'Does walking into buildings with a ladder to access areas unquestioned actually work?' UPDATED
"Does walking into buildings with a ladder to access areas unquestioned actually work?"
VERY LONG story short; A friend of mine was hooking up with a high end restaurant owner. My friend accidentally left an item of significant sentimental value in the back room of a place just before breaking it off with the owner.
The break up went very bad and now the owner is denying the item is back there, but we’re 99.99% sure they’re lying. Security won’t let my friend back there and none of the other workers want to risk pissing off the owner as he is a real POS.
AS SUCH, I am thinking of pulling the “Just fixing the wires” ruse by taking a work belt, box, and ladder with me. I intend to use the ladder as a “oh no, can’t open my hand and need to be let through right now” kind of thing, hoping they’ll just open the door. Thoughts? Tips?
Here’s what people had to say to OP:
Every business is fire inspected. Buy a $6 fireman patch online. Sew it to a $5 polo shirt. Walk in with a clipboard. Go when the owner/manager isn't there. The only problem is you're likely too young to pull this off. If you can't fake at least 30 years old don't bother.
WaffleStomperGirl (OP)
I’m 48. Friend is 32.
If your friend already made an issue of the item you want to retrieve with the restaurant owner, chances are high that the item has already been moved. Just keep that in mind when weighing the cost / benefit of your plan.
Remember to act like you belong. Walk with confidence.
Run with it, you got this!
Ten days later, the OP returned with the result.
We did it!
What a rush. Though, I obviously do not recommend anyone do anything similar. And I don’t condone any actions that could be illegal. Stay in school, don’t do drugs, all that.
But we did it! Or, I did it. I ended up using a lot of advice from the replies on my original post here. I took a ladder, hard hat, high-vis vest (all borrowed from my brother in law who is in construction) - BUT - the most pivotal piece I took was an ACTUAL ENTRY DISCLOSURE FORM THAT MY HUSBAND HAD FROM WHEN (sorry caps, excited) he had repairs done in his office.
I waited for a day we knew the manager wasn’t going to be in (not giving dates or names for obvious reasons). I donned my gear. Then mustered as much confidence as I could. Or, more, I mustered annoyance and urgency. I parked around the corner, as my car does not look like that of a contractor, even with a ladder on the roof racks.
Then with ladder to my side, awkwardly held in both hands, and clipboard gingerly held on the outside of the ladder, I walked up to the door. One thing we discussed is if I should go to the door guard with the idea that he should KNOW I was going to be there, and be annoyed when he didn’t - or if I should approach as if I’m expecting to have to show him my clipboard.
To clarify, the clipboard had a form on it that my husband had been given by a contractor when work had to be done in his office over several weeks. It was a request and grant for entry for maintenance and other such stuff. The plan revolved around the the guard either not checking it at all, or not checking it ENOUGH to see that it was for a completely different place.
Thankfully - he didn’t check at all. I went with assuming he knew I was going to be there. As I walked up he saw me and lifted his head. I nodded at him, still approaching, but in an urgent ‘Gah, need to get this crap done as I’m behind schedule’ kind of way.
He stepped forward - first obstacle, as I was hoping he’d just open the door. Still walking forward I said “Hey. Here for the light maintenance.” And awkwardly turned while walking to try to show him the clipboard. He made effort to show that he squinted and looked at it before … turning and opening the door for me!
I almost laughed when he did. But thankfully I kept it together. Another blessing I had was this was a time when not a lot of people at all were there. So I walked through to the back only being seen by one person, but they didn’t pay me any attention at all. It was at this point I realized I hadn’t brought my tool box or tool belt at all. But no one else seemed to notice anyway.
Got to the door described by my friend, went in - and wouldn’t you know it… the item was right there, on the shelf right next to the door. It was amongst an assortment of junk. I put it in my pocket and immediately headed out.
This was an obstacle I hadn’t given any forethought. How would I open the door from the inside with the ladder? And how would I explain why I was so quick? So… I gently rammed the door with my ladder a few times. That worked to get his attention and the guard opened it from the outside.
I decided to just say “Thanks buddy.” And nodded toward him. This is the part I regret the most - I couldn’t think of anything. Now that I’m home I can think of a ton of things like… “Going to need different tools, have to be another day” or even “everything looks good!”
Alas.. all I said was “thanks buddy.” Though he seemed to be lost in thought anyway, so perhaps he didn’t think about how much time had or hadn’t passed. Either way! .. it is done. Again. I do not condone or endorse anything that could get anyone in trouble or injured. Be good. So on.
Here’s what people had to say to OP:
What was the item that called for this mission?
WaffleStomperGirl (OP)
It was an older piece of jewellery. Nothing of immense value, financially. But very important to my friend (given by a relative who recently passed).
You can get a lot of places with a clipboard, a tool belt, and all blacks, allegedly, definitely not speaking from experience here.
Isn't this kind of approach exactly how the Louvre thieves pulled off their heist last year? Surefire way to get where you're not supposed to go, I guess!
“Thanks buddy” was the perfect thing to say. Don’t over explain or offer up unnecessary info if you have to lie about something! (Lying is bad tho, kids)