I know that there is no way to store anything illegal in your house while guaranteeing that police will not find it, and that the best way to stay safe is to keep a clean house, but I'm not looking for perfection, just to be better than I am. I'm also just interested in an academic sense, what the most extreme, safest methods would be.
Suppose I have an item that I need to store that has no smell (can't be detected by dogs) and I only need to check up on once a year (so low availability is fine). It could be dollar bill, a property deed, a laptop, anything. You can buy various stashes like a safe that looks like a dictionary or a can of wd-40 but of course investigators are already familiar with those. I assume the same would go for a false bottom in a drawer or something like that.
If you didn't need to check it often you could probably build it into a piece of wood or maybe in a wall, I assume investigators don't strip all of your dry wall (unless maybe it's a matter of national security or something else that serious). How likely are they to find a wooden box buried in the backyard? I'm really looking for more of a discussion than instructions, I don't plan on ever being under this level of suspicion. I just like to exchange information while it's still free.
Sorry if this is the wrong location. It's more security than operations, but I couldn't find a better location.
/u/Paris · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 22:33 · Link
The best place to hide it is in an area where only you can find it. Sounds simple enough until you think about it more. I like to think outside the house.. If you live in a city apartment it might not be possible but if you are near a forested area where you can hide things in multiple places that's great. Don't hide everything in a single spot and always hide it in areas where it's reasonable that someone else might have hid it there. From what you outlined because if your low availability and minimal detectiveness from dogs, just dig a hole (maybe near a tree), put it in a box with a lock, and put dirt over it. Simple as long as you can remember where you put it.
/u/Be9otten · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 22:47 · Link
Yes, a small area in the woods near your house is a great play.. throwing some weed under your mattress to where they find it and think that's it is a weird play but I think it would help more than it would hurt most of the time.
/u/Be9otten · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 21:21 · Link
I like questions like these, it is kind of annoying when people dodge the question to say never do anything.. Like sometimes that isn't in play. If you have a bigger house, a trap door is usually the best play here.. Also, get into "hoarding" stuff for the storage area of your house... That lowers the chance of anything being found.. Nothing is perfect, it is all about probability. Also, a "false positive" area... Like a hiding place that they think you think is discrete, and it has things like some spare cash and weed... When in reality it's just a ploy to make them think that's all there is... When the real goodies are hidden in a much better spot.
/u/CrystalKing · N/A votes · 9th January, 2022 - 09:55 · Link
yes, i learnt that from a david baldacci plot. but quiet practical
/u/nugget · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 22:56 · Link
If you choose your backyard or the bush make sure its in a water and air tight container. I use a 100mm wide piece of storm water pipe. Cut it to the length you need. Have a screw cap on one end and a fixed cap on the other end. Use plumbers glue for all joints. Cryovac your goodies, place in pipe, screw on cap and bury wherever. You now have a water tight container and depending on how many vac seals, smell proof, for a while.
/u/katewatts · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 23:23 · Link
And you bury it? I don't know much about LE dogs. Would it be devoid of smell? Would they just ignore it? Other than the smell and fact that it isn't a bone, in some respects, it sounds like something a LE dog would be interested in?
/u/just_no · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 23:31 · Link
Unless it is buried 10 centimeters deep in the immediate vicinity of the house then dogs would likely never find it. You can also spray capsaicin inside the tube if you are that concerned about it. However capsaicin is an irritant so you would only want to do this for something that rarely gets opened.
/u/nugget · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 23:37 · Link
You can negate the smell for a while if the item is sealed multiple times and alcohol used to clean bags, but smell will eventually leak through the porous plastic, enough that a dog could smell. I have read that mason jars are smell proof so you could put the items in their before it goes in the pipe. None of this should matter though if the pipe is buried in some secluded bush, no one but you will know the location and as long as you don't have a phone with you, no one ever will. As far as LE following you and setting up expensive surveillance, well you would have to be big time and I think big time would have something more elaborate like a stash house/shed/commercial unit.
/u/katewatts · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 23:54 · Link
right. I was thinking that you were hiding the buried pipe on your property. Mason jars are a good tip.
/u/nugget · N/A votes · 9th January, 2022 - 00:02 · Link
I haven't done any research on dogs capabilities, regarding them finding it at your house when buried. Saying that, I do know a person that runs drug detection dogs at a prison, I will reach out to him and get an answer for you pronto ;))
/u/nugget · N/A votes · 9th January, 2022 - 00:14 · Link
I just remembered a one more, that's if you have those pavers around your house, this is another one I have used successfully. Pull up some brick/concrete pavers, dig a hole, use some form ply or other water proof material as a door to your recently dug hole. hide stash, close lid and re lay the pavers. . Don't know how long this would hold up against a dog tho, but a human would never find it.
/u/crypto_is_lit_tho · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 23:14 · Link
If your bedroom and/or bathroom doors are that cheap hollow kind you could hide stuff inside the door itself. This can be achieved and work very well as long as you're careful making the opening (from the top) and then taping it in there with or without a string on it.
/u/darkisnice · N/A votes · 9th January, 2022 - 01:36 · Link
the ground
/u/katewatts · N/A votes · 9th January, 2022 - 01:48 · Link
lolol and yep. good point
/u/katewatts · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 23:14 · Link
Find a dank area nearby that doesn't get cleaned or looked after. Maybe there's some rubbish, leaves, behind a dumpster, in a gap between two buildings, next to a train line, just some shitty area that no one ever goes. Put the stash in some usual plastic bags so it just looks like rubbish. If you really wanted to make sure no one found it, you could dig a hole at this location. If you use this method, there's not even any real need to smell proof your stash cause there's very little chance that LE would ever search that area with dogs. Although maybe some random dog might dig it up I suppose. If you were going to be super duper safe, you would check that you weren't being followed each time you went to that location. Your stash would never be connected to you, "never" found stolen or reported. Anyway, is this method not 99.99% safe? I think the only problem might be if it was found and reported then your finger prints taken that had been left on the stash. This raises a question for me. If this were to happen, does LE keep records of finger prints? Then if you get arrested in the future and your prints taken, the stash gets linked to you?
/u/just_no · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 23:33 · Link
I think the only problem might be if it was found and reported then your finger prints taken that had been left on the stash. This raises a question for me. If this were to happen, does LE keep records of finger prints? Then if you get arrested in the future and your prints taken, the stash gets linked to you? Yes they do. The simple solution is to wear gloves and wipe everything down so that if they find it there are no prints and no connection to you.
/u/nugget · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 23:57 · Link
Imagine the scenario if the respective council/shire/city workers have an impromptu clean up of the area or some homeless person sets up his camp there or is rummaging around looking for cigarette butts. Another stash place that I used for various larger quantities and especially transportation is inside the spare tyre. Tyre changing tools are cheap and easy to use. Break the bead, use the levers to gain access of the inside the tyre, insert contraband, replace tyre, pump up and your good to go. Its a fair bit off effort but if its a fair bit of gear it's well worth it especially if transporting. Not practical if you need access frequently. I'm not sure how long it would be before dogs could smell it, but it is airtight and waterproof. Tutorial on removing tyres from rims are on the net.
/u/katewatts · N/A votes · 8th January, 2022 - 23:58 · Link
This is very good to know. Makes me realize how vigilant you have to be. Assume that every buyer is LE and to make sure there is no prints on the package. I'm going to have to go wipe down my drop. Alcohol wipes? Hand sanitizer?
/u/nugget · N/A votes · 9th January, 2022 - 00:19 · Link
Isopropyl alcohol spray and gloves
/u/DWdenizen777 · N/A votes · 9th January, 2022 - 00:37 · Link
Pretty much anywhere off-site. Away from your property etc.
/u/PupGlower · N/A votes · 9th January, 2022 - 01:07 · Link
in the words of biggie, "never carry no weight on you" basically don't shit where you eat
/u/Adversary · N/A votes · 9th January, 2022 - 01:20 · Link
Lead is non-porous so therefore (theoretically) undetectable by any drug sniffing canines. Magnets also have been used to varying degrees of success.