Best Dashcam to catch repeated keying culprit?

[kbrd]

Hello all,

I have an open-air parking spot in front of an apartment building. Residents of the building often pass by this spot on their way to the sidewalk but my car has been keyed six (!) times on the sides (doors, fender and rear quarter panel).

The apartment building management refuses to install a camera after repeatedly asking them.

I'd like to catch the culprit on camera, but as normal people are also passing by, I'd really need to catch the culprit doing damage clearly on film. Can you recommend me a system that could properly film the side of the car? Is this possible from the inside with a wide angle lens?

Thank you in advance

 

[kbrd]

Forgot to mention, this always happens during the night. So low-light performance is also important.

 

[kbrd]

Also forgot to mention: I've never talked let alone had a discussion with any of the residents besides a 'good morning' or 'good evening'. It's just not a great building. The spot next to mine is owned by a guy with a van whose tires got slashed and keyed multiple times as well.

 

[Nigel]

The spot next to mine is owned by a guy with a van whose tires got slashed and keyed multiple times as well.

Bit hard to film the sides of your car from inside, but maybe you can cover his van while he covers your car?

I would be tempted by a 360 degree action camera so that you don't lose him in blind spots, plugged into a USB battery bank over night if there is enough light? Presumably there is light if people are moving about at the front of the building.

 

[Vortex Radar]

Yikes! Sorry to hear that! What about a Thinkware with side cams via the multiplexer box all powered off a battery or two?

 

[ilc2]

My dad is going through this situation right now. He is 83 and goes to dialysis and I know it is happening there. There in one spot right next to the entrance where he sometimes parks results in his car getting keyed. It's really deep and diagonal on the rear quarter panel. It's happened 4 times now so there are 4 deep scratches in the rear quarter panel along with a few on the trunk as well.

I thought about a dash cam but I want to catch this person so if this person sees this dash cam they might not key it (at this point it won't matter since the entire panel has to be repainted).

Instead I bought this one:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/B09CYD8HGK
It looks like a battery bank for charging cell phones but has a hidden camera in it. It just arrived. The plan is to put it on the rear shelf behind the seat pointing towards the drivers side. Long shot but I'm furious that someone would do this to someone who can hardly walk and is going there only for dialysis.

 

[sac02]

I know this is a dash cam forum, but have you considered a game camera?

It sounds like you park in the same spot every time, so putting a game cam (trail cam) in a nearby tree (or pole, or wall) could be a good option.

They are generally made to have good night performance (animals tend to be nocturnal), they always have motion activation so you won't have to sort through lots of boring video where nothing happens, and you also won't be videoing through a layer of glass from interior to exterior (potentially better quality).

Just a thought.

 

[kamkar]

Where my car is parked i have little faith a dashcam in parking guard mode would be of much use, so on my 2 floor balcony door i have a CCTV camera aimed at my car parked 25 M or so away.
Using optical zoom, and the cameras build in IR light at night, i have a very high chance of getting a identifying capture of any not ski mask wearing vandal / thief

The law here say you can not film public areas, but this is a back yard, that granted there is public access to as it is not locked off, but i am still good as the general public are not really running around back there.
Also with the zoom all i see in my car and 1 M either side of it, and 1-2 M behind it.
The system give me phone / tablet notifications of any human or vehicle shaped movement in frame.
Grab from my phone just now.



Earlier today.

 

[Dashmellow]

The law here say you can not film public areas, but this is a back yard, that granted there is public access to as it is not locked off, but i am still good as the general public are not really running around back there.

The law here is the opposite of Denmark. Basically, it is based on the concept of a "reasonable expectation of privacy", so if you are doing something in a public area where other people can see and/or hear you, you have no expectation of privacy. The same applies to audio recordings in most states. If you are out in public, say, in a parking lot, there would be no expectation of privacy because other people may be nearby but if you are inside your car or inside your home you need inform others that you are recording them because they would have an expectation of privacy in those circumstances.

 

[kamkar]

Thats also it for dashcams / cameras in general here , though there might actually be some problems if you use parking guard, or at least my preferred low bitrate always record mode.

I put a camera on the outside of my living room window, that was a mistake, in 2 weeks i had cops knocking at my door, so that had to go, but no complaints about my back yard camera and the cops knew about it too cuz i saw them shine their flashlight on it.
Had the cops visit a couple times more even if i did go to the police station on day #1 after i gotten a couple of hours sleep, lack of sleep the reason for me not wanting to open the door to them in the first place.
Anyways they got bored and i assume they saw the street camera gone on their #2 visit.

BTW they also just extended how much store dashcams can cover of public streets, CUZ turns out they often give them good data to go by.
And anything happening in public now and police also ask for dashcam footage. actually dashcam parking guard footage was crucial in solving a really nasty kidnap case of a 13 Yo, same guy now charged with a kidnap/murder of a older girl some years ago.

 

[kamkar]

Using a trail cam have often been mentioned in these cases, there also are a range of so called nanny cameras, this could appear as a PIR sensor or something in the garage you park in.
Nanny cameras in general i dont think are meant for outside use, but if the problem is in the underground garage you park in under your building for instance then something might work.

I love my PTZ camera on my 2 floor balcony door, CUZ the back yard i park in have very little light, not enough for a dashcam in parking guard to be of any use in the night time.
But using optical zoom + AI motion detect so i only get notifications when something human or vehicle shaped are very close to my car. not least factoring in the downward angle i film at.
Well i stand a good chance of getting a identifying capture.

A dashcam in parking guard mode are also fine in some cases, but there are also downsides to this.
1: light. You need light around at least be parked directly below a street light.
2: obstructions, this could be rain droplets on the windscreen - dew - frost or snow, hell even a leaf that come off a tree and landed in a unfortunate place and you are out of luck.

Personally if this happened a lot to me, and as i am not working, well i would just stake out the car if possible, maybe sit on my balcony with my air rifle that can make a very painful 4.5 mm hole pretty much where i want it inside of 100 M

Actually getting a notification on my bedside table on the tablet there, getting out of bed i have 2 options, be cool get dressed and grab "stick of truth " which is about 3 inches in the thick end.
Or be in a hurry unpack one of my air rifles in 5 seconds, open the window and let lead fly, and worry about the consequences later no matter what i choose.

Calling the police,,,,, very sadly not a option in Denmark in this day and age.