Preying On Elderly People

I rang my mother yesterday to speak about Obama's inauguration, since I knew she would be watching it. Instead she told me what had happened on Sunday afternoon. When she got to the bit where she said "... and he had followed me into the bedroom and was standing behind me", that's when I stopped breathing and was sitting absolutely upright with my eyes in a fixed position on the wall in front of me.

She had fallen victim to one of the lowliest and most despicable of crimes. When the doorbell went she did not look through the "spy hole" or put the security chain on, she just opened the door. Outside stood a young man, whom she did not recognise, claiming to have locked himself out of his flat lower down in the building. Could he use her telephone to ring for an emergency locksmith? She let him in and sat down to read the newspaper while he seemingly made a phone call. The locksmith says he needs advance payment and I have no money on me, could you lend me some until Tuesday? I have very little money at home, but I'll check.

She walked slowly and unsteadily into her bedroom to get her purse, and he followed her in there! He even had the cool to ask her what she used to do for a living. Then he thanked her and added, as he left, that she would also get a cake on Tuesday. I work in a bakery.

He then proceeded to seek out new victims in the building. One lady, despite her husbands protests, handed over quite a large sum of money, but another one fended him off by saying she did not lend money to strangers.

How this fraudster / robber / thief / con man could pick out all the people between 75 and 93, I don't know, but the "rollator" (walking frame with wheels) inside the building entrance with my mother's name on it, might have been an obvious indicator.

My mother felt very embarrassed about the incident and made many excuses, some of them understandable. But it is a terrifying example of how vulnerable frail old people are. A brain that used to be quick and sharp is now slow and dull. We can only thank our lucky star that he was a cool and calm criminal and not a drugged up maniac. My mother is only a few bank notes and a couple of nights' sleep poorer, but a hard lesson richer.

Now it is up to the police to try and find this scumbag. My mother was in such a state that she could not give a description of him at all, only that he was young. Hopefully some of the other victims might. It all makes my blood boil!