Fascinating article for sure. Mr. Hardberger may be a fine fellow but he is not a member of the California Bar Association according to their website.
He's there, under the name Florian Max Hardberger. I just double checked.
1
Sir, Did you really want your picture splattered all over the internet?
4
The accompanying photo indicates scarcity of work. "Hard times for Hardberger,"his new book, will change all that.
1
When will 'The Outlaw Ocean' series be published as an e-book? Astounding research on a very important topic. Congratulations, Ian Urbina, his collaborators, and the New York Times, on keeping investigative journalism alive!
13
If the crooks who stole the boat catch Hardberger trying to steal it back in a place like Haiti my guess is the law will not be involved and Hardberger will not be seen again. You couldn't pay me enough to do this in Haiti, Trinidad, Guinea or other lawless places.
10
A great NYT piece as usual, but some holes in the reporting. How many people does it take to "start" and sail away a small to medium sized ship? What would its officers and crew be doing while this is going on? The article is not clear on these points, seeming to suggest that the repo man can do it single-handed or with one helper, with no resistance or interference from the officers and crew.
23
Well, if you hunger for more details, check out Max's book "Seized".
This would be a great subject for a film screenplay. I could see Sean Bean starring as the repo man. Mix in a group of solid character actors to add local color and you'd have a highly entertaining movie. One caveat: Quentin Tarantino could not be involved. He's brilliant but the real attraction of a film like this isn't violence; it's the maneuverings of a first-rate con man and his cohorts.
7
While working as a volunteer to build a Great Lakes Schooner in Milwaukee, I met a man who was a repo man for autos. When he found out I worked in healthcare calling on large hospitals - he related his experiences of being beaten up, stabbed and shot once and the best hospitals he found to take care of his wounds. His experience matched mine.
While traveling in Thailand to the island of Ko Samui, I was told to take the fast ferry as the slow ferry was less expensive but was sometimes stopped by pirates - all they wanted was your money including travelers checks. Later while on Ko Samui, I saw a wooden Chinese style Junk that had been converted to diesel power tied up to a small pier. Being a good mechanic myself - asked the guys aboard if they would like some help. Their drive shaft had parted at the U Joint and I asked if they had a hammer to loosen some bolts. When one guy opened a large rusty box, I saw some AK-47's. I laughed - asked what they caught with their AK's - they laughed too and told me where the best fish restaurant was - turned out to be a home on stilts with a couple of tables - fish cooked over a kerosene burner - great fish place. But sadly Ko Samui now has an airport.
While traveling in Thailand to the island of Ko Samui, I was told to take the fast ferry as the slow ferry was less expensive but was sometimes stopped by pirates - all they wanted was your money including travelers checks. Later while on Ko Samui, I saw a wooden Chinese style Junk that had been converted to diesel power tied up to a small pier. Being a good mechanic myself - asked the guys aboard if they would like some help. Their drive shaft had parted at the U Joint and I asked if they had a hammer to loosen some bolts. When one guy opened a large rusty box, I saw some AK-47's. I laughed - asked what they caught with their AK's - they laughed too and told me where the best fish restaurant was - turned out to be a home on stilts with a couple of tables - fish cooked over a kerosene burner - great fish place. But sadly Ko Samui now has an airport.
6
So, you miss the days of piracy in your holidays before getting back to the safety of your home ? Happily for the Thai people, these days are slightly gone.
1
We were shaken down on Ko Samui by the company that rented us a motorbike. They claimed we damaged it. We had rented it through our supposedly four-star hotel so we appealed to the concierge who was obviously in cahoots with the crooks. When we told her to phone the manager at home -- they did this on a Sunday -- the motorbike guy disappeared and the concierge shrugged. When we went on a snorkel boat for the day, we were stranded (deserted by the snorkel boat) for 48 hours on a nearly deserted island and it wasn't until I claimed that I would die without my medications that the hotel made sure we were picked up. This trip was also arranged by this supposedly wonderful hotel. I caught murine typhus on that island and almost died two weeks later. Do not go to Ko Samui.
6
Through a combination of ignorance and stupidity, I wound up with an admiralty case early in my legal career. I only discovered that it was an admiralty case midway through the thing.
I vowed a great vow that I would never again go near one of those things. Admiralty law is a mystery, probably even to those who practice it. This story reinforces my earlier decision. Congratulations to those who do those repo things, but they can go on doing them without me.
I vowed a great vow that I would never again go near one of those things. Admiralty law is a mystery, probably even to those who practice it. This story reinforces my earlier decision. Congratulations to those who do those repo things, but they can go on doing them without me.
8
I've been in the auto finance industry for a long time, and have met many repossession agents. Although auto repossession is a little more prosaic than ships, some of the stories are truly amazing. If you want to meet some really savvy, funny and brave people, go to a repossession agent convention. What crazy way to make a living.
6
How do I apply?
1
Excellent reporting on an amazing line of work. But why would Hardberger and Cadet allow their photographs to be published? Wouldn't it better to maintain a low profile?
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Great article! Just one question: Is Mr. Hardberger married? He is the epitome of cool, and even has a great name!
WHAT A GREAT STORY!!!
Thanks so much for publishing it.
Thanks so much for publishing it.
2
Read "Seized" by Max Hardberger (2010.) Couldn't put it down!
1
This well written article illustrates the realties on the ground, or on the sea, where the rule of law is poorly established. It’s always been thus. Corrupt deal making and opportunistic thievery are ancient human characteristics that plague us from Wall Street to Moscow to Mogadishu, and yes, Washington. Good on the repo men for peaceably exploiting their opportunity, and on NYT for shining a light on this unfortunate human characteristic.
6
Please, sir. More. Please.
Maybe the US can hire these guys to go after the bankers that brought us the "financial crisis" - since our DOJ is toothless, and institutions like the SEC and the FED have clearly colluded by rewarding the perpetrators instead prosecuting them and sending the guilty ones to jail - many of whom are basking in the sun on their "boats" enjoying their loot!
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Freedom of the seas does not mean lawlessness -
1
But yet no country has attacked and destroyed the bases used by Somali pirates. They should be right up there with ISIS as targets for tactical nuclear weapons or Arc Light carpet bombing strikes. Pirates are the enemy of all sailors.
4
Great article, only in NYT. The degree of lawlessness outside of a small sphere is enlightening. Welcome to the real world 12 miles beyond our shoreline!
4
Have the repossessors ever repo'ed a cruise ship?
1
Wondering what the pay is for this dangerous work. One would assume a large fee or percentage for each repo, but the trailer park suggests otherwise. In any event, like everyone else here, this article is inspiring! Such ingenuity and guts. And each repo man seems to be 60+ in years! AARP should make this a feature story. I am quite sure several dozen script writers were just handed a great outline via this so-good article. This needs to be a book and/or streaming TV series. Thanks, NYT.
27
I wish for a series based on this article. I want to understand who the repo men benefit, what the beneficiaries' stories are, and why they even go into shipping or what not given the risks. I am also curious for a quantification of the risks. This is a story straight out of the 18th century. It's amazing that such blurry lines still define the high seas, and a reminder that the rule of law is so very contingent upon compliance and the fictions of civilisation that prop it up.
19
A very different and interesting piece of reporting !!!!
2
This article really sounds a little fantastic to me. Entertaining, but the reader must suspend some belief.
2
Who knew???? Thanks for great informative article Ian Urbina.
3
I wonder why it is that ship owners don't routinely conceal GPS tracking devices on their ships. If the repo men can do it after the fact, why don't the owners do it before the fact? For that matter, why don't mortgage companies require such devices as a condition of loaning the money? Such a device is small, and its location can be kept secret even from the crew.
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Multiple GPS devices.
4
Please change the word 'map' under the photo of Hardberger to 'chart'. Anyone who navigates knows the difference. Otherwise, riveting article.
24
You beat me to it.
3
This topic would make for a great film.
14
And when is the book coming out? Movie rights of course.
6
Just a reminder if need be, this excellent article is sixth in a series entitled THE OUTLAW OCEAN. The other articles make good reading too.
And speaking of maritime malefactors, the long arm of the law will soon catch up with China when the Tribunal in The Hague renders a decision in the Philippine arbitration in the summer of 2016. Stay tuned.
And speaking of maritime malefactors, the long arm of the law will soon catch up with China when the Tribunal in The Hague renders a decision in the Philippine arbitration in the summer of 2016. Stay tuned.
6
With six summers working on a fishing boat off of New Jersey, I always knew the rules of the sea were different. There is NO WAY I thought they were this different! Fabulous series and the obvious question is how much do these Repo Men make and/or can I start a reality series with any of these future stars!
14
"Spy" satellites' rhetoric says they can read license plates, rhetoric also has it that there are radar-satellites that find ships at sea.
The various "eye in the sky" agencies could, using the lists of lost, stolen, etc vessels as 'targets', run "counter espionage" and "counter terrorists" 'exercises' by tracking down some of these 'misplaced' vessels as if they were being used for some nefarious operation against a government.
Once pin-pointed, the exercise would be concluded and, as a service to the public, the location of the ship could be made available to interested parties.
The various "eye in the sky" agencies could, using the lists of lost, stolen, etc vessels as 'targets', run "counter espionage" and "counter terrorists" 'exercises' by tracking down some of these 'misplaced' vessels as if they were being used for some nefarious operation against a government.
Once pin-pointed, the exercise would be concluded and, as a service to the public, the location of the ship could be made available to interested parties.
6
How do you know this activity wasn't in play as you wrote your comment?
Dangerous work by the repossession crews. I hope they get paid a lot for the danger.
4
I doubt it. Mr. Hardberger appears to live in an RV park.
1
Look again. At least one of those "RV's" is a huge fifth wheel rig that probably costs more than most people make in a couple of years. Just moving it around would put a dent in your savings.
2
How do you know that he actually lives there? This guy is no dummy, or he'd be dead. Probably misdirection.
A while back there was a great show on the Smithsonian Channel about Mr. Hardberger, nice to see them getting some ink.
6
Good, interesting article, however one correction is in order.
A "blowtorch was not used to cut the anchor chain. An oxy-acetylene torch, aka, a "cutting torch" is the correct term for the tool that was used. A Wiki search for "blowtorch" will set the author straight.
A "blowtorch was not used to cut the anchor chain. An oxy-acetylene torch, aka, a "cutting torch" is the correct term for the tool that was used. A Wiki search for "blowtorch" will set the author straight.
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Very, very interesting story! Thanks for doing this one!
14
This sounded like an old Humphrey Bogart movie! I could imagine a contemporary version too...
Thanks for this reporting. I would have never known such things are going on in the world...
Thanks for this reporting. I would have never known such things are going on in the world...
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I am happy to echo the same sentiments. An excellent job of reporting that would otherwise have passed us by.
17
Very interesting. Thanks NYT!
16
These repo men seem like folk heros, taking back stolen goods or fighting corrupt officials. And doing so without weapons or violence? That's rather amazing given the rest of this series, it seems like 12 miles out is exactly where you can't count on anyone playing by anybody's rules except who has a bigger gun.
41
Okay, that's the job the guidance counselor never mentioned, that I was really seeking. How many of us are doing surgery, writing wills, building houses, all from slipshod high school counseling?
Witch doctors, prostitutes and welding?...it is the perfect job.
Witch doctors, prostitutes and welding?...it is the perfect job.
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The guidance counselors missed about 3,000 jobs that were out there when I was in high school. They seemed to think that everyone should be funneled into the well know, well accepted jobs when, in fact, the world was filled with different opportunities. Guidance counselors have ruined more lives, it seems likely, than drinking beer and driving at 80 miles an hour on backroads. Instead of opening minds to possibilities, many saw it as their job to shutdown dreams and aspirations and encourage people to give up even before they had started. What's more, they didn't look for the real potential in the person, they categorized by numbers and impressions, the latter based on economic and social standing.
I was lucky, in a way. I got into broadcasting on radio (later television) while still in high school. I did it through persistence by just attaching myself to the local rock station until they finally hired me (I moved to news rather quickly thereafter). That would not be possible now in most modest size towns because most of local radio has disappeared while stations are programmed remotely by satellite signals. There are over 7,000 radio stations in America and, time was, they all employed local staffs. Now, I station can be run with a few people, mainly in sales and management.
I was lucky, in a way. I got into broadcasting on radio (later television) while still in high school. I did it through persistence by just attaching myself to the local rock station until they finally hired me (I moved to news rather quickly thereafter). That would not be possible now in most modest size towns because most of local radio has disappeared while stations are programmed remotely by satellite signals. There are over 7,000 radio stations in America and, time was, they all employed local staffs. Now, I station can be run with a few people, mainly in sales and management.
17
This is such an awesome article, definitely the reason that I value my subscription to NYT. Thank you for writing it!
56
A riveting article, indeed. The value, as I read it is "who knew?" This article educates those who dig deeper into the 'news'. There seems to be an underground movement that we know so little about. Sex trafficking being a deeply disturbing issue. We so significantly need to bring these issues front and center. Investigative reporting takes time and effort. Unless we are made aware, how could we combat, or confront it?
39
The life of a repo man is always intense.
26
Awesome reference........
1
Sounds like fun.
9
This series should be required reading for all U.S. Navy JAG lawyers.
27
Very cool article! Thank you.
42
This makes me seriously question why I went into management consulting. Maritime Repo is real job....
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You could work for McKinsey by day and do repos at night.
10
Witch doctors don't work at night, it's a union thing.
31
leftcoast - that depends of which doctor you use,
2
This is the type of reporting that makes the NYT worth every penny. Godspeed to these swashbucklers of modern times!
95
"Airplane Repo Man" series on Discovery channel gives you a front row seat of repossessions as they happen - luxury yachts and exotic cars as well. It's the real deal, well worth checking out!