Hi, we’re the Flanagan family from Newbury, Massachusetts. We’re a hardworking family who values hands-on projects, quality time together and buildings things from the ground up.

When our home was broken into, the thieves didn’t just steal property- they stole the result of our labor and the time we had poured into restoring & maintaining what mattered to us.

Our family was the victim of a targeted and highly coordinated theft involving multiple pieces of high-value, non-street-legal sporting equipment—some of which still carried active loans. The theft occurred on June 22, 2025, while our family was home sleeping upstairs. The break-in and larceny were carried out quietly and deliberately during a narrow overnight window.

We immediately filed a police report and submitted a claim to our homeowner’s insurance company. Unfortunately, our claim was denied under a standard exclusion—even though the stolen items were private-use, personal property, and the break-in occurred while the home was occupied.

We’ve formally appealed the denial, but we cannot afford to wait for a resolution. In the meantime, we’ve uncovered clear signs this was a premeditated and possibly coordinated crime, and we are taking action.

What We’ve Discovered So Far

May 28, 2025: While no one was home, our Ring system experienced an unexplained 7-hour blackout during which it stopped recording entirely. The system later reactivated without any input from anyone in our household. The first motion captured after the outage was an Amazon delivery.

At the time, we had no reason to question this gap. It was only after the June 22 theft, during a detailed account review, that we discovered multiple unauthorized login attempts tied to May 28, as well as another unauthorized login on June 13 by an unknown user.

We contacted Ring Support on June 24, and followed up with two written letters—but no one informed us of a broader issue. On July 19, we discovered through social media that many Ring users nationwide experienced similar issues on May 28, pointing to a potential system-wide outage or vulnerability that was never disclosed to us directly.

Given that Ring is owned by Amazon, and that the reactivation of our camera—while we were not home—coincided precisely with an Amazon delivery, this sequence of events raises reasonable concern that our system may have been accessed, disabled, or surveilled remotely in the weeks leading up to the break-in. We are not drawing conclusions—but these details are now part of our investigation.

Additional Investigative Information

Despite multiple outreach attempts, Ring has not responded, and we remain without an explanation.

Most critically, surveillance footage from police cameras confirms that our stolen, high-value, non-street-legal sporting equipment was visibly loaded into the back of a white Ford F-150, which was captured on camera during the timeframe of the break-in.

Police are actively investigating and requesting additional footage or sightings of this vehicle, seen between 3:50–4:30 AM on June 22 near Withington Street, Morgan Avenue, Montgomery Park, and Route 1A.

Additionally, a publicly posted video appears to show one of the stolen items in Springfield, MA. This sighting is being treated as a strong lead, and we are pursuing all available avenues to investigate further.

We are also investigating the possibility that a tracking device or GPS tag may have been used to monitor our movements or location activity prior to the theft.

Scope and Purpose of This Fundraiser

How Your Support Helps

Funds from this campaign will go toward:

● Home security upgrades

● Forensic evaluation of device and network activity

● Legal or documentation-related costs

● Travel or follow-up expenses related to ongoing leads

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This Is About More Than Property

We are working closely with law enforcement and appreciate their efforts.

The stolen equipment wasn’t just expensive—it was deeply personal.

It represented years of hard work, restoration, and hands-on projects—especially for our kids.

The emotional impact of this incident has been profound.

We’re doing everything we can to restore our sense of security and pursue the truth—not just for ourselves, but to help prevent this from happening to someone else.

How You Can Help

If you’re able to donate, share, or offer support, we are deeply grateful.

Every contribution helps us take action and move forward.

Prefer to contribute outside of GoFundMe? Feel free to message us—we’re happy to provide alternate options.

Disclaimer – Ongoing Investigation

This is an active and ongoing investigation, and we are unable to disclose all details publicly or speculate at this time. If you have questions or information, please message us privately.

Please know: we are doing everything in our power to leave no stone unturned.

Thank you for reading our story

With Gratitude

Brian & Emily and Our Hardworking Kids

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Sensitive Content Warning

This clip shows a real-time home break-in while our family was asleep upstairs. Viewer discretion is advised.

For legal and safety reasons, we are only sharing a limited segment of the full surveillance footage.

Watch short Security Video Here