Cat burglars are a type of thief who use advanced housebreaking skills and athletic abilities to avoid detection. They prefer to steal when the owners are away and enter above ground level. The term comes from the way cats silently stalk their prey. While prevalent in popular media, they are not common in real life. Examples of cat burglars in popular culture include Charles Peace, Cary Grant’s character in To Catch a Thief, and Catwoman.
There are various types of thieves, but only one meets the somewhat romantic image of the cat burglar. A thief is a person who steals anything; this can include pickpockets, snatchers, and even some cybercriminals, as well as burglars and burglars. In common English usage and under various legal definitions, a thief steals directly from a person or institution, usually by force or the threat of violence. While a robber faces his victims, a thief tries to avoid them, preferring to take over property when the owners are away. Cat burglars take this to the extreme, using athletic skills and advanced housebreaking skills to avoid detection.
The term cat burglar refers to how real cats, large and small, silently stalk their prey. Like much of the popular imagery surrounding cat burglars, the name has a dramatic and even romantic feel to it. In fact, cat burglars are far more prevalent in popular media than they are in the real world. However, cat burglars do exist. In the 19th century, British criminal Charles Peace rose to prominence as the king of cat burglars.
Any thief will enter a property and steal things, both of which are crimes. What distinguishes cat burglars is the method, and this is a largely popular distinction, not a legal one. While most burglars will look for the quickest and easiest way to get in and out, cat burglars will try to avoid detection by subterfuge. The classic cat burglary technique is to attempt to enter above ground level of a building, where the windows and doors may not be protected. An alternative name for a thief who practices this technique is man of the second plan.
To this end, cat burglars must be in excellent physical shape, with climbing skills and possibly even gymnastic training. This type of thief must also have the typical burglar ability to break into locked buildings. The romantic image of the cat burglar is that of a thief so skilled in this trait that it is not possible to identify the ways in even after the crime has been committed. Like much of the mythology surrounding cat burglars, this one is far more common in stories than in real life.
The Cat Thief has been a staple of popular fiction for decades, sometimes as a villain but often as an anti-hero. The character of Cary Grant in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1955 film To Catch a Thief is a classic example, a reformed burglar framed for new crimes by another cat burglar. Other films featuring this type of thief include 1963’s The Pink Panther and 1999’s Entrapment. AJ Raffles, a thief created by British author EW Hornung, appeared in a popular series of stories and films in the early 20th century. Perhaps the most famous fictional cat burglar is Catwoman, an adversary of the comic book character Batman, who adopts a feline motif to accompany her crimes.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
