At Least I Did Not Get Shot
I waited in
the car as Mrs. Went into the bank. The alarm
kept honking. It was a bit
annoying. Then I noticed an old man, at
least 80, limping away in a zombie like step-drag, step-drag pace. He had a cigarette dangling from his mouth,
some kind of folder under his arm, and did not seem to mind a constant drizzle
of rain or the car alarm.
He looked as
if he might not have a roof over his head most nights. He slowly step-dragged his way out of the lot. I figured he must have bumped into the car
setting off the alarm, but he did not seem to be bothered by the honking.
The car
alarm stopped after a few minutes. A few
minutes later, back came the old man step-dragging back toward the once honking
car. This dude seemed a bit sketchy, but
I was not concerned about what he was up to.
Pretty sure he was no kind of threat other than you never know what is
going on in the minds of a sketchy person.
I did wonder
what he was up to as he walked toward the car.
Then I saw him pull something metallic out of his pocket and into the folder
he was carrying. It looked like it might
be a gun. I was alone in my car in an
empty parking lot with a weird guy who might have a gun. Now I was mildly concerned.
The old dude
went to the car and opened up the back hatch. "Oh" I thought, "I guess it must be his car, nothing to see here. "
I minded my
own business when suddenly this old weird dude was at the front window of my
car opposite my passenger seat and looking in at me.
“Whoa!” I held up my hand, and he turned
away and went back to his car. Now I was
spooked. I did not like sitting in a car
in an empty lot with a weird dude who may have a gun lurking around. I got out, locked the car and went into the
bank.
As I went
into the bank, old weird dude started the car and slowly pulled away.
What the heck
just happened? Did this guy have a
gun? If it was his car, why did he not
shut off the alarm? Why did he step-drag
away and wait until the alarm stopped? Why
did he sneak up on me and peek into my car?
Did this guy
break into the car and then just step-drag away until the alarm stopped? Was he spooked by our parking while he was in
the act? Did he know how to break into a car and start it, and steal it? Did he have a gun? The car had a Canada plate, not likely from
anyone in this very local bank, but then this guy did not look like he was on a
road trip from Canada.
I probably should
have called 911 from the git go. It
couldn’t hurt to report suspicious activity.
A few questions by the police wouldn’t have hurt this guy if he was on
the up and up. I just never thought to
do that until it was too late.
In
retrospect I really think this guy stole a car and I just watched. I feel bad, like I was not a good citizen.
On the other
hand, at least I didn’t get shot!
Heh, heh! Welcome to the Weirdo Magnet Club! That dude totally stole that car. He broke in with a metal tool in his pocket, and took a purse and dragged himself away. He must not have found what he wanted in the purse, so he went back after the alarm stopped, to look in the hatch. He still wanted more, so he came to try your car, but you were inside. That startled him, so he made his getaway in the car that he now had keys for, thanks to the purse he took out of it.
ReplyDeleteYeah. There are holes in that story. But maybe the original driver locked her purse inside, and was walking for help. You know you'll be seen on the surveillance camera when the police review it, right? I hope they don't think you're an accomplice...
I guess only thing you can do is call the police's non emergency line and report what you saw just in case someone's car did get stolen. Proud of the Mrs. for having a Christmas Club account. I didn't realize banks still did them!
ReplyDeletebetty
Him breaking in and walking away until the alarm stopped was the first thing I thought of. I hope I was wrong, but we'll never know.
ReplyDeleteGosh, how creepy. If I had been in your shoes I would have screamed for help.... depending on there being someone there who could help, of course.
ReplyDeleteIt seems unlikely that an 80 year old is stealing cars or opening up the hatch before stealing it. But yes, the whole thing seems sketchy.
ReplyDeleteLet us know how the line-up goes.
ReplyDeleteBwahahahahahahaha. At least you didn't get shot with a gun that you probably didn't see. There are weirdos everywhere, Joe. You have to be careful.
ReplyDeleteHave a fabulous day. 😎
Val makes a great case of what it could have been. I'd like to think that crippled 80 year old was innocent but it does sound iffy. Glad you weren't shot also.
ReplyDeleteYup, Val has got it figured out. And she was a teacher, you know. So are you going to turn yourself in or head for a meet-up with your accomplice in Canada?
ReplyDeleteI agree, Val is probably spot on, except not sure why or how anyone could lock their purse with their car keys, in the car...they might deserve to have their car stolen.
DeleteWhatever happened, you can hardly be blamed for not reacting. None of us want to jump to conclusions, after all.
ReplyDeleteYou crack me up and this early in the morning. Val is right on, and you might be seen on the camera trying to get away. I don't think an 80 year old man would be stealing a car unless maybe he was homeless and rather go to prison then live on the street at least he would have a bed, shelter and food. Glad to hear you're safe.
ReplyDeleteWhen I opt to stay in the car, I keep the keys so that I can move the car if necessary; however, I guess that's not good if the spouse comes out and wonders where the car is. I've only had to move the car once and in that case, I drove it up to the business door to pick up my husband.
ReplyDeleteGood detective comments on this feed from your readers!
whoa that is bit scary story as i imagined it replacing you and it seemed weird and creepy dear Joe
ReplyDeletebut i think you should not blame yourself because anyone can be confused as from my perspective guy was quite experienced and clever enough to make you realize what was he trying to do actually
if it happened you might find it in some newspaper of the day just to confirm your illusion
have blessed week ahead
What a freak. So happy you didn't get shot!
ReplyDelete