When Sonitrol Pacific apprehensions are covered in the news, our business security systems are often touted as “silent alarms.” Typically, during a break in, a loud siren from other security system companies will blare. Rather than scaring them off immediately, the burglar will smash and grab as much as possible in order to get the most loot in the least amount of time. This reaction leads to heavy damage inside a building.

With a silent alarm system, the burglar thinks that he or she is in the clear and that the alarm system is unarmed or not working. Rather than smashing and grabbing, the intruder takes time to pick through things and scope what items would be of the most value. That false sense of safety is the key to catching people in the act: burglars stay long enough for police to arrive and arrest them on the scene, rather than chasing them away.

Maybe the suspects thought they could ditch the getaway car and just use a boat instead…

The value of silence was shown once again over the weekend. On Sunday morning, operator Mike Young received alarm activations from a beam at the Point Defiance Boathouse and Tackle Shop in Tacoma. Wasting no time, Mike dispatched Tacoma police, who found a person in the yard and arrested him for trespassing and suspected burglary.

The man was intoxicated and was caught trying to steal a rental boat from a shed. The boathouse owner believes there might have been another suspect who escaped arrest, due to the fact that the boat is too heavy to have been moved by just one person. Hopefully our quick response scared the other suspect away permanently—if not, our Verification Center operators and security solutions will be ready to act again!