DISTRACTION BURGLARIES

An estimated 3,000 highly mobile criminals are earning to $40 million a year robbing and tricking elderly people out of cash, in many cases their life savings. Some 300,000 pensioners are falling victim “distraction burglaries” each year, say police. Three quarters of victims are women, an average age of 81. Nine out of ten victims live alone.
Many victims feel have been complicit in some ways letting the thieves trick their way their homes and keep quiet about losing money or property, believing relatives may prevent living on their own. Crimes range from simple distraction of the victim by one thief - possibly posing a policeman or gas or electricity worker, others burgle a house - to the extortion of large amounts of money poor quality work on houses and gardens.
The scale of distraction burglaries only emerged recently. Around 16,000 such offences are recorded in England and Wales each year. Thieves travel hundreds of miles in a day to find victims and to avoid police. They often operate as families, using children young as six to distract victims, for example kicking a ball into their garden. Profits thought to be considerable: one family of thieves was found have $3.5 million in assets, with sign of legitimate employment whatsoever.