Looting Party

7/28/2019 Looting Party

1/8

LOOTING PARTY

This is a short story written by Survival bill that I thought was an excellent

example of what to expect from looters after a SHTF event and in giving ideas

in how to protect yourselves from possible infiltartion and attack.

I am the leader of a band of 8-to-12 looters

I am the leader of a band of 8-to-12 looters. I have some basic military

training. We move from place to place like locusts devouring everything in

our path. My group is armed with light weapons and can develop and follow

simple plans of attack. We take what we want by force of arms. We prefernone of our victims survive because that could cause problems for us in the

future.

It has been six months since the grid went down. You and the other five

members of your party have settled into what may be a long grinding

existence. The every day tasks of growing and gathering have now become

routine. The news from the outside is extremely limited but you don't really

miss it much. Life is simple but physically demanding.

Although things may seem stable you will need to keep your team focused

and alert. This is your first and most important layer of defense. You should

hold an immediate reaction drill once per week. Keep things simple. Practice

a specific response to such threats as injury, fire, attack and evacuation.

Despite the challenges you must maintain contact with those around you

such as neighbors for vital clues that trouble is brewing. Regular monitoring

the radio will be critical in providing an early warning of trouble. You may be

able to safely interview refugees with risking your party. Keep in mind the

information you get from them may not always be reliable.

While you have been farming I have been learning the best tactics to employ

to seize your property and your goods. I have been refining them since we hit

the road right after the lights went out. I have conducted eight "hits" so far

and have been successful seven times. Here are some of my "lessons


2/8

learned".

Intelligence gathering and target selection is critical to my success. Targets

include those who have large quantities of fuel, food and other valuable

supplies. My posse is constantly questioning anyone and everyone we

contact searching for this our next victim. Anyone who has ever had

knowledge, even second hand, of your preparations is someone of interest to

me. I may approach them directly or indirectly. If anyone knows something I

will find out about it. Who seems well-fed? Who still has transportation? Who

has lights? Who was prepared? Where are they exactly? Somebody talks,

either in person or on the radio. They always do.

We search for victims night and day. During the day we are listening for the

sounds of machinery, cars, tractors, gunfire or generators. Day or night

without a lot of wind those sounds can carry for miles. At night I look for any

sort of light. Even a small flash indicates somebody with electricity and that

means a rich target. I always have somebody listing to the scanner for any

news, leads or insecure chatter.

Operational Security is an important concept for your entire group to

understand and maintain. If somebody outside your circle doesn't have a real

need to know about your plans, preparations or procedures then they

shouldn't know period. Develop a cover story and live it like was a bulletproof

vest. It is no less important to your protection and survival. During an event

you need to blend in with the surrounding environment. Carefully observe

noise (such as generators and other engines) and light discipline especially at

night. If you need to test fire weapons do it in one sequence to avoid a

prolonged noise signature.

Once I find and target you reconnaissance of your retreat is my next step.

Only a fool would try to rush in and try to overwhelm a group of "survivalists".

We had a bad experience with that during our second hit. Now we spend atleast a day or two trying to size up a large opportunity and the best way to

take it down. I will observe retreat activity from a nearby-concealed position. I

will get an idea of your numbers, weapons, routines and so much more by

careful surreptitious observation. If your group seems alert, I will try and

trigger a false alarm with a dog or child to watch your reaction to a threat.

That helps me know how you respond, where you are strong and how to


3/8

attack. I may also obtain a topographical map of the area to identify likely

avenues of approach and potential escapes routes you will try to use. I may

coerce your neighbors into uncovering a weak spot or access point or other

important intelligence. I also have a Bearcat handheld scanner. I will be

listening for any insecure chatter from your radios.

Regular patrols at irregular intervals focused on likely observation points and

avenues of approach could keep me at bay. You could put down sand or other

soft soil in key choke points as a way of "recording" if anyone has recently

traveled through the land. Dogs, with their advanced sense of hearing and

smell are able to detect and alert you to intruders well in advance of any

human. Motion sensing IR video cameras as a part of a security plan could

play a part in your layered defense as long as you have power. A 24 hour

manned observation point equipped with high quality optical tools is a must.

It should be fortified and if possible concealed. It should have a weaponcapable of reaching to the edges of your vision. Seismic intrusion devices,

night vision and thermal imaging are phenomenal force multiplying tools.

They can give you critical intelligence and warning. You should use them if

you have them. Understand they are not fool proof and I can often neutralize

them if I know you have them.

These tools and techniques provide you reaction time. Time to plan your

response and time to execute that plan. Recognize that a "defender" is

always at a disadvantage. By definition a defender will be reacting to myattack. Modern warfare has emphasized the ability of the attacker to operate

faster than opponents can react. This can be explained by the OODA loop.

Below are the four steps of the classic OODA loop. These are the steps a

defender goes through when under attack.

1. Observing or noticing the attack.

2. Orient to the direction, method and type of attack.

3. Deciding what the appropriate response will be.

4. Acting on that decision.

As an attacker I will try and operate at a pace faster than you as a defender

can adjust to. I will change my direction, pace, timing and method to force


4/8

you to continue to process through the OODA loop. This creates confusion

and wastes your precious reaction time. As a defender you will need to

disrupt or reset your attackers timing with a counter-attack. When you are

successful you become the attacker. Your defensive plans should utilize and

exploit this concept. Here are a few scenarios:

1. Snipe & Siege

I will begin the attack when I can engage at least half of your party's military

age personnel in one coordinated effort. I will infiltrate my team into

concealed positions around your retreat within 50 to 75 yards. I will target

any identified leadership with the first volley. Two thirds of my people will be

engaging personnel. The other group will target communications antennas,

surveillance cameras and any visible lighting assets. I want your group

unable to see, communicate or call for help. The members of my band will

each fire two magazines in the initial exchange. Two thirds of my group will

change to new concealed positions and wait. One third will fall back into an

ambush of the most likely avenue of escape. We will stay concealed and wait

until you come out to attend to your wounded and dead. We repeat the

attack as necessary until any resistance is crushed.

Ensure you adjust the landscape around your retreat so that I don't have

anyplace offering cover or concealment within 100 yards of your residence.

You can create decorative masonry walls that can be used to offer cover for

personnel close to your residence. Fighting positions can be built now and

used as raised planting beds and then excavated for use in the future. These

can be extended or reinforced after any significant event. These structures or

other measures such as trenching must be sited carefully to avoid allowing

them to be used effectively by an attacker if they are overrun.

2. Trojan Horse

For one hit we used an old UPS truck. We forced a refugee to drive it to the

retreat gate. We concealed half our group inside the truck. The truck was

hardened on the inside with some sandbags around the edges. The other half

of our group formed an ambush concealed inside the tree line along the

driveway. We killed the driver to make it look good and had one person run


5/8

away. Those preppers almost waited us out. After nearly three hours they all

walked slowly down the driveway. They were bunched up in a group intent on

checking out the truck and driver. It was like shooting fish in a barrel.

They could have worked together as group to sweep the area 360 degrees

around the truck and they would have surely found us. A dog would have also

alerted the residents to our presence. They could have taken measures to

eliminate the vegetation offering us concealment on the road near the gate.

They could have used CS gas or something similar to "deny" any suspicious

areas. Lastly they could have done a "reconnaissance by fire". Shooting into

likely hiding spots, including the truck, trying to evoke a response. They

should have established an over watch position with the majority of their

group. This over watch group would have provided visual security and an

immediate response if there were an attack. They were not expecting any

additional threats. They didn't consider that there might be additional dangerlurking nearby aside from the truck and they died.

3. Kidnap & Surrender

A few weeks ago we surprised and captured a couple of women out tending a

garden. It was totally by chance. We were traveling through a very rural area

on our way to another town when somebody heard a tractor backfire. We

immediately stopped and I sent a small team to recon the noise. They

bumped into a small party tending a field at the edge of their retreat. They

seized two women and immediately dragged them back to our vehicles. We

began negotiations by sending a finger from each one back to the retreat

under a white flag. The rest was easy.

This didn't need to happen. Better noise discipline would have kept us from

discovering their retreat. Some simple boundary fencing or tangle foot could

have delayed us. The women should have been armed and aware of such a

threat. If they has established an over watch for the garden they could haveengaged us before we took our hostages or at least alerted the others that

there was a problem. They also could have had a quick reaction SOP

developed prior to this incident. That Quick Reaction (QR) force could have

followed the kidnappers back to our vehicles and set up an ambush of their

own. Rural retreat security is a full time job. If you snooze you may lose

everything.


6/8

4. Fire and Maneuver

I don't like this option but sometimes the prize is just too tempting. Wetypically infiltrate quietly at night to prearranged start points. We begin our

attack just before dawn when your senses are dulled by a long night watch or

from sleep. Based on our reconnaissance we divided your retreat into

positions or zones that need specific attention. We prepare for battle by using

an air rifle to target any lights or cameras. Our first priority is to engage any

LP/OP site and destroy or degrade them as much as possible. I split my forces

into two supporting groups. One group keeps the target position under

constant fire. The other group also fires and maneuvers, closing on the target

and destroying it with gunfire or improvised weapons. Many times these

positions only have one occupant and the task is relatively easy. Often these

positions are easy to spot and are too far from each other to provide any

effective mutual support. We will work from one position to the next. In the

darkness and confusion most of the defenders are disoriented and

ineffective. They fall like dominos. We have also used motorcycles to

negotiate obstacles and speed through cuts in the perimeter fence. Then

throw Molotov Cocktails into any defensive position as they roar past. If you

fall back into your residence we will set up a siege. If we can maneuver close

enough, perhaps by using a distraction, we will pump concentrated

insecticide into your building or we may introduce LP gas from a portable

tank into the house and ignite it with tracer fire.

If there was enough warning time from your OP you could execute a pre-

planned response. Your planned response should be simple, easy to

understand and execute. Half your group occupies your fighting positions,

two to a position. The rest of your party establishes an over watch and

concentrate its fire at the enemies trying to fix your positions. If you had

more than enough prepared positions the enemy might not know where to

attack. It would also provide more flexibility in your defense based on the

direction of attack. I would use Night Vision if available or illumination from

flares or lights as a last resort. Rats hate light.

Usually people keep main access points blocked from high-speed approach.

Likely avenues of approach should also be blocked or choked and kept under

observation. Remember though what keeps me out keeps you in. Typically

the common techniques of parking vehicles in roadways will only delay my


7/8

approach not stop it altogether. An ordinary 12-gauge shotgun, shooting

slugs, can stop most types of non-military vehicles at close range.

Don't forget the threat of fire or other non-traditional weapons in your

defensive plans.

You could create the illusion of a "dead end" for your main access road by

positioning a burned out trailer home or a couple of burned out cars at the

false "end" of the road. Concealing the fact that the road actually continues

to your residence.

Lastly, develop a plan to evacuate and evade capture. When faced with asignificantly superior force it may be the only viable option. This should

include simple, reliable communications or signals such as three blasts on a

dog whistle. Your fighting positions and barriers need to be constructed to

allow coordinated withdrawal in an emergency. You should establish a rally

point and time limit to assemble. I believe this should be a priority in your

practice drills. During a real emergency you may be able to rally, rearm and

plan your own version of the "snipe and siege" to retake your retreat.

Key messages:

Your rural retreat defense can be visualized as a set of concentric rings:

Location - Location - Location: High and remote are best

OPSEC - Think of it as a form of armor or shield: Practice it and protect it.

Observation Post / Listening Post: Your first best chance to counter attack

Gates / Fences / other barriers: May slow me down. Might keep you in.

Fighting positions: Must provide mutual support and allow for evacuation.

Residence: Last line. Don't become trapped

People, Planning and Practice


8/8

Remember:

An aggressive and unexpected counter strike can win the battle.

Stay alert for multiple threats or diversionary tactics.

Criminals excel at feigning weakness to lower your guard.

Don't underestimate me.

Documents

Looting Party