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sold at auction if it cannot be returned, it will net usually four to five times the actual price paid by the law enforcement agency during the operation of the undercover sting.

Types of Fences

The lay fence knowingly buys stolen property for personal consumption: a pickpocket or petty thief who steals credit cards, checks, money or money orders and uses them himself. A lay fence buys stolen property without the intent to resell it to persons and instead intends to use it for his own benefit.

The occasional fence buys stolen property for resale to other persons but does so infrequently.

The professional fence deals in stolen merchandise as his main occupation. The difference between the occasional fence and the professional fence can be slight and is based on the frequency of accepting and reselling stolen goods. This can most easily be determined by the area in which a fence operates. City fences are often professionals while suburban fences are more often occasional fences.

The amount of merchandise a professional fence buys is affected by a number of factors: the condition of the market in general; the amount of capital he has; the difficulty of securing the merchandise, including the measures he must take to protect himself; and his contact with potential buyers. Of all these factors, fluctuations in the general market have the most impact on the fence's purchases. Many other things affect the business, such as the competence of the fence, his business sense, the attention he gives to his work, his particular industry or purchasing area, the condition of his health, his relationship with his wife, his personal and interpersonal relationships with thieves and the third party purchasers of his merchandise, and his professionalism in general.

What are the criteria that distinguish a fence from other traders in stolen goods?

First, the fence must be a dealer in stolen property: A buyer and seller with direct contact with thieves (sellers) and customers (buyers).

Second, the fence must be successful: He must buy and sell stolen property regularly and profitably and must have done so for a considerable period of time, usually many years.

Third, the fence must be public: He must acquire a reputation as a successful dealer in stolen property among police officers, thieves and others acquainted with the criminal community. He must eat, live, sleep and breath stolen property.

How to Become a Professional Fence

A fence does not become a fence overnight. Let's face it, anyone can make money buying and selling stolen property. But, a fence is a businessman, and, as such, he must have a little bit of capital, a little bit of opportunity, and willingness to do the work. As a businessman, the fence learns how to buy and sell merchandise, and where to locate his business so that it increases his capital. A fence starting out with minimal capital can overcome that hurdle with a willingness to look for opportunities to make a quick turnover. He must also have the ability to understand market conditions. There is a strong similarity between fences and entrepreneurs. For a fence to become successful he must gain as much knowledge as possible about the type of product that he is going to buy and sell.

The fence who is a generalist in all items is a ready market for those things most commonly stolen. He is much like a K mart or a WalMart of fences because his attraction is a wide variety of products. He will be willing to buy and sell most things without much notice. But, much like a regular business, he must be careful not to become overstocked.

Some fences specialize in one or two particular items such as art, antiques or jewelry, but most fences are general-ists and can easily adapt to market conditions. The successful fence learns how to wheel and deal. He must examine

Who Came First?

It has been said many times that if there were no fences there would be no thieves. If there were no one to accept stolen property, burglars or thieves wouldn't steal. We can tell you that this is absolutely and unequivocally not true. Many thieves work without the aid of a fence, and others simply use the fence as a middleman.

For example: A burglar or thief steals money, credit cards or checks and passes them in retail establishments or through telephone orders. Some thieves sell stolen property to unsuspecting fences. In this particular instance, the fence becomes a noncriminal receiver of the property, as he has no idea that the merchandise is stolen. Also, even the most scrupulous and honest pawnbrokers, secondhand merchandise peddlers, auctioneers and junk dealers buy stolen property on occasion, that is, property that they know to be stolen.

If all fences were to disappear in the next three seconds, many thieves would shift to stealing merchandise that didn't need a fence to dispose of it. If there were no fences, there would still be all sorts of thieves and maybe some new kinds that we don't have now.

the ways that his property is bought and sold, paid for and transferred. A successful fence has the ability to make buying and selling stolen property appear no different from a normal, legitimate business. For example, a fence dealing in stolen automobiles will know a great deal about the laws governing registration, title searches, vehicle inspection, and transportation of vehicles.

The knowledge necessary to appear legitimate often comes from previous careers. A successful jewelry fence, for instance, is likely to be a former jeweler. A fence of stolen cars was once an automobile dealer. A fence of stolen art and antiques might be an artist himself. This is especially true when the fence deals exclusively in one type of commodity. But, a fence who is a generalist may employ specialists from time to time for merchandise such as art or jewelry.

Sooner or later, in order to go into business, the fence must go public, that is, become known to thieves, customers, police and others as a fence. Becoming public with the