Scams carried out against elderly people are increasingly frequent in the Como area: the local police of the Municipality of Como, the neighborhood watch association and the carabinieri respond to the growing phenomenon with three video tutorials created to raise awareness among citizens of the methods of fraud more widespread.
The first video, already available on YouTube, is entitled “The gas leak” and depicts a situation in which unfortunately several Como citizens have found themselves in recent months. A couple of fake gas technicians ring the doorbell asking to be allowed into the house following a report of a gas leak. While one of the two accomplices pretends to get to work, accompanied by the homeowner, the other sneaks into the house to steal cash, jewels and other precious objects.
Many different scenarios
But the scam involving fake gas technicians is only one of the possible plans put in place by thieves to deceive citizens, especially elderly ones: in fact, two other contents will be published in the next few days, one entitled “Grandpa ATM”, on April 26, and one titled “The Phone Call” on May 3. In the videos the roles of the “victims” of the scams are played by professional actors, while the local police officers actually belong to the Como Command.
Meter replacement work was actually underway in the town
In the pages of the newspaper and on the website in recent months we have reported several cases of scams, some successful, others foiled. In March, for example, an 85-year-old couple was deceived by a fake water technician who, under the pretense of checking water pollution in the tap pipes, managed to steal at least five thousand euros from the two elderly people, including their pension, as well as precious and gold objects preserved for several generations. The well-informed false technician took advantage of the fact that in the town, in Albese con Cassano, meter replacement work was actually underway in those days.
The coin trick
Another trick used in Olgiate is the so-called “coin trick”: the thief deceives the victim by warning him that money has fallen out, then steals the bag and runs away. In Olgiate it happened to a 72-year-old lady who saw her bag with its entire contents taken away for what she naively mistook for a courtesy. The technique used follows a well-conceived modus operandi: scammers lurk near a supermarket , or in the car parks of large commercial establishments and with extreme cunning they implement a plan, now tested, with the aim of stealing wallets, money and other valuables from unsuspecting victims.
