“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal

Standing in the checkout line at a home improvement store can get more interesting when you notice someone buying an “interesting” combination of goods. Yards and yards of rope, locks and duct tape, perhaps saws and garbage bags. Somehow, our brain starts to develop its own “fun '' little narratives.

Someone asked, “What is suspicious to own but not illegal?” and folks shared all the items that might make you feel like a true criminal. We also got in touch with the fabulously named TooGayToPayCash to learn why they decided to pose this question. So get comfortable as you read through these posts and be sure to upvote your favorites. If you have any examples of your own to share, feel free to comment below.

This post may include affiliate links.

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal I got pulled over late at night and when the cop shined his light into the cargo area of my station wagon the most visible objects were a shovel, rope, gloves, and the giant tarp-wrapped bundle of yard refuse I was bringing to the town compost in the morning. Surely there was at least one roll of duct tape or gorilla tape back there. At least he had a sense of humor about it when he strolled up to my window: "So we're off to bury the body under the cover of night, huh?"

sightlab Report

Final score:

196points

POST

JuJu 1 year ago

"Need help? We could go for some fries after we're done."

74points

View More Replies...

View more comments

Bored Panda got in touch with TooGayToPayCash who started the thread and they were kind enough to answer some of our questions. We wanted to know what prompted the initial inquiry. "I asked the question because I was on break at work with nothing to read so this question came to me."

"I think people engaged with the post so much because they were curious about what others would answer. When I first got off break and back to work, I only had about 12 comments on my post. I put on some videos on my phone to listen to while I worked and then I heard my phone dinging like crazy. I had to turn off the Reddit notifications because every comment would make my phone ding and interrupt the videos I was listening to, haha!"

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal I was at home Depot with a shopping cart full of PVC stuff, and this cop standing in line behind me says "building a potato cannon, huh?".

I actually *was* building a potato cannon.

Conch-Republic Report

Final score:

176points

POST

PeeledPotato 1 year ago

he seen it before...

60points

View More Replies...

View more comments

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal I lost the key to my crawlspace's padlock once, and went to the hardware store to buy bolt cutters, so I could replace it. I told the cashier why I was buying them (without being asked) and he was like "it's funny, everyone that buys bolt-cutters feels like they need to tell me why they are buying them. I think they just want me to know they aren't about to do something illegal."

FackleGracks , Tekton Report

Final score:

171points

POST

M O'Connell 1 year ago

If that was your only reason for buying bolt cutters you should have bought an angle grinder instead. It's a bit more versatile for future applications.

51points

View More Replies...

View more comments

Human minds love stories, but this is a double-edged sword (another thing that feels illegal to own,) as we start to construct narratives where they don’t even exist. Imagine the checkout section of your local grocery store. A person is getting flour, eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract. They must be baking something you think, despite the fact that you have no actual evidence.

This is an example of narrative fallacy, where we attribute cause and effect to separate events. Most fiction we consume follows certain narrative conventions. Indeed, a story where things simply “happen” with no rhyme or reason feels hollow, despite the fact that a lot can happen in our lives without our direct control or contribution.

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal It’s not illegal to go to Walmart and buy trash bags, a saw and cleaning supplies at 2am but I’ve seen enough true crime stuff to say it is mighty suspicious.

Nippon-Gakki , Caique Morais Report

Final score:

128points

POST

StrangePenguin 1 year ago

i wanna try this with my buddies to see reactions.

34points

View More Replies...

View more comments

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal Lock picks

They're seen as thieves tools but lock picking isn't uncommon for a hobby

Prestigious_Water336 , Ariel Report

Final score:

101points

POST

Firefly1617 1 year ago

I remember seeing something on here about a lock picking youtube guy who people enjoyed. Apparently whenever he managed under a minute people would roast the lock like crazy in the comments

55points

View More Replies...

View more comments

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal For me water. My neighbors had well water and would dry up. They asked if they could run a hose and put it in there well they would pay what was owed. Did this alot last summer no big deal they paid. Then they bought a big above ground pool. Filled it for them they always paid my part was always around the same so I wasn't bent out of shape. One day the water meter guy knocked with an officer wanting to know why I was using so much water. I explained showed the many hoses to reach my neighbors and they were there to help explain. They explained to me that much water usage was throwing a red flag. So they were sent out to investigate to make sure no marijuana growing was happening.

Regractoolstu , Valentin Petkov Report

Final score:

98points

POST

David Paterson 1 year ago

Not marijuana. Excessive water usage brings up a red flag for leaks in the water pipeline. Good thing it does, too. I had an underground water leak and didn't know it. They gave me 50% off the excess water bill.

59points

View More Replies...

View more comments

So fans of true crime (or fictional crime honestly,) will no doubt see a person buying, say, multiple padlocks and rope and think it’s suspicious. Even though this could simply be the administrator of multiple AirBnBs who also needed some rope and didn’t want to make two trips to the hardware store.

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal A closet grow tent for... tomatoes.

wolfgang187 , Karolina Kołodziejczak Report

Final score:

96points

POST

Bouche and Audi and Shyla, Oh My! 1 year ago

I love tomatoes.

24points

View More Replies...

View more comments

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal "(...)You need at least sixteen pigs to finish the job in one sitting, so be wary of any man who keeps a pig farm."

love-boobs-in-dm , Amber Kipp Report

Final score:

83points

POST

Nacho Man Sandy Ravage 1 year ago

It's part of a quote from the movie Snatch....."You need at least sixteen pigs to finish the job in one sitting, so be wary of any man who keeps a pig farm. They will go through a body that weighs 200 pounds in about eight minutes. That means that a single pig can consume two pounds of uncooked flesh every minute. Hence the expression, "as greedy as a pig"

68points

View More Replies...

View more comments

I had all my baby teeth saved in a little container at one point, as an adult. Just never threw them away. I got rid of them when I watched the season of Dexter where there is a serial k**ler who kept a collection of his victim's teeth and it made me think "yeah this could look weird."

HashDefTrueFalse Report

Final score:

76points

POST

BlindAres 1 year ago

You think?

19points

View More Replies...

View more comments

This is a common human problem, while, theoretically, we understand that we never have perfect information, psychologists believe that all too often we act as if our data is comprehensive. Since this is realistically never true, it’s easy to see just how often we might misanalyze an issue just because we see connections that don’t exist.

#10

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal Multiple pad locks on your basement door.

SprinklesMore8471 , Anita Jankovic Report

Final score:

75points

POST

BlindAres 1 year ago

There actually could be very valid safety reasons to padlock the basement. For example, dangerous tools/machinery that your children absolutely must stay away from until an appropriate age (think like table saw, massive table drill, lathe, massive power sander, etc...)

37points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#11

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal Loads of money in cash

Bataguki , Pixabay Report

Final score:

74points

POST

BlindAres 1 year ago

Be careful carrying huge amounts of cash around the USA. Unfortunately, property confiscation without a crime is an actual thing.

13points

View more comments

#12

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal I got stopped and questioned at airport security because of my jewellery scales and grinder.. until I showed them my coffee beans and Aeropress.

TripleDistance , Nathan Dumlao Report

Final score:

73points

POST

Buggy Dragon she/her 1 year ago

So that's how you sneak it past airport security

31points

View More Replies...

View more comments

Let’s face it, we often create false narratives about our own life stories, diminishing our faults, misattributing blame, and finding connections that don’t exist. This, naturally, raises the question, if we can’t actually make good conclusions about our own lives, how exactly do we make sweeping generalizations about others?

#13

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal An old beat up van with, "Free candy" painted on the side.

Tobutch , Wikicommons Report

Final score:

70points

POST

BlindAres 1 year ago

Don't do that around here. Very angry parents, at the very least, will ensure that van is completely inoperable.

39points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#14

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal A tank. Most states don't prohibit you owning one because it's just something you don't expect someone to have... but I'd find it really suspicious if one was parked in my neighbors driveway

mcknightrider , Kevin Schmid Report

Final score:

65points

POST

BlindAres 1 year ago

To be fair, with the right federal certifications, they are legal to own in my state. That said, they are completely illegal to drive on any public road/highway. Also of important note, they are not cheap. Someone owning a tank is wealthy. Buying it, maintaining it and fueling it is prohibitively expensive af

33points

SkyBlueandBlack 1 year ago

Or you can just steal one from the National Guard armory and go on a rampage around San Diego.

6points

Load More Replies...

Khall Khall 1 year ago

Something like $20,000 a month last time I looked it up. A bit north of there. Pretty crazy.

4points

PolymathNecromancer 1 year ago

For amusement, refer to "Tank" , a really fun movie from 1984... starring James Garner! Fun!

1point

KingCobraKai 1 year ago

You can buy an old tank for 30k. You can also get rubber treads and some municipalities will let you drive them on the street with the rubber treads.

1point

okpkpkp 12 months ago

And tank turret mechanics don't come cheap!

0points

Gregg Bender 1 year ago (edited)

That's because driving a tank on pavement destroys the pavement.

0points

Ace 1 year ago

I'd like to hope that any tank sold to civilians has had its armament(s) disabled, and/or that it would be completely impossible for the owner to obtain ammunition. Is that the case in the US?

0points

Catharina Geerts 1 year ago

If you can't drive in it on any public road (logical), why would you even want one? To be moving a little bit or standing still in your garden?

0points

N. 1 year ago

Nah I priced them out one time after a couple margaritas and you can buy one for like $20K.

0points

Steve Hall 1 year ago

I can imagine what they would do to a roadway.

0points

Flora Wolfe 1 year ago

If I remember right, in the USA, in general, cannons and blackpowder guns are considered not guns so you can own them and buy them without even a permit or anything. There are probably local laws and probably some other legal things to consider and I'm not a lawyer so there's that. I only know about this because I was curious about blackpowder cannons. It seems that so long as no property damage is done, not shot in city limits, and nobody is hurt, nothing will happen if you shoot one. Maybe noise complaint in some areas. However, if you fire a cannon into an occupied home, you can bet you will be spending time in jail or prison lol. I think black powder guns are special because it takes so long to reload them and they can be problematic to aim. Even if you're fast, it can take 20-30 seconds to reload a black powder rifle.

3points

Realm Ship 1 year ago (edited)

In the US, muzzleloading cannons (and replicas) constructed before 1898 are “antique firearms” and not considered a “destructive device” for the purpose of the ATF. (Local laws notwithstanding) If the weapon loads from the breech or uses fixed ammunition (i.e.105mm artillery), then it is fully subject to the GCA and NFA. Get that ATF tax stamp folks !

1point

Load More Replies...

Nichole Harris 1 year ago

Now I must look into whether my state forbids tanks

3points

Wilf 1 year ago

In the UK you can legally drive a tank on the roads so long as it has rubber track pads and the correct lights. Most cold-war era tanks were DESIGNED to drive on roads from the outset, so conversion is pretty minimal. And if it's more than 40 years old, it will be exempt from the annual safety inspection tests for road vehicles we have here.

2points

Remi (He/Him) 1 year ago

Doesn't Arnold Schwarzenegger have one? Iirc it's the same type he was trained to use in the army way back when

2points

okpkpkp 12 months ago

I was trained as a tank turret mechanic in the US Army but never worked a day as one. At "in-processing" I was asked if I wanted to work in the colonel's office or in the motor pool. I looked out at two feet of snow and my mind was made up.

1point

Ronnie Beaton 1 year ago

A friend of mine owns, and is restoring, an ex British Army Daimler Ferret scout car (sort of a mid point between an APC and a light tank). It sits out on the street outside his house and to date, the local hooligans have tried to torch it twice - emphasis on "tried".

1point

DeoManus Argentem 1 year ago

You can own fighter jets/bombers privately too. Arming them and affording them is a different story.

1point

Kat 1 year ago

Not necessarily a tank but we all remember the Killdozer. Built like a tank. (In the US)

1point

R.A. Haley 1 year ago

Seems to me either CHiPs or Adam-12 pulled over a tank in one episode. Had tires instead of treads and had lights, so perfectly street legal.

1point

Jake B 1 year ago

I used to have neighbors who had dozens of these things. I did live on an Army base though. Hahahahaha , ok I’ll show myself out.

1point

Mario Strada 1 year ago

I used to be that neighbor. I was in charge of several tracked vehicle, a nuclear missile launcher, a few missile (not nuclear warheads though) and a Leopard II tank bridge. I loved that thing. We couldn't use it much, as it took a whole team but it's quite the spectacle. I also floated a M113 across a river, with an old sergeant that kept telling me about 'that lieutenant that turtled his M113 a few years back".

3points

Load More Replies...

Tiffany Wilson 1 year ago

Unless your neighbor is Zoltan Bathory.

0points

Rostit. . 1 year ago

I almost bought one for $1500 about 20'years ago.

0points

Janet Graham 1 year ago

I had a tank! Ok, it was a miniature replica R/C model. But, it was 3' long and could fly through any terrain! It was so much fun to play with. Much better than my Husband's race car or my son's monster truck.

0points

Brian Droste 1 year ago

There is a movie called Tank with James Garner and Shirley Jones. He is a high ranking officer in the army where he owns a tank.

0points

BoredPossum 1 year ago

I think most countries on earth consider it illegal.

0points

Vivian 1 year ago

if you live in texas it's legal as long as you don't have the shells

0points

View More Replies...

View more comments

#15

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal A "ritual" dagger, as he described it. My one college roommate had one displayed and would occasionally need the room to himself. I opted for a place where I had my own room next year.

TheSexyMicrowave , Anis Rahman Report

Final score:

61points

POST

Ranger Kanootsen 1 year ago

I have one of these too. It's really pretty!

13points

View more comments

At the end of the day, one just has to make peace with the fact that most of our brains are building stories all the time. One just has to keep on living. If you want to read more people’s thoughts on things that don’t feel right or even legal but still are, check out Bored Panda’s two previous articles on the topic.

#16

“What Is Suspicious To Own But Not Illegal?”: 30 People Share What Makes Them Feel Criminal 3 phones