Stolen Phone

So my phone was actually stolen and not misplaced as I initially thought. I came in to work early yesterday just to have a look around again. I thought that while the offices are still quite without the hum of the telephones and people talking I would be able to hear my phone ringing. So I backtracked my steps again and as I walked I dialled my phone from another phone that T has so sweetly given me to use. I dialed and dialed and nothing. It just rang and rang and went to voicemail. It was the same as the day before. A phone that rings with no clue where it can be.

I sent mails out to people upstairs where I went, I put a classified advert out on our intranet and nothing. Nobody had picked up a phone. I than called the service provider and asked them if calls were made from my phone and lo and behold there were 2 calls made on Tuesday night from my phone. They couldn't give me the numbers that were called because I have to go to the police station and open up a case so that they can track it. I refused to believe it and called the call centre an hour later just to confirm that my phone was actually used. They confirmed it and they confirmed that the phone was being used to retrive voicemail messages as well. Can you imagine the nerve and the odesity of this thief. I called countless times yesterday, dialled into my mailbox only to find that all the messages that people were leaving on there to help me find my phone were all retrieved. I than left several voice messages on there telling them exactly what I thought of them. I also sent them text sms telling them that they will be sorry for taking something that does not belong to them. I was pretty angry and everytime I called they kept on cutting the calls. They finally decided to switch the phone off last night.

Can one just imagine the the audacity and nerve of this person who stole my phone. I was away from my office for about 15 min max and they walked into my office which is an enclosed cubicle and stole my phone. And than they decided to keep the phone on which made me go out of my mind thinking that I am irresponsible and careless and I must have dropped it on my way out. I was feeling pretty rotten last night. My 2 week old cellphone which was pretty state of the art is sitting in someone else's hands and they are enjoying my birthday present. It isn't fair.

What makes it worse is that we come to work to do a job. The workplace is a place where we work and do a purpose. One doesn't expect their personal belongings to be tampered with, stolen etc. A lady's purse was stolen on the same day my phone was stolen. We don't feel safe in our homes, in our cars or anywhere on the street and now we can't feel safe anymore at our place of work. I have escalated it to security and they haven't done anything. They had a look at the video footage - but because there are no cameras in my office or anywhere close to it - there is nothing that they can do. How convenient.

I know it's just a phone and it could have been much worse than that. But it still makes me upset to think that this person probably knows me, they knew that I was frantically looking for my phone and that's why they left it ringing all the time making me think I am an irresponsible adult who is careless. I think that for me is the hardest to bear. I am a conscientious person, I pride myself in having things in order and under control and I hardly ever lose anything. I felt miserable on Tuesday night as I honestly thought I had lost a cellphone. But no - this bastard had to toy with me and make me go out of my mind wondering where I could have left my phone.

I feel violated cos it means that someone came into my office and took my phone. They could have taken my bag cos the cupboard doesn't lock, they went through my phone which had personal messages and numbers and everything else on there. I just feel so violated. I have become very weary and don't trust anyone that comes into my office.

Alas I am just another victim of CRIME.