING HE NEVER HAD IT! GEEZ! JAMIE

 

[BittersMax]

It should also be noted to give all criminals equal time here that known bottle thief Mark Espinoza showed up on Saturday with his son. Like father like son his dad taught him to follow in his foot steps of criminal activity. His son was caught by a dealer stealing a bottle off his table. The dealer being fairly new to shows didn't know what to do so the incident went un-reported. Both Wisnyi & Espinoza
are damn lucky it wasn't myself whom they stole from.

 

[BittersMax]

[align=center]THIEF IS BROUGHT TO JUSTICE.[/align]
[/align]Some eight months later after Paul Wisnyi of San Francisco & the Napa Valley robbed numerous vendors at the Vallejo bottle show justice is finally being served to at least one of his victims. The thief eluded authorities after an arrest warrant was served and then racked up a contempt of court charge for him self in addition. The one victim who filed charges was able to get his $2000 bottle returned to him which was found in Wisnyi's possession. Of course like any seasoned slim-ball thief, Wisnyi denies any wrong doing and not even being at the show but several dealers remember seeing him there with his large shopping bag after viewing his mug shot. What's really unfortunate here is that since only one victim came forward only his item was returned and Wisnyi was able to retain all the other stolen merchandise he robbed vendors of.
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The following article recently appeared on a well known internet site:
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Bottle Thief Charged
Gigs up for theft of rare western flask[align=center] [/align][align=center]

Mr. Paul Wisnyi

[align=center]When a rare Ferguson Whiskey flask was stolen last April at the Golden Gate Historical Bottle Society show at the Solano County Fairgrounds in Vallejo, collectors were left frustrated and dismayed. American Bottle Auctions had brought many of their rarest and most desirable bottles coming up for their spring auction for public display and soon after set-up, a rare coffin flask was missing. Collectors and dealers alike were left feeling that even a bottle show was now unsafe to present items for sale and for auction. That a person could just walk into a bottle show and steal something right off the table of unsuspecting victims left both the organizers of the show and participants with a feeling of dread.
Soon after the show, the same bottle (valued between $1,500-$2,000), right down to three very distinctive bubbles appeared on Ebay, a well-known international auction site. It wasn’t long before various people began calling American Bottle Auctions informing them of a very similar bottle to the one stolen in Santa Rosa being sold on Ebay. After contacting authorities in the Vallejo police department, the seller of the flask was contacted and within months police had a suspect. His picture was available online and soon his address and a profile of this would be thief became readily available and the Vallejo District Attorney’s office had a case.

After being interviewed and denying he’d taken anything, a Mr. Paul Wisnyi was under investigation and before police could make an arrest, Mr. Wisnyi disappeared. Not long after, police issued an arrest warrant and Wisnyi was captured, now awaiting an appearance before the Vallejo County judges.[/align][align=center]The theft at bottle shows is not a new thing; bottles have been missing from shows for years. A couple years ago at a show in Lodi, American Bottle Auctions lost a rare M.R. Sacramento soda bottle, which was never recovered. This time was different as a number of individuals came forward and helped the police in uncovering evidence that helped them find the right person. According to the Vallejo police, they are not sure what consequences will occur regarding the thief but at least he’s been given a stern warning and hopefully this arrest will make other thieves think twice before taking other people’s property. [/align][align=center]This last weekend at the Auburn Bottle Show, a number of bottles were missing from tables so its apparent Wisnyi has company. When presenting bottles at a show, make sure you keep an eye on your bottles at all times. We even set up a camera connected to a computer that records any movement at our table. This was most likely enough to fend off any would be thieves and it might be something to think about. Needless to say, we didn’t lose a thing at Auburn. Cameras are available at any Radio Shack and for $30 you can plant it on your table with a sign that reads, “You are on camera.†We can all get rid of this distracting and selfish behavior by simply paying more attention to our tables and looking out for our neighbor’s table. All it takes is a little extra precaution.
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