Post by Talon Karrde on Jul 8, 2005 1:17:14 GMT -5
Okay, I know that this isn't exactly something that belongs in the Welcome to G-POP thread. We really don't have a section for this. Besides, we claim that we would like to impart knowledge as well as entertainment. Well, here's some knowledge:
After hearing about numerous people who have been victims of home invasions and flim-flams, I decided to post this thread as an informative device. Those of you who read this, PLEASE spread this information to family and friends. Not only will you help protect that person's valuables, but it could help save a life should the robbery go wrong. And please, don't think that this stuff just happens in high crime areas like New York City. This stuff is happening all over the country.
What You Need To Know:
1. Summer is the prime time for these creeps. Lots of folks are on vacation, making the neighborhood an easy target.
2. Flim-flam home invasions happen primarily in the daytime as most of your neighbors are likely to be at work or away from the home, having fun in the sun. The less witnesses around, the better.
3. These creeps usually "case" the neighborhood for quite some time before actually choosing houses or apartments to hit. In more layman-like terms, they've been watching the comings and goings in the neighborhood for quite some time, so they know the best times to pull these jobs.
4. The flim-flams always employee more than one person. There will be one person to distract the unsuspecting victim while the other(s) quickly rob the home.
5. The idea of a flim-flam home invasion is to get in and out quickly before anyone suspects anything. To that end the thieves take small, easily fencible objects like jewelry, money, etc. These invasions usually take no more than 10 or 15 minutes, so the thieves need to be certain they can carry the items out quickly and quietly.
6. Most of these robberies go unnoticed by the victim until the crooks are long gone.
7. Though they tend to target the elderly and the very young, anyone can be a victim.
Scenarios:
One particular scenario that happens during home invasions plays out like this:
A person rings your bell. You open the door. The person tells you that they are trying to contact your neighbor. They may even know your neighbor's name. Some of these crooks are daring enough to go through people's mail to gather information and determine what houses are prime locations. The individual will be very polite - this is to lull you into a false sense of security. They may ask for a drink of water or to use your phone. They may ask you if you have the neighbor's number. Anything to get you to walk inside your house and give the individual an opportunity to walk in behind you. They'll keep you as far away from the front door as possible. In the meantime, the co-conspirators will be robbing you blind. Often times, there is an agreed upon signal that the distractor uses to let the other perps know how long they have to rob the house. They will either talk continuously or make some other kind of noise that signals their exact location in the house, so that the folks committing the actual robbery will know what section of the house not to enter.
Sometimes, the person who comes to the door and attempts to distract you will pretend to be a utilities man (ConEd, Verizon, etc.) or a maintenance man (janitor, plumber, or other such contractor). Some even pose as delivery men for such organizations as UPS and FedEx.
Prevention:
Knowledge is power. Be aware of your surroundings. These people make a concerted effort not to stand out in a crowd, so try to be aware of who the neighbors are and their usual visitors. I'm not saying that you should go out there and take pictures and names of everyone who enters your area. Just be observant. Though these individuals do their best to be inconspicuous, certain actions may tip you off to a neighborhood "casing" artist.
DO NOT OPEN YOUR DOOR FOR SOMEONE YOU DON'T KNOW!!!! I can't stress this enough. Most times, if you only open the door, but don't allow the distractor entry into your home, the flim-flam opportunity is lost. But sometimes, the person you don't know at the front door is desperate and will shove his / her way inside. If you don't open the door, you don't give the individual an opportunity.
Be aware of impending deliveries and utilities work. If you are suspicious of someone claiming that they have arrived to work on a leak or a phone line, ask them what company they are from and would they mind if you called to confirm that they were actually sent by that firm. Whether or not the individual is a valid repair / utilities person, they may give you a hard time about this. Don't be bullied. The few crass comments you might have to endure will be well worth it so long as you remain safe.
If a person that you don't know calls you on the phone and requests personal information, don't give it to them. By personal information, I'm not just talking about name, address, social security number, etc. Some of these smartasses pretend they are making a delivery to your home and need to know what time you will be available to accept their parcel, flowers, etc. Or they may pretend to be conducting a survey and ask whether or not you live alone or how many apartments there are in the home, etc.
For those of you that live in houses, I know that some people like to leave the front or back door open with the screen door locked. If you are going to be in another part of the house where you won't easily view those doors, this is not a very good idea. A nice sharp knife or screwdriver will make easy work of that screen.
Some folks go for walks during the day as a part of their exercise routine. "Routine" is a very bad word in a cop's line of work. It means something that is usual...nothing new. If walks are part of your daily exercise, try to vary the routes you take and the times you take these walks. This will prevent you from falling into a routine that will be recognizable to anyone casing the area.
I'm not trying to scare anyone and I'm not trying to make anyone paranoid. I just want folks to be aware of their surroundings and know what to look for. Safety and knowledge go hand in hand. The more aware you are, the less chance someone will have of duping you into a situation like this.
After hearing about numerous people who have been victims of home invasions and flim-flams, I decided to post this thread as an informative device. Those of you who read this, PLEASE spread this information to family and friends. Not only will you help protect that person's valuables, but it could help save a life should the robbery go wrong. And please, don't think that this stuff just happens in high crime areas like New York City. This stuff is happening all over the country.
What You Need To Know:
1. Summer is the prime time for these creeps. Lots of folks are on vacation, making the neighborhood an easy target.
2. Flim-flam home invasions happen primarily in the daytime as most of your neighbors are likely to be at work or away from the home, having fun in the sun. The less witnesses around, the better.
3. These creeps usually "case" the neighborhood for quite some time before actually choosing houses or apartments to hit. In more layman-like terms, they've been watching the comings and goings in the neighborhood for quite some time, so they know the best times to pull these jobs.
4. The flim-flams always employee more than one person. There will be one person to distract the unsuspecting victim while the other(s) quickly rob the home.
5. The idea of a flim-flam home invasion is to get in and out quickly before anyone suspects anything. To that end the thieves take small, easily fencible objects like jewelry, money, etc. These invasions usually take no more than 10 or 15 minutes, so the thieves need to be certain they can carry the items out quickly and quietly.
6. Most of these robberies go unnoticed by the victim until the crooks are long gone.
7. Though they tend to target the elderly and the very young, anyone can be a victim.
Scenarios:
One particular scenario that happens during home invasions plays out like this:
A person rings your bell. You open the door. The person tells you that they are trying to contact your neighbor. They may even know your neighbor's name. Some of these crooks are daring enough to go through people's mail to gather information and determine what houses are prime locations. The individual will be very polite - this is to lull you into a false sense of security. They may ask for a drink of water or to use your phone. They may ask you if you have the neighbor's number. Anything to get you to walk inside your house and give the individual an opportunity to walk in behind you. They'll keep you as far away from the front door as possible. In the meantime, the co-conspirators will be robbing you blind. Often times, there is an agreed upon signal that the distractor uses to let the other perps know how long they have to rob the house. They will either talk continuously or make some other kind of noise that signals their exact location in the house, so that the folks committing the actual robbery will know what section of the house not to enter.
Sometimes, the person who comes to the door and attempts to distract you will pretend to be a utilities man (ConEd, Verizon, etc.) or a maintenance man (janitor, plumber, or other such contractor). Some even pose as delivery men for such organizations as UPS and FedEx.
Prevention:
Knowledge is power. Be aware of your surroundings. These people make a concerted effort not to stand out in a crowd, so try to be aware of who the neighbors are and their usual visitors. I'm not saying that you should go out there and take pictures and names of everyone who enters your area. Just be observant. Though these individuals do their best to be inconspicuous, certain actions may tip you off to a neighborhood "casing" artist.
DO NOT OPEN YOUR DOOR FOR SOMEONE YOU DON'T KNOW!!!! I can't stress this enough. Most times, if you only open the door, but don't allow the distractor entry into your home, the flim-flam opportunity is lost. But sometimes, the person you don't know at the front door is desperate and will shove his / her way inside. If you don't open the door, you don't give the individual an opportunity.
Be aware of impending deliveries and utilities work. If you are suspicious of someone claiming that they have arrived to work on a leak or a phone line, ask them what company they are from and would they mind if you called to confirm that they were actually sent by that firm. Whether or not the individual is a valid repair / utilities person, they may give you a hard time about this. Don't be bullied. The few crass comments you might have to endure will be well worth it so long as you remain safe.
If a person that you don't know calls you on the phone and requests personal information, don't give it to them. By personal information, I'm not just talking about name, address, social security number, etc. Some of these smartasses pretend they are making a delivery to your home and need to know what time you will be available to accept their parcel, flowers, etc. Or they may pretend to be conducting a survey and ask whether or not you live alone or how many apartments there are in the home, etc.
For those of you that live in houses, I know that some people like to leave the front or back door open with the screen door locked. If you are going to be in another part of the house where you won't easily view those doors, this is not a very good idea. A nice sharp knife or screwdriver will make easy work of that screen.
Some folks go for walks during the day as a part of their exercise routine. "Routine" is a very bad word in a cop's line of work. It means something that is usual...nothing new. If walks are part of your daily exercise, try to vary the routes you take and the times you take these walks. This will prevent you from falling into a routine that will be recognizable to anyone casing the area.
I'm not trying to scare anyone and I'm not trying to make anyone paranoid. I just want folks to be aware of their surroundings and know what to look for. Safety and knowledge go hand in hand. The more aware you are, the less chance someone will have of duping you into a situation like this.
