First unit - safety concerns - is this the norm?

So my first unit was great, could more than triple my money if I only sold the furniture, and there was also a lot of "smaller" things that I could sell for a lot more...home décor, clothing, shoes, jewelry, etc. 
Problem is that I have been warned by the storage facility manager not to sell it locally, as the owner "ran with a rough crowd" and they are no longer allowed on their property. Apparently, a few days after the auction, the locker owner confronted the manager, and the next day sent her boyfriend to do the same. They won't even contact them for their personal belongings, which I have an entire PALLET full of!
When I tried to sell the items on FB groups, Craigslist, etc, one of the owner's family members or friends will respond trying to purchase the items. 
My husband has concerns sending me to a "job" where I HAVE to be armed to be safe. 
My question is, how frequently are you confronted by the locker owners?  How many times have you run into "unsafe" situations? I mean, what are the chances that my first unit would be like this?  I purchased two others, and haven't had a problem.   

My question is, how frequently are you confronted by the locker owners?  How many times have you run into "unsafe" situations? I mean, what are the chances that my first unit would be like this?

Never
Zero
6 billion to 1
You also might want to read the thread at the link I posted below, since it is similar to your situation. (If clicking the link doesn't work, you'll have to cut and paste it.)
http://onlinestorageauctions.com/forum/general-auction-talk/original-owner-of-contents'-relative-contacting-me/

Only once have I ever encountered someone who owned a locker I bought. It's sort of a strange story and made me feel uneasy, but I tell it anyway. There was a guy who came into my warehouse a few times and would comment on items, saying things like "My mom had that exact same..." or "I used to have this exact same..." 

I didn't really think much of it, and just took it as him reminiscing about similar items. However, one night when I was working alone in my warehouse, he showed up at my back loading entrance and wanted to talk. Being a friendly guy, I let him in and worked on pricing new inventory while he walked around, looking at things for sale, and talking to me about his life.

Turns out, he went through a nasty divorce. His mom had passed as well, and he put all of their belongings into storage. Since he had nowhere to live after losing his home, he had been homeless for a few months and was doing odd jobs in the area.

At this point in the conversation I knew what was going on. I had his stuff, and believe me, my mind was racing. Was this guy going to get angry, or doing something crazy. I couldn't tell. He was just so calm about the whole thing that it was unnerving.

Eventually, he had picked out a few items that he was interested in buying when he could get the money, so I set them aside for him (which I normally would never do). He never flat out told me that I had his stuff, but I knew it, and he knew I knew it. In the end, he turned out to be a great guy and would come in from time to time, just to talk. I would usually give him things for free to help him out, like a sleeping bag, and a tent, etc.

Who knows, maybe the whole thing was an act, or maybe not, but I trust my gut instinct. I knew that he liked coming in to see things from his former life, and to carry on good conversation. I think he also took comfort in knowing that I wasn't some sleazy business dude, but a genuine person who was just trying to support his own family in hard times.

I don't know if this story will make you feel better, or worse, but know that these storage units did belong to people in your area. If I were in your shoes, I would wait at least a month to start listing items from that unit. By then, they should be over it and not searching craigslist daily to hopefully get their stuff back. If these people do show up, just be calm and let them know it's not personal, you are just doing your job. Tell them you are just an employee so they don't assume you personally bought their stuff. If they make any threats, call the police and file a restraining order.

Please keep us updated!