Scams Against Citizens

Imposter Burglary

  • Suspect(s) will pretend to be legitimate worker(s) and approach senior citizen home owners at their residences with a seemingly legitimate ruse. Their real purpose is to divert the homeowner while their accomplices search for currency and jewelry.
  • Some of the more frequently used ploys by the suspects include: Indicating they are from the local gas/electric company, posing as a water department employee to inspect the water pipes and/or to replace the water meter, requesting to use the bathroom, posing as a cable TV company employee, claiming to be roofing/gutter repair and paving company contractors, posing as city inspector(s), surveyor(s), and tree trimmer(s), and impersonating government personnel from a social service agency.
  • Many of the impostor burglars now have bogus photo identification cards, legitimate looking work uniforms, and vehicles made to look like government or company vehicles. They may also communicate with hand-held radios or cell phones.
  • Women and children may also accompany male suspects and participate in the diversion of the homeowner.
  • The suspects may offer a partial rebate by giving the victim a $100 bill and a request for change. This allows the suspect(s) to determine where the victim keeps their money. The victim is distracted either inside the house by turning a light switch on and off, knocking on water pipes, etc.; or showing the victim damage outside of the home, determining property lines, etc. Once the victim is distracted, the unseen suspects enter the home and remove the money and jewelry. In some cases, the suspects have also removed safes from the home.

Violence

While many of these offenses are only distraction theft/burglaries, an increasing pattern of violence is emerging. Most of the violence occurs when the victim becomes aware of the distraction and tries to prevent the criminals from taking his/her valuables. In these cases, the victim is overpowered with force by the suspects; the offense then turns into an assault and robbery. In the last few years, an increasing number of offenders have begun using violence in lieu of distraction as their method of operation.

Home Repair Fraud

Nationwide, billions of dollars are lost every year due to home repair frauds targeted against senior citizens; however, anyone - not just senior citizens - can be the victim of a home repair fraud. According to the Illinois Attorney General's Office, construction and home repair frauds were the leading complaints in 1998 with 2,395 compared to 1999 which had 2,141 complaints filed.

A common scenario includes:

  • Senior citizens are approached by individuals offering to perform various home repair jobs such as asphalt paving, driveway repair, roof or gutter repair, chimney cleaning, tree trimming, etc.
  • The perpetrators claim to have materials left over from other jobs; can offer significant discounts; or they were sent by a close relative or friend.
  • Once the job is completed, however, the cost of the work is several times more than the first quote; payment is demanded in cash. To ensure payment in cash, the con artist may accompany the victim to the bank.
  • If the opportunity is available, these home repair con artists may also commit a burglary.

The work is usually shoddy (inferior) and/or incomplete. Other types of repair/inspection frauds can involve furnaces, chimneys, water heaters, water pressure, electrical wiring, window repair, and cement repair.

Home Invasion Burglary

  • The burglary team usually consists of two to four people. In many cases, a male will drive three females to the targeted area. The male driver either cruises the neighborhood or parks away from the targeted area.
  • The female suspects will roam the neighborhood looking to approach senior citizens while working in their yards.
  • One suspect will distract the homeowner by asking any number of questions. The second suspect will then go into the unlocked residence and steal cash and/or jewelry.
  • Suspects will sometimes knock or ring the doorbell. The suspects will pretend to be ill; ask for a drink of water; ask if the house is for sale; ask about previous owner(s); pretend to be looking for a lost pet; or any excuse to get inside the home.
  • If confronted by the homeowner, the burglary team will use any type of simple distraction, e.g., need a drink of water; use of phone or bathroom; looking for a lost pet or rental property; and sale of tablecloths, etc.
  • Theft of cash, jewelry, or silver occurs with no ransacking. Several days or weeks can pass before the homeowner realizes she/he has been the victim of a burglary. The suspects are careful to put everything back in its place.

Travel Trailer Sale Scam

  • Initially, the suspect purchases a low grade of travel trailer(s) direct from a manufacturer.
  • The suspect sells the travel trailer to the victim using documents which misrepresent the value of the trailer.
  • The suspect fails to register the trailer, which is still titled to the manufacturer so it can be sold as "new."

Handkerchief Switch Scam

  • The victim is approached by the first suspect who pretends to be from out of the country and is unfamiliar with United States banking procedures, claiming to have a large sum of money.
  • After the second suspect arrives, the victim is persuaded to make a bank withdrawal to show the first suspect how the bank works.
  • The victim is induced to believe control of all the money will be retained by the victim; right after, the suspects will indicate they need to leave for a short time.
  • All of the money is then placed into an envelope, but a switch occurs before the victim takes control of the envelope.
  • Afterward, the victim opens the envelope which only contains cut-up paper.

Landscaping Scams

  • The suspect approaches the property owner/victim and offers to prune trees.
  • The property owner/victim is charged per limb; it is not per tree as initially implied by the suspect.
  • The cuttings are "balled" with soil and quickly sold to the property owner/victim as seedlings.

Badge Come Back Scam

  • The Badge Come Back Scam can be used after almost any criminal activity, but it is primarily seen after the Handkerchief Switch and Pigeon Drop Scams.
  • The intended victim of the Handkerchief Switch is approached by the suspect who is posing as a "police officer".
  • The victim is told the "police" are aware of the crime, and a corrupt bank official was involved.
  • The victim is then persuaded to make a bank withdrawal believing it will help catch the corrupt official and recover the lost money.
  • In many cases, the victim fails to report the initial scam to the real police.
  • If you are a victim of this type of scam, REMEMBER to report both scams to the police.

Motor Vehicle Repair and Sales Scams

  • The suspect does a poor quality of curb side repairs to the vehicle, and a high payment is extorted from the victim.
  • The suspect sells the used vehicle after doing an odometer "rollback".
  • The suspect sells the victim a vehicle which has an "open title."

Fortune Telling - Monetary Gain

Many high school students and young adults visit fortune tellers for entertainment, however, most high school students do not possess the financial holdings a criminal fortune teller is looking for. Working professionals and senior citizens are more opportune targets. Criminal fortune tellers know most individual problems concern health, wealth, or love. According to experienced investigators, initial contact with some victims is made at fairs, carnivals, newspaper ads, and hand flyers. If the victim is in a vulnerable emotional state, the criminal fortune teller attempts to work a curse removal scheme or bujo (boo-joo). The following is a fictional example of how a bujo progresses.

Jane Doe is a middle-aged, well educated, professional. Her husband of 25 years dies; she has recently been diagnosed with a serious illness. Every day on her way home from the office, Jane passes "Mrs. XYZ's Psychic Readings." Jane decides to stop one afternoon for the $5 special. After an initial tarot (pronounced ta-roe) card reading or maybe a little palm reading, the "psychic" informs Jane there is indeed some "dark evil" surrounding her life, which needs to be removed.

After several visits, Jane is told the "dark evil" surrounding her life is being caused by her late husband's insurance money. The "psychic" rubs an egg around Jane's body to absorb some of the evil. When the egg is cracked open, an ugly, disgusting mass (usually made up of hair, bread, and maybe a small plastic devil's head) is discovered inside the egg.

The "psychic" tells Jane she must bury the insurance money in the graveyard. Jane is understandably reluctant to perform such an act. The "psychic," pretending to be a compassionate person, volunteers to bury the money for Jane (the psychic buries the money right into her own pocket) .

Jane's curse removal therapy continues for the next year. After several thousand dollars of her money has been "cleansed," the "psychic" suddenly disappears, probably to another state. The bujo is now complete.

How do criminal fortune tellers convince their customers of their supernatural ability to predict the future? They rely on a technique called "cold reading." By using a series of generalized statements, vague enough to fit anyone, the victim is convinced the statements are specific to their life. When a "cold reader" combines a gimmick such as tarot cards, tea leaves, a crystal ball, or palm reading with generalized personality statements, the illusion of psychic ability is created.

Theft by deception is illegal. It is the responsibility of law enforcement to protect those who cannot protect themselves. Aggressive prosecution and public education are two key factors in reducing potential victims from these con artists.

Don't let embarrassment prevent you from reporting criminal activity. The con artist relies on their victims being reluctant to admit they have been scammed

If you have been a victim or know someone who has been victimized by a criminal fortune teller, please report the incident to your nearest law enforcement agency.

These scams are just a few of the numerous frauds perpetrated annually. Each year thousands of victims lose millions of dollars from these scams. The deception list continues to grow each year, making scams, their victims, and the exact dollar amount almost impossible to track. Anyone can become the victim. People of all ages, educational levels, and incomes fall victim to scams daily.

Gathering and sharing of information is vital, especially when you are dealing with these transient, criminal suspects, and the thefts, scams, and frauds they perpetrate.