After reading a recent post about another stolen travel trailer and the update of it being found and a meth suspect in custody I can't help but wonder if our families recently stolen travel trailer has suffered a similar fate. Is this a new trend, steal a travel trailer, park it in the woods and make it a meth lab! If that's the case I'd rather it not be found, I wouldn't want to see it back in that condition. Our case is still open and will see what happens.Our Families travel trailer was stolen over the Thanksgiving holiday in Fernandina Beach, Florida. It was stored at a friends business and had a tongue lock attached. To the Grinch that took it please know this camper meant a lot to our family. Our daughter is heartbroken because she loved it so much. My wife and I are distraught because it will be a real financial hardship to be able to replace it and it's contents. We had saved for a long time to buy it and all the equipment we bought for it over time. The Grinch took it all, even the tire covers and wheel chocks. Please keep an eye out for it, we would appreciate it. It is a 23 foot 2006 Rockwood 2306. It had a spare tire with molded plastic cover mounted on the rear bumper and was in excellent shape. One distinguishing interior feature was that it had 2 bunks in the back originally, but I removed the top bunk to accommodate my growing daughter It had a current Florida Tag on it N230DM

I sure do hope you find your RV. Sadly statistics state that most stolen vehicles are striped and parted within hours of being stolen.:(But trust me the meth dealers don't steal new trailers. They 'find' broken down dilapidated ones deep in the woods and settle in making meth.They certainly don't want to draw attention to themselves with new vehicles brought in and parked deep in the woods.:WLooking at property down here in Florida for a couple of years and have run across many of them. Their new trick is to get into the foreclosed homes and start cooking until they are caught! And, of course, you can always visit the Ocala National Forest if you have the need to meet all of them set up in their permanent residence there!! :B:B

If meth is cooked in a camper, most likely it will be destroyed due to the chem.s that are used in cooking it.. I am kind of shocked that you are surprised that this happens. It's been going on for years.

Hopefully you have decent insurance carrier who will simply buy it out. There is no way you will ever recoup the total loss of trailer and stuff, but get what you can and go shopping for a replacement.

The cooks do not always park the rigs deep in the woods. Sometimes they park in the campsite right next to yours in the campground.YES, they WILL steal a newer camper, park it somewhere, cook a couple batches and then drive away and abandon the whole thing only to do it again later somewhere else.They might even steal a rig right out of a camp ground while the owner is out sightseeing. The thieves may also be in contact with the campground operator while they are in the process of hauling it out of the campground.Several years back when I was hosting at a state park we got a directive down that we needed to be vigilant of people hooking up to rigs during the middle of the day with unfamiliar vehicles as someone had gone around and stolen at least two in the state in just such manner and had even spoken tot he camp host on the way out.The camp host at our sister camp ground told me about a camper that received severe burns and needed medical treatment. The whole scenario seemed a bit suspicious so the camp host called the cops. The rig was later taken out of the park by the LEOs.Thieves and drug addicts and drug dealers will expend more energy and resources to get that "quick" buck than they would if they had a regular job so do not discount anything they may do or may be capable of doing.

Unfortunately Meth labs have become common place. We have a new storage locker facility about a half mile down the road complete with security lights and cameras; still a couple of yahoos thought they could operate out of two adjoining lockers. The police caught them when the locker owner became suspicious. Hope you get your trailer back unscathed. Since we are new to the TT world we have our trailer insured for the purchased value, this was not true for our pop-up but we have a lot of experience with it.Unfortinately, you can never replace the personal items and memories.

Travel trailer meth labs?!?! | Good Sam Community

CavemanCharlie
Explorer III
Jan 02, 2014
rvfamilyguy wrote:
fatmanobx wrote:
If meth is cooked in a camper, most likely it will be destroyed due to the chem.s that are used in cooking it.. I am kind of shocked that you are surprised that this happens. It's been going on for years.

I am surprised, ignorance is bliss I guess. Our family is just your average hard working family who has had to work hard for everything we have. I guess this event has reminded us that their are people who don't share those values, they prefer to just take someone else's things. We have State Farm covering the trailer, it's not full replacement and doesn't cover contents. I hope they will be fair to work with. The loss of the contents really stinks because we had saved and bought some nice things over time to make our camping experiences more comfortable. Things like the the Progressive industries EMS-HW30C unit I just installed myself, the equalizer hitch system, camping chairs, camping stove, light kits, carpet, screen room........all contents inside the trailer were not cheap. Maybe Marcus, the CEO at Camping World should have a program called "So Your Camper Was Just Stolen Discount Program". :)

I too rent the house I live in but, I have Home Owners insurance to cover the contents anyway. I thought that I asked my State Farm Agent about this once and was told my home owners insurance would cover the contents of my TT. I'm not sure though and would have to ask again. I don't have enough stuff in mine to worry though. Sorry for your loss. I know I would be hart broken in anything happened to my TT.
westend
Explorer
Jan 02, 2014
rvfamilyguy wrote:
fatmanobx wrote:
If meth is cooked in a camper, most likely it will be destroyed due to the chem.s that are used in cooking it.. I am kind of shocked that you are surprised that this happens. It's been going on for years.

I am surprised, ignorance is bliss I guess. Our family is just your average hard working family who has had to work hard for everything we have. I guess this event has reminded us that their are people who don't share those values, they prefer to just take someone else's things. We have State Farm covering the trailer, it's not full replacement and doesn't cover contents. I hope they will be fair to work with. The loss of the contents really stinks because we had saved and bought some nice things over time to make our camping experiences more comfortable. Things like the the Progressive industries EMS-HW30C unit I just installed myself, the equalizer hitch system, camping chairs, camping stove, light kits, carpet, screen room........all contents inside the trailer were not cheap. Maybe Marcus, the CEO at Camping World should have a program called "So Your Camper Was Just Stolen Discount Program". :)
Yeah, it is really not understood by all how tragic a loss like this can be. My heart goes out to you and yours. Hopefully, your Rockwood will be found with the accessories inside and you can salvage all of those.

My understanding is that these meth cookers will setup in the easiest place available. I'm sure some are sophisticated enough to have a modus operandus of stealing RV's and using them for that sole purpose. I know that they will also do it in their own living space or close by.

My Daughter is living in a house that was condemned from drug activity. They were cooking the meth in the back yard, using a gang of microwave ovens. The ring leader was the Grandson of the elderly widow that owned the house. She was probably clueless about the activity.

The house was totally stripped and renovated by a neighboring couple that bought the house. They went to extraordinary measures to make the house not only decontaminated but kind of a showplace. I toured the house prior to my Daughter moving in and it's remarkable what they did to recover the property.

The EPA considers mobile homes and RV's that have been used for meth labs pretty much non-recoverable because of they way they're built and the level of decontamination needed.

EPA voluntary guidelines for meth lab cleanup
mlts22
Explorer
Jan 02, 2014
New or old, if it is stealable, it is stealable. Meth makes a lot of money, and meth-heads and people exposed to the chemicals tend to not be the most stable mentally.

Meth is a booming business, and some of the "cooks" are not exactly the smartest grapes in the bunch. Plus, since a trailer is so easily torched, a smart gang can easily cover evidence.

My recommendations? Insurance is the first thing, for replacement value, so one can buy another TT, not just get a tiny sum due to the TT's depreciation.

As for security, I follow the "just be the second slowest person in front of the bear" philosophy, so a would-be thief goes for another rig. I use a series of locks. The first is the usual padlock on the trailer hitch. This is just a deterrent. The second are locks on the BAL X-chocks. Finally, I use a security chain through the wheels with a sturdy padlock (if it says "Master" on the padlock, find something better.) This isn't 100%, but it is good enough to force a thief to have to actually do some serious work (and if they were into hard work, they wouldn't be stealing trailers or cooking meth) to get it.

PS: If you even -suspect- the trailer was used for meth cooking, don't sign for it. Let the insurance company total it. Meth chemicals are very toxic and hazardous.
mike77leprechau
Explorer
Jan 01, 2014
Not always drug dealers.... have you ever looked at an old trailer registration? pretty vague info... Knew someone who, in order to not pay for a new $300 trailer plate pulled the old riveted on VIN plate off his 70's era trailer, and put it on a newer one he bought, pulled the name decals off the newer trailer and called it a day. A white box is a white box and 9 out of 10 cops aren't going to know the difference. Myself? I'd just pay the $300... Imagine a thief could do this same thing too.....
deltamaster
Explorer
Jan 01, 2014
bigdogger wrote:
And is there any statistics or facts to suggest that meth production actually occurs in campgrounds more frequently than in some guys barn out in the sticks?

No there is not and nor was that claim made. Just that the cooks will go just about anywhere to set up if they feel the risk of getting caught is low. I said early on that they are not just hauling these rigs in tot he woods and starting labs but they are also going to camp grounds where they tend to blend in with all the other RVs.
deltamaster
Explorer
Jan 01, 2014
bigdogger wrote:
deltamaster wrote:
The thieves may also be in contact with the campground operator while they are in the process of hauling it out of the campground.
Are you saying that the campground operators are working with the meth dealers and vehicle thieves?

No. The camp ground operator happens on the thief as he is hooking up and unbeknownst to the operator the person hauling he trailer away is a thief. They have a nice conversation and away goes the thief.

I heard one report where the thief claimed the family that owned the trailer had an accident while out of the park and the thief was another family member sent to retrieve it. The camp host assisted in hookup.

No... not in cahoots, just not realizing that someone is actually a thief stealing a trailer.
Big_Dog_Bob
Explorer
Jan 01, 2014
Sorry to hear of your loss.
Week before Halloween someone broke into my truck , while I was at work.. They found extra rv key in truck and proceeded to strip electronics and a few other things from rv..
There was $1500 damage to truck to break in it ,plus rv losses !!

I certainly hope what goes around comes around with all these people.

Hope all ends well on your loss .
bigdogger
Explorer II
Jan 01, 2014
deltamaster wrote:
The thieves may also be in contact with the campground operator while they are in the process of hauling it out of the campground.
Are you saying that the campground operators are working with the meth dealers and vehicle thieves? That sure sounds like beyond wild speculation. Do you have any links or other evidence to back up those claims? I really don't think the average park operators are drug dealers or thieves.
Both vehicle theft and meth cooking are crimes of opportunity. Campgrounds offer a lot of opportunity, since there is really no way most residents would ever think anyone was suspicious. People come and go and move RVs in and out all the time. Usually you don't know what your neighbors should look like, so if someone other than the owner is in the RV, no one would ever suspect it, unlike if you saw strangers in the stick home next to yours. And is there any statistics or facts to suggest that meth production actually occurs in campgrounds more frequently than in some guys barn out in the sticks?
tatest
Explorer II
Jan 01, 2014
Stolen RVs, motel rooms, empty houses, or most of the time, just where they live.

RVs are also stolen for use in drug transport, and all phases of human trafficking, in North America. Not necessary that they be stolen, when gains are high, or risks low, compared to cost of purchase or rental.

Things to keep in mind, when purchasing used, what might be prior history.

Also something to keep in mind about how you might be treated when you are stopped for traffic violations or inspection in drug trafficking or human trafficking corridors, or happen to park in places with a history of criminal activity operating from RVs. Much more an issue for motorhomes than for smaller towables. Frequent checkpoint question: "Is there anybody in this vehicle other than the people I am looking at now?" as the dog is brought around to sniff and listen.
old_guy
Explorer
Jan 01, 2014
Sorry about your loss, but I'm sure you will be back up and camping again this year. After watching "Breaking Bad" on AMC that week I sure had an eye opening on cooking Meth. i was a firefighter for 30 years and have had to fight fires in house s that were used for cooking, you just want to sit back and let them burn but you know us, we like to put fires out. then the insurance companies can tear them down since it costs so much to rebuild the houses. Have seen many of the idiot cookers on the ground with burns so bad you wonder if this is all worth it. and as usual the burn victims get shipped off to burn units and the tax payers foot the bill for their recovery.

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