Mac stolen at Starbucks
My friend Joey Campillo got his aluminum Macbook stolen last Wednesday, 8pm at the Starbucks at The Columns on the corner of Ayala and Buendia (Gil Puyat) in Makati.
Like a lot of people, Joey was in the habit of taking his laptop to a coffee shop and working there. Considering how much time he spends in various Starbucks, his passport should be Frappuccinese. Last Xmas I think he amassed a dozen of those planners.
Naturally he feels safe in Starbucks. Most of us do, and thieves know this. Last Wednesday he was sitting at one of the outdoor tables, sipping a coffee, smoking a cigarette, and surfing the net. He turned away from his computer screen for a moment, and heard his computer snap shut. Then he saw a man running away with his Macbook.
Joey yelled at the man and gave chase. The security guard and the guy sitting at the next table also gave chase. The thief ran towards the Zuellig Building and jumped behind the rider of a waiting motorcycle. Vroom, they were gone.
The loss has been reported to the police along with the serial number of the stolen Mac. According to our Apple dealer, they’ve received reports of 25 Macbook thefts in the last 18 months, and that’s one dealer selling one brand. Think of how many laptops there are in this city and how many people take their laptops to coffee shops.
There are CCTV cameras at The Columns, and the Ayala Land people allowed Joey to look at the videos. The thief was caught on camera, but the image is too grainy and low-resolution to be of much use. Unless someone has that software on C.S.I. that enlarges and clarifies murky images. (Unless the thief really is grainy and pixelated in real life, Noel adds.)
If you find the Macbook Joey says you can keep it, he just wants his files back.
“Did you have any embarrassing, incriminating photos or videos in your Macbook?” I had to ask. “Something of a Hayden Kho nature?”
“Nooo. . .” Joey said. “But I did have an iTunes playlist called Senti.”
Oh the horror!
* * * * *
Why, when someone is robbed, do we immediately blame the victim as if he had brought it on himself? Of course we have to be wary out there to the point of paranoia, but doesn’t this automatic reaction strike you as a little warped? We have a right as citizens to expect safety and security. That’s so funny I forgot to laugh.
Answers to questions you might be asking, unless you wandered onto this site purely by accident >>>
August 25th, 2009 at 04:44
Que horror talaga! So sorry for your friend Joey. After reading this, I don’t ever want to bring my Macbook outside ever again! Nakakatakot! Nakakatawa yung comment nung friend mo, about the thief being pixelated and grainy in real life, hehe.
August 25th, 2009 at 08:12
Hi Jessica. Can I post this link on my Facebook? I know most of my “friends” on Facebook won’t read this, but I really have to tell or warn somebody about this. You and your friends are very funny about this situation though, reminds me of the guys in “Seinfeld.” Thanks.
August 25th, 2009 at 10:25
When Starbucks Silver City opened, it became a favorite hangout and choice working area for me and a few friends, and much like everyone else, we’d bring our laptops, sit outside, have coffee, and smoke. Imagine my surprise when, about 2 months ago, the guard approaches me as I sit down and take out my laptop.
“Ma’am! Mag-ko-computer kayo?”
“Oo!”
“Kasi Ma’am, madami pong nananakaw na laptop dito.”
And he proceeds to describe the exact same MO; one guy runs up and grabs your precious laptop, while another waits on a scooter w engine running, and they make their speedy getaway.
I suggest investing in those kludgy-fugly security devices; chain your laptop to the table. Let’s see them take that!
August 25th, 2009 at 11:47
I heard that the Starbucks in Congressional (or somewhere near that area) was held up months ago. ALL LAPTOPS, gadgets, and cash were stolen.
Another reason not to own a laptop and not to drink in Starbucks.
August 25th, 2009 at 17:07
Bring an umbrella when you go out and it never rains. Back up your files (terabytes are so cheap now) and your laptop will never get stolen.
August 26th, 2009 at 10:45
Lost my trusty iPod Photo at the College of Home Economics (where I teach) Men’s room in UP Diliman. Placed it on the counter, forgot it and left the bathroom for a few minutes, remembered it and went back and it was gone.
What pisses me off is that I don’t have copies of the songs in it which I’ve accumulated in the last four years. Syet.
August 26th, 2009 at 11:43
so that explains the really cheap second-hand laptops sold in Recto, Quiapo, and the sidewalks of Divisoria. hmmm… what color is that Macbook again?
August 26th, 2009 at 12:45
& that reminds you that you are in a 3rd world country and working/flaunting/giving up for free your 1st world wares under the noses of predominantly catholic 3rd world ctzens is u doing a work of charity for everyone.
& maybe d moral of da lesson is work at home – where u can leave ur pc or lappie while u pee or turn your head in peace anytime u want. who cares about nothaving starbucks coffee while working — or wud u rather sip coffe than work on nothing.
August 26th, 2009 at 12:46
–assuming akyat bahay gang does not exist of course.
August 26th, 2009 at 12:59
@ theOrbiter – Last I checked Macbooks come out in white or aluminum. The earlier generations had black.
August 26th, 2009 at 13:43
to theOrbiter — san sa Recto? Quiapo? malapit sa mga pirated dvds?
August 27th, 2009 at 09:44
I know of someone’s mac that got returned a month after he reported it stolen. The buyer tried to bring it in for repair (couldn’t login because of the password) and Mac returned it to the rightful owner.
Good luck Joey!
August 27th, 2009 at 14:53
alongside Recto, where you can also purchase PS2 for 3k, PSP for 5k, top-of-the-line professional cameras for lower than 10k, and a Philips shaver for only 100 bucks. of course my friend teased me that the shaver was used some time ago in a Funeraria. I still bought it, regardless LOL
in Divi you can find cheap G-Shocks (less than 500) and Cell phones (less than 1k) which are obviously stolen/snatched (the phones, I mean)
August 27th, 2009 at 22:39
I read about this app for the iPhone that uses the built-in motion sensor to know when it’s picked up and then starts an alarm.
I bet someone ould create an app to start cursing the would-be thieves in Tagalog (or another desired language); ‘TANG INA MO!!! MAGNANAKAW! MAGNANAKAW!
That would probably freak them out and make them drop the phone. In addition, the app would not allow you to turn of the phone or stop until the battery died or until you input the password to disable it. Hmm. Maybe I should patent this…
Similarly, you could probably have some version for computers as well.
I think a really good deterrent is to get one of those security cables and just secure the computer to the table. It should be of a length that will not allow the computer to hit the floor in case an attempt is made to grab the computer.
August 31st, 2009 at 06:54
If it is linked up to a network, your friend could do what my friend did: http://www.theage.com.au/digital-life/computers/sprung-by-facebook-geek-justice-for-pornsurfing-laptop-thief-20090812-ehpa.html
…then you could humiliate the thief in Emotional Weather Report.