3 arab men in sedan with antennas on roof and laptops mounted inside

[gripegut]

 

It was midnight and in the middle of winter when a car pulled into my driveway.  Now for normal areas this is not too unusual but in my case it is.  I live at the end of a private road, a dirt road, and nobody comes into my driveway unless they are someone I know.  I live in a very rural area on 28 acres of land 15 miles from the closest interstate exit and down 4 miles of dirt roads. 

So, I was very surprised when I saw a car pull into my yard around midnight.  I thought that someone might be lost or maybe they were looking for a deer (it was deer season).  But when I walked out on to my front porch and into the headlights of the car they started to turn around and drive away (my driveway is about 1/4 mile long).  I thought "If they are lost, why did they turn around?" 

So I got into my truck and followed the car out and they did not stop.  As soon as I was able, and while they were still on my driveway, I pulled around the car and stopped the car by blocking the driveway, grabbed my pistol out of my armrest and ordered the people out of the car.  (I had been in Iraq not too long before this in the Army so that might explain my actions) 

Anyway, all my internal alarms were going off and red flags were being waved when three Arab men got out of the car.  I live in Texas, way out in the country and 2 hrs. drive from a major city but the car had California plates.  I also noticed that there were a bunch of antennas sticking out of the roof of the car (at least six or seven).  I asked the 3 Arab men what they were doing and they said they were "monitoring cell tower coverage" or something like that.  Inside the car were laptops mounted to the passenger seat dash, and two more laptops mounted to the backs of the two front seats.

I asked the drivers for some identification and one gave me an expired temporary work visa, another gave me a company ID card, and the other gave me a Washington State driver’s license. 

I asked them where they were from and they said they were working out of Dallas (2 hr. drive to the north).  I asked them where their company was located they said Washington State.  I asked them why their car had California plates and they said their company had an office in California.

I asked them where they were from and one was from Pakistan, another was from Iraq, and the third was from another Arab country.  I ended up calling 911 and held the three men at gunpoint until the police arrived.  You might think this was an overreaction on my part but out here in the country you don't drive onto people's property at midnight at the end of a private road that is posted with no trespassing signs. 

Can anyone give me an explanation of what those three Arab men were doing on my property at midnight?

[houdini]

Why do you think any one here would know?

[echen1024]

Why do you think any one here would know?

What? just because they had antennas they were electrical engineers? 

[gripegut]

I thought that someone working with electronics might be able to verify their story.  Surely with a forum of this size someone might have experience in either installing or using "cell phone tower monitoring equipment".

[SolarSunrise]

I thought that someone working with electronics might be able to verify their story.  Surely with a forum of this size someone might have experience in either installing or using "cell phone tower monitoring equipment".

Did it look like the attachment below? Found it from this website:http://www.cojot.com/wideband-antennas/vehicle/

COJOT wideband vehicle antennas for the range from 20 – 6000 MHz are a crucial element of today’s demanding RF systems that are used in tactical communication, electronic countermeasure (ECM) and spectrum monitoring applications. Due to their ruggedized nature COJOT vehicle antennas are an ideal choice for installations on all kind of vehicles as well as for fixed installations like on masts, shelters or containers.

For these type of antennas, usage ranges from commercial to military, so I don't know. Was there a radio tower in the vicinity of your property?

[retrolefty]

I thought that someone working with electronics might be able to verify their story.  Surely with a forum of this size someone might have experience in either installing or using "cell phone tower monitoring equipment".

Pictures or it didn't happen.

[ampdoctor]

Oh crap they're on to you! They were a team of MK Ultra killbot/super soldiers deployed by a dark nefarious govt agency that must remain nameless while lurking in the shadows. Run, hide, divorce yourself from all forms of contact with civilization or they'll find you....PLEASE!

[zapta]

What happened when the police arrived?

BTW, Pakistanis are not Arab. Same goes to Persians, Afghans, Turks, Kurds and most Australians.

[mtdoc]

Well they were Arabs so clearly they were terrorists.

[zapta]

Well they were Arabs so clearly they were terrorists.

Did you learn it here?  http://www.logicallyfallacious.com/index.php/logical-fallacies/30-appeal-to-extremes

[ajb]

My guess is they were monitoring cell tower coverage.  Yes, this is a thing that wireless companies (or contractors) do, and it involves driving around with a bunch of antennas and a computer or three to record and map signal strength.

[gripegut]

I was under the impression that this was a serious blog but I suppose it is human nature to mock things you don't understand.  However for the serious, the antennas on top were not very tall, less than 2 feet and most around 6-8 inches, like the ones you would see on a police car. http://www.newworldliberty.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/node_image/news/police_car_antennas_6.jpg

[gripegut]

My guess is they were monitoring cell tower coverage.  Yes, this is a thing that wireless companies (or contractors) do, and it involves driving around with a bunch of antennas and a computer or three to record and map signal strength.

Thank you ajb!

[gripegut]

Why were they driving around at midnight?

[mtdoc]

I was under the impression that this was a serious blog but I suppose it is human nature to mock things you don't understand.

Well I also live on a dead end rural road and lost tourists often use my driveway to turn around.  I don't chase them down and hold them at gunpoint. So you're right, I don't understand.

[gripegut]

I was under the impression that this was a serious blog but I suppose it is human nature to mock things you don't understand.

Well I also live on a dead end rural road and lost tourists often use my driveway to turn around.  I don't chase them down and hold them at gunpoint. So you're right, I don't understand.

"

I dont live on a "dead end end rural road".  I live near the end of a prive road. (completely diffeent)  The road continues straight past my property to another property where it ends.  To get to my driveway you have to turn off and go through a gate which is posted with no tresspassing signs.  In the 15 years I have lived on the property nobody has driven into our yard at midnight by mistake and almost nobody at any daytime hour either.

[mtdoc]

Maybe it would help if you said what you are afraid they were doing since you don't seem to believe what they told you.

If they had some ill intent, would they really have driven up to your home with their lights on?

I myself have unintentionally driven right past no trespassing signs into rural driveways while distracted.

And what DID happen once the police got there?

[Thilo78]

I was under the impression that this was a serious blog

Yep, it is. It's dealing with electronics engineering, not political stereotypes.
As for that, I'm with ajb. I've seen quite a few of those cars in Germany and other EU countries, varying in make and size. They all had in common that they featured up to 20 GSM antennas (roughly 10 cm long) on the roof and a few laptops inside.
So I'd think that the story about network coverage is more than credible.

but I suppose it is human nature to mock things you don't understand. 

Maybe that's true. But please think about the different point of view here:
You have significantly different experience than others here, as you told us that you have been in Iraq recently, performing a military mission.
I for my part have been to Iran (and other countries) for my job as an electrical engineer and site manager, and experienced really well-educated engineers that were more than willing to work with me in getting their oil&gas facilities up and running.
In fact, working in Iran wasn't that different from working in the US or other parts of the world.

So I beg your pardon that the "arab terrorist" stereotype is anything else but reasonable from my point of view, although it may appear sensible from your perspective.

I can understand that you're irritated by people driving up to your premises, but I'd strongly suggest to leave those matters to the police or other officials, no matter what country you live in.

Just my two cents.

Thilo

[mrflibble]

Why were they driving around at midnight?

Recording and mapping cell tower signal strength?

From the phone company perspective: we would like to be mapping things 24/7, but humans prefer daytime work. So we pay a little more for nighttime work.

From the perspective of three workers looking to make a bit of cash to support themselves and/or family: work at night to get a small increase in hourly rate. Or get the job at all.

At any rate, from the description of the truck you gave + the responses you got it sounds pretty much legit.

PS: maybe read a book about paranoia after returning from war XYZ. Increased vigilance is a natural response, but I suspect that in this scenario it wasn't very helpful.

[Bored@Work]

I was under the impression that this was a serious blog but I suppose it is human nature to mock things you don't understand.

Please note we are equal opportunity mockers. We mock everything and everyone when it seems to be fun. We are not a full service department, owing any Joe Random showing up an immediately high-quality in-depth analysis.

That said, would they be real terrorists they wouldn't have driven around with an apparently conspicuous looking car. And if they would be real terrorists, outnumbering you 3:1 you would probably be dead now attempting to stop them.

They were probably just some poor guys, payed minimum wages, moonlighting to make ends meet. You live in the middle of nowhere? That would explain they were late at night - a long drive.

[dannyf]

but I'd strongly suggest to leave those matters to the police or other officials,

I don't know. Given where the OP lives, it is hard for anyone NOT to be careful - a wrong assumption can cost lives.

It is unfortunate that we have to be so cautious.

[Stonent]

Just put up a no trespassing sign.

[mikeselectricstuff]

But when I walked out on to my front porch and into the headlights of the car they started to turn around and drive away (my driveway is about 1/4 mile long).  I thought "If they are lost, why did they turn around?" 

Maybe because they were afraid it might be some nutter who'd hold them at gunpoint?

[BillyD]

Just put up a no trespassing sign.

Or a No Arabs sign. Or No Laptops. Or No Multiple Antennae On Roof. In fact there are a host of other signs which might have kept them out but just sticking with the vaguely electronics related ones.

[Derick Freese]

FWIW, in some jurisdictions in the US, if you can't see the no trespassing sign, you can usually fight the ticket in court and win. 

I've had guns pulled on my for being where I wasn't supposed to be.  These guys just happened to use mapping software that showed your driveway as a road, and they were checking signal at the end of it.

See, there's this thing that adventurous and curious people do called urban or rural exploring.  This is a hobby I'm into.  At least these guys did what they should have done, but they could have gone a step further by showing you the equipment.

In the end, they were probably looking for a quiet place to eat their lunch before they did more driving, and they didn't see any of your signs.