Distraction Burglaries... Please read this.... It could happen to you..

[Oscar Namechange]

Approx a month ago, a man and woman called at my house In the middle of the day Unexpectantly. My husband was alone at home and because he did not know them, he kept them outside the house to speak to them. They claimed they wanted to come In and talk to him about the Foxes In our area and said they were from the Council. My husband refused to let them In and said he would phone the Council himself.

When I got home, I was furious because I feed the foxes on my own property and fearing the foxes were about to be culled, I Rang around. To cut a very long story short, I rang the Council and they knew nothing of this visit. I scolded the husband for not Insisting on ID on the door and taking a note of their names or department. I then rang the Enviromental Health and again they knew nothing of this visit and assured me that the Council and the EH had never had any complaints about foxes In my area so they would not be sending any-one out. Then I rang every elected Councillor In my Constituancy... Again, they knew nothing of It. Then I rang the Fox agencies and even the Fox Deterent Agency... Nothing.

On friday, again In the middle of the day, and again when my husband was alone at home, two men called un-expectantly and claimed they were from the Electricity board and said they were calling on all properties over 30 years old to test electrical sockets. My husband did ask for ID and they showed him something. He still refused to let them In but they asked If they could make an appointment for today. They put us down for 2 pm this afternoon but when I got home friday, I was very suspicious.

This morning, My husband phoned the Electricity board and they knew nothing of It. They added that they do not even carry out any such check or would go about It In this manner.

We Immediately phoned the police and Indeed, there has apparently been a spate of 'Distraction Burglaries In our Immediate area.

Just thought I warn the Brits here.

[Raven]

Now just how long does it take to sit down and come up with something like this!! Now that is dedicated thievery!:-3

[Oscar Namechange]

Raven;1292386 wrote: Now just how long does it take to sit down and come up with something like this!! Now that is dedicated thievery!:-3
My local police have even launched this website for distraction Burglaries.



Avon and Somerset Constabulary - Dan the Distraction Burglar

We have been aware of this kind of distraction Burglary from the meetings I attend locally but just thought It would never happen to me !!!

As, the police told us... They look at an area before striking. Ours Is predominatly elderly and we are In a secluded private lane. Any-one can easily print up convincing ID badges and clip boards on a PC and printer. If the victem Is elderly, they are often more likely to be fooled even by the simplist of fake ID. You can also buy a bright yellow high vis jacket worn by service engineers In any High Street Hardware store.

[along-for-the-ride]

It is indeed a shame. But we do need to be wary of strangers. Criminals are getting desperate.

Beware of wolves in sheep clothing.

[minks]

Good to know no matter what country we live in.

I deal with everybody who comes to my door unsolicited the same. They stand outside on my front step and we chat. I do not need them to be eyeballing my house contents. Besides which my dog likely would bite them. It is a great reason to keep solicitors outside. "for their own safety."

[G#Gill]

They pick on the elderly and vulnerable, because there will be less resistance, less suspicion, more trusting.......................................................

..............................bastards........................cowards..........

..............scum of the earth !

In our locality, two guys tried it with an elderly man. This old boy was a widower and lived on his own. However, he realised there was something not quite right and questioned them. They made a grab for him, but he punched one to the floor, then went after the other guy, hit him and knocked him out! He then called the police. Those two idiots were arrested, and if I remember rightly they got jailed. The old boy. nearly 80 years old, used to be middleweight (I think) boxing champion in the army ! Those pratts picked the wrong 'old boy' !!!!

[Oscar Namechange]

G#Gill;1292491 wrote: They pick on the elderly and vulnerable, because there will be less resistance, less suspicion, more trusting.......................................................

..............................bastards........................cowards..........

..............scum of the earth !

In our locality, two guys tried it with an elderly man. This old boy was a widower and lived on his own. However, he realised there was something not quite right and questioned them. They made a grab for him, but he punched one to the floor, then went after the other guy, hit him and knocked him out! He then called the police. Those two idiots were arrested, and if I remember rightly they got jailed. The old boy. nearly 80 years old, used to be middleweight (I think) boxing champion in the army ! Those pratts picked the wrong 'old boy' !!!!


What Bastards.

I'm now wondering If they had picked on our lane because they had checked out the occupants. Pete Is a lot older than myself and the only other house In the lane, next door to us, he is paralysed from the chest down confined to an electric wheelchair. I'm also suspicious as to why It happened both times that I'm known to be out of the house. These things run through your mind.

The Police have Just phoned Us this evening and are treating It seriousley. their advice to any-one is:

If a stranger calls Unexpectantly, Get your house keys, go outside the house, locking your door behind you. Ask for ID and If you are suspicious, tell them to wait while you go back Into the house to phone their company, locking the door behind you. If they are genuine, they will not mind you doing this. If the company has no record of them, Immediately phone the police.

[G#Gill]

minks;1292488 wrote: Good to know no matter what country we live in.

I deal with everybody who comes to my door unsolicited the same. They stand outside on my front step and we chat. I do not need them to be eyeballing my house contents. Besides which my dog likely would bite them. It is a great reason to keep solicitors outside. "for their own safety."


That is one of the reasons I have a German Shepherd. He may be getting on a bit but his bite is just as lethal as it ever was. Have you seen a G.S. with a beef bone?

By the way, in the UK at any rate, do not put up a sign 'beware of the dog', if it bites somebody whether they are intruders or not, you could be arrested for owning a dangerous dog. A notice such as that indicates that you know your dog could be dangerous, according to a police officer I was speaking to a while ago. So I have a notice on my door " I love ......... (then a picture of a German Shepherd)". This way it warns people that you could have a big police-type dog on the premises, and it is an innocent notice. :p

[minks]

G#Gill;1292495 wrote: That is one of the reasons I have a German Shepherd. He may be getting on a bit but his bite is just as lethal as it ever was. Have you seen a G.S. with a beef bone?

By the way, in the UK at any rate, do not put up a sign 'beware of the dog', if it bites somebody whether they are intruders or not, you could be arrested for owning a dangerous dog. A notice such as that indicates that you know your dog could be dangerous, according to a police officer I was speaking to a while ago. So I have a notice on my door " I love ......... (then a picture of a German Shepherd)". This way it warns people that you could have a big police-type dog on the premises, and it is an innocent notice. :p


we have been told the same thing ... by putting up a beware of dog sign you are apparently acknowledging your dog is going to attack.... ok

Don't worry about the dog he is a ***** cat..... SNAP! Yes officer I know my dog is "protective"

:-5 Ugh.

Aw Gill German Shepherds are lovely and loyal and yes dangerous if need be.

[Oscar Namechange]

minks;1292497 wrote: we have been told the same thing ... by putting up a beware of dog sign you are apparently acknowledging your dog is going to attack.... ok

Don't worry about the dog he is a ***** cat..... SNAP! Yes officer I know my dog is "protective"

:-5 Ugh.

Aw Gill German Shepherds are lovely and loyal and yes dangerous if need be.
I've got 'Beware of The dog' signs all over my gate and fencing and they are staying there.

I have one on my front door that Is a picture of my Male Dog and It says 'I can make the gate in 3 seconds... Can You?'

[G#Gill]

oscar;1292492 wrote: What Bastards.

I'm now wondering If they had picked on our lane because they had checked out the occupants. Pete Is a lot older than myself and the only other house In the lane, next door to us, he is paralysed from the chest down confined to an electric wheelchair. I'm also suspicious as to why It happened both times that I'm known to be out of the house. These things run through your mind.

The Police have Just phoned Us this evening and are treating It seriousley. their advice to any-one is:

If a stranger calls Unexpectantly, Get your house keys, go outside the house, locking your door behind you. Ask for ID and If you are suspicious, tell them to wait while you go back Into the house to phone their company, locking the door behind you. If they are genuine, they will not mind you doing this. If the company has no record of them, Immediately phone the police.


There is a problem with that, Oscar, if they are up to robbery then they would just grab you, take the keys and have free access ! I think it would always be wiser to have a security chain fixed on the inside of the door which you would immediately engage before opening the door a crack, to a stranger. If they are legitimate, they will appreciate your caution, and not mind. If they are evil bastards, they would not be able to gain access to your house straight away because of the chain across the opened crack stopping the door from opening properly. If they put their arm through that crack to try to release the chain from its slider, just ram the door hard against their arm, they'll pull their arm out of the way, yelling, then you slam the door closed, lock it, then dial the police.

I always make sure that all my ground floor windows and doors are locked all the time. I have got one of those security chains and when I am by myself in the house, I always put the chain on its slider before I open the door to any caller, even though I have a dirty great big German Shepherd dog shadowing me ! You can't trust anybody these days.

This is the sort of chain I mean. Although mine doesn't hook onto the door handle like this one. It's totally independent of the door handle. Mine has a metal fitment with a slot in it that the chain slides along when the door is opened (it only allows about 3" of opening). The door has to be closed to get the chain out of the slot, so the door can be opened fully.





I can see why this particular security chain would not be very efficient. All the thief would need to do is pull the door closed and turn the handle down, the chain loop would slip off the handle ! Not a very clever idea that! Tut !

[minks]

oscar;1292498 wrote: I've got 'Beware of The dog' signs all over my gate and fencing and they are staying there.

I have one on my front door that Is a picture of my Male Dog and It says 'I can make the gate in 3 seconds... Can You?'


Oh that is a good sign Oscar.

I used to have a sign on my door, it said

"we shoot every third salesman, the second one just left":yh_rotfl

But I did not like the boy scouts and girl guide kids seeing that so removed it

Maybe I should just put a sign up that says, "yes the barking dog you see over there in the window does want to eat your liver." hahahaha

[Oscar Namechange]

G#Gill;1292513 wrote: There is a problem with that, Oscar, if they are up to robbery then they would just grab you, take the keys and have free access ! I think it would always be wiser to have a security chain fixed on the inside of the door which you would immediately engage before opening the door a crack, to a stranger. If they are legitimate, they will appreciate your caution, and not mind. If they are evil bastards, they would not be able to gain access to your house straight away because of the chain across the opened crack stopping the door from opening properly. If they put their arm through that crack to try to release the chain from its slider, just ram the door hard against their arm, they'll pull their arm out of the way, yelling, then you slam the door closed, lock it, then dial the police.

I always make sure that all my ground floor windows and doors are locked all the time. I have got one of those security chains and when I am by myself in the house, I always put the chain on its slider before I open the door to any caller, even though I have a dirty great big German Shepherd dog shadowing me ! You can't trust anybody these days.

This is the sort of chain I mean. Although mine doesn't hook onto the door handle like this one. It's totally independent of the door handle. Mine has a metal fitment with a slot in it that the chain slides along when the door is opened (it only allows about 3" of opening). The door has to be closed to get the chain out of the slot, so the door can be opened fully.





I can see why this particular security chain would not be very efficient. All the thief would need to do is pull the door closed and turn the handle down, the chain loop would slip off the handle ! Not a very clever idea that! Tut ! Gill... That is excellent advice Indeed.

My fault, I did not point out that the Police Officer who gave me this advice was advising me personally as he knows the sort of front door I have.

Where this good advice falls for me, is that I have Maximum security Door In the way of locking mechanism but It Is UPVC frame and the rest is all glass. Attached to the Front Door is a massive Side panal, again, In a UPVC frame but all Glass. The huge size of the Glass Side Panal means that the glass Is toughened and has to be supported with a Transon. If we attempted to drill into any part of those frames to attach a door chain, It would weaken the entire structure. That's why he advised me about taking the keys and locking the door behind me.

I have a huge lump of wood just Inside my front door and one outside the door. As I have told many an Officer who has called at my home, The lumps of wood are the sticks I throw for my dog In the field :sneaky::sneaky: Of course they know the truth :wah: They know I'd use It as well.

[K.Snyder]

The OP actually sounds frightening.

This is the type of stuff that encourages me to get a big mean looking dog!

I said "looking" not "acting":yh_thinkalthough I do want a dog that will be able to bite as hard as it's bark!

[Oscar Namechange]

minks;1292685 wrote: Oh that is a good sign Oscar.

I used to have a sign on my door, it said

"we shoot every third salesman, the second one just left":yh_rotfl

But I did not like the boy scouts and girl guide kids seeing that so removed it

Maybe I should just put a sign up that says, "yes the barking dog you see over there in the window does want to eat your liver." hahahaha
Love It :wah:

People are so dumb :-5

Ask any-one this:

You approach a house. There are signs all around the fencing and three on the gate saying 'Beware of the Dog'. On the gate there Is also a home-made sign saying 'Do not open the Gate, Dogs loose In garden and one of them bites.

There Is a mailbox outside of the house by the gate and there Is a digital Doorbell next to It. This would tell any normal person that the resident does not want you to risk walking up their path. But No, My Kelleneazy Salesman, ignored all of this. Not only did he open the gate to stroll up the Path but he left the gate wide open as small children were coming out of school. I had a rescue dog at the time and had he not of stopped off to bite the salesman on route, he would have been out of that gate at the children. My husband Ignoring the salesmans screams, made a lunge and managed to get to the gate and get It shut before the dog got out.

The guy was threatening us with all sorts and I just said 'Fine.. I'll call the Police and see what they say'. When an officer did call out later that day, he actually laughed and said 'Geeze.. How much warning did the guy Ignore... Tough luck on him'.

[minks]

K.Snyder;1292711 wrote: The OP actually sounds frightening.

This is the type of stuff that encourages me to get a big mean looking dog!

I said "looking" not "acting":yh_thinkalthough I do want a dog that will be able to bite as hard as it's bark!


yes a killer french poodle would be perfect :yh_rotfl

[K.Snyder]

minks;1292804 wrote: yes a killer french poodle would be perfect :yh_rotfl


Well, that would be better than a rabid Chihuahua!!!!! :yh_wink

:yh_kiss

[el guapo]

oscar;1292492 wrote: What Bastards.

I'm now wondering If they had picked on our lane because they had checked out the occupants. Pete Is a lot older than myself and the only other house In the lane, next door to us, he is paralysed from the chest down confined to an electric wheelchair. I'm also suspicious as to why It happened both times that I'm known to be out of the house. These things run through your mind.

The Police have Just phoned Us this evening and are treating It seriousley. their advice to any-one is:

If a stranger calls Unexpectantly, Get your house keys, go outside the house, locking your door behind you. Ask for ID and If you are suspicious, tell them to wait while you go back Into the house to phone their company, locking the door behind you. If they are genuine, they will not mind you doing this. If the company has no record of them, Immediately phone the police.


glad they didnt get in and tell peter he doesnt look it

[Oscar Namechange]

el guapo;1292970 wrote: glad they didnt get in and tell peter he doesnt look it
awwwwwwww thank you. xxxx :-4:-4