My uncle confessed that he used to live a life of crime

He used to rent hotels under a false identity and then steal everything in the room that wasn't nailed down.

He stayed in my parent's house for a time- his old closet was packed with clothes hangars, white towels, soap and a few coffee makers. He had a whole book case full of bibles as well. That was the obvious stuff.

He would also tear into the walls and strip out the copper, take the light bulbs out of the fixtures, detach and haul off the toilet, and would pry up and cut the carpets into sections and carry them off as well. Microwaves- sometimes he would take them, other times he would disassemble them and take the components out. Bedframes would be unscrewed or hacksawed apart and the mattresses and blankets hauled off.

Well yes, eventually he did get caught trying to bring a mattress down the stairs of this one hotel in town.