Family Ties That Restrain

The average criminal is stupid, but there's a special level of stupidity for those who would steal from their own family members. Especially when the family members are criminals themselves.

John Verdino fits the picture. He thought it would be a brilliant idea to steal a safe from his brother-in-law's house.

How did he know about the safe? Well, his sister told him, according to Mr. Verdino. Why did she say such a thing? Because she was mad at her husband for some reason, and told her brother that said husband was abusive. Oh, and he had a safe stuffed with untaxed income, why not take it.

As if anyone's sister would mention the untaxed income. If your husband has a safe stuffed with cash, and you wanted your little brother to steal it as a way to extract revenge, would you really bother telling the kid that no taxes have been paid on the money he's to steal? Do you think anyone would much care about meeting Internal Revenue Service rules about declaring income?

So young John gets a buddy to help him lift the safe, and what robbery could be easier when you know your sister will let you into the house or leave a key for you to make it look like she wasn't home and it was a break-in. They take the money, and immediately head to the nearest Federal building to pay the government what is due....

The buddy and the brother-in-law will face kidnapping charges

Seems they weren't worried about tax issues once the money was in their hands, and they missed the part about the taxes. Instead, they went and bought a couple of motorcyles. Would anyone ask questions of a 19-year-old who suddenly appears on a motorcycle? Like, where he got the money for it, and where his buddy got the money for his bike?

Brother-in-law Joseph Van De Carr didn't ask questions, he just used his powers of intution and logic to conclude that his wife's brother had taken the safe and was in possession of the cash. $80,000 was missing, but the two bikes did not cost all that much, so the remainder of the cash was around somewhere. Mr. Van De Carr decided to go retrieve it.

He, in turn, called up a buddy and they kidnapped John. Pulled him off the bike, in fact, and then threw him in the trunk of the car. They used his cell phone to trap Verdino's pal, and once they had the two miscreants, they beat the youngsters silly until the location of the money was disclosed.

Mr. Verdino was upset at the rough treatment, so the police were called. He lodged a complaint against his brother-in-law, who then turned himself in and told the cops about the burglary and theft.

The money? That will be evidence for a while, and then it goes to the public coffers as the proceeds of crime, unless Mr. Van De Carr can show that he earned every penny of it, and he put his savings in a safe because he doesn't trust banks. Unfortunately for the victim of the burglary, he sports a neck tattoo. It's hard to look completely innocent with ink creeping over your shirt collar.

Now everyone can go to jail.


The family that preys together, isn't that how that old joke goes?