'Dish Network' Dishes Disappearing; Being Sold as 'New'

By GRANT STINCHFIELD, Correspondent

Paul Vargas, a Connecticut resident and New York Yankees fan, returns home from work every evening and goes through the same routine. He fixes himself dinner and a beverage, then sits down in his leather recliner and turns on the television. It’s his way to unwind from a busy day.

However, one recent evening, Vargas turned on his TV and, instead of seeing the blue and white pinstripes of his beloved Bronx Bombers, he saw nothing but snow -- the black and white dots of a missing satellite signal.

Vargas tinkered with his Dish Network receiver. He turned it on and off. He even unplugged it and let it sit before plugging it back in and turning it back on again. Still no signal. That’s when Vargas called Dish Network and they determined that, in fact, his receiver was not receiving any signal. The customer service representative then asked him to go outside and check his satellite dish. Vargas trudged outside -- only to find his dish was gone. The only thing left was the bracket and wires dangling off the side of his home.

“There are some darn dirty people around here to steal a satellite dish off someone’s house, especially during baseball season,” Vargas commented. He, like many Dish Network customers, was surprised to learn thieves are targeting Dish Network customers by the thousands. Across Connecticut and around the nation, satellite dishes are disappearing at an alarming rate. “It worked when I left in the morning, so that means the thieves struck during the day,” Vargas points out.

Dish Network installers say they get dozens of calls each week from people who had their dishes stolen from their houses. “There is a huge market for the stolen Dish Network dishes and LNBs,” warns Todd Caruth, a Dish Network installer. (LNBs are the arm-like attachments to the dish that serve as receivers capturing the signal after it bounces off the dish.) “The LNBs are very expensive, and you can only buy them from registered Dish Network distributors. That’s why they are a target.”

Caruth also says many of the stolen dishes are being sold by people claiming to be Direct TV distributors, but who are not. They resell the stolen goods as new. Also, since Direct TV mandates that installers hang the satellite dishes on the side of a house near the electric meter, that means the equipment is easily accessible for thieves. “A crook can walk up to a house and steal the satellite dish in just 45 seconds…That means it’s a relatively low-risk crime.”

Drive around Connecticut and it becomes clear the problem is widespread. Caruth says he drove through a neighborhood in Stamford and found 14 homes where satellite dishes had been stolen. “It took me 10 minutes to find more than a dozen homes hit by thieves.”

“I have had my (Dish Network) dish stolen twice,” said Vernon McNeal of Stamford. He lives in an apartment complex. “Each time, it takes three days to get a new dish. I can’t handle 'no TV' for three days,” he says with a hint of disgust. McNeal, like many victims, says if his dish is stolen one more time, he is going to go back to cable. “The signal is just so much better with a satellite dish, but I’m tired of paying for it to be reinstalled each time it gets stolen!”

If the thieves are not selling to dishonest distributors, they may be selling the stolen dishes on eBay. A quick search reveals just how big the satellite equipment market is. At any given moment, hundreds of dishes are being sold on the on-line auction site.

The people looking for Dish Network equipment are often people who have a second home or a recreational vehicle. Many people like to take their receiver box on the road with them, but in order to receive the satellite signal in their second home or RV, they need a second satellite dish. They can buy a dish on eBay anywhere from $25 to $65 -- far less than it would cost to buy the same equipment from a registered distributor.

One RV’er, who asked not to be identified, said, “I had no idea the dish might be stolen. I bought mine on eBay because I saved nearly $50.” He says he now feels bad he may have helped a thief prosper. “If I had known so many of the dishes on eBay were stolen, I never would have bought it there,” he said.

The satellite thieves have spared Direct TV users. The reason is that consumers can buy Direct TV equipment at almost any electronic store. The Direct TV equipment is so widely available there is no market for stolen Direct TV equipment.

Reputable installers recommend that customers ask their installer if the equipment they are buying is new. “If you have any doubts, ask the installer to prove it to you,” recommends Caruth. He explains that installers need to know their customers want no part of helping thieves flourish.

Paul Vargas has his new dish up and running at his house in Hamden. He also has installed a motion sensor light next to it to try to keep thieves away at night. “I don’t know what to do during the day. I told my neighbor to keep an eye on it.” Vargas also had an extra set of bolts installed on the dish. He says, “I hope that sends a signal to thieves -- stay away from my satellite dish!”

(Contact Grant at g.stinchfield@thejusticejournal.com)