Stephen Ellison

Concord Man Wakes Up to See Intruder Steal His Prized Cameras

An East Bay man came face to face with an intruder in his home Tuesday and says he's still stunned that the burglar got away with something that means more to him than money.

It's a story David Hancock wished he didn’t have to tell Concord police. An intruder woke him up in his home and was holding two rare film cameras that he considered invaluable. The intruder was standing about 10 feet away from him in his apartment, holding the Olympus M-1 and the Pentax K-1000.

"I looked over ... and my first thought was that’s not my wife," Hancock said.

The person standing in front of him at the door was wearing jeans and a hoodie, he said.

"My guess is he was scared by my dog barking and grabbed a couple of cameras on the table and went out the door," Hancock said.

Hancock said he considers the two cameras his most prized possessions. The Olympus is a rare camera in that only about 5,000 were made before the name had to change, he said. The Pentax was his first camera. He's owned it for 25 years, and it led to his passion for photography.

Hancock said that particular camera was the catalyst for his YouTube channel, where he teaches people how to take beautiful pictures.

"It’s very important to me because my mom bought it for me to learn photography at a time when she didn’t have two dimes to rub together," he said.

Hancock said the thief got in through a window. He’s grateful that his wife had already left for work and that he and his dog weren’t hurt.

His neighbors, meanwhile, are a little uneasy.

"We all would like to go out and think that we’re safe," one neighbor said. "My heart goes out to him."

Contact Us