Conman steals £700 from widow (From Evesham Journal)

Conman steals £700 from widow

2:00pm Friday 15th June 2012 in Evesham

AN elderly woman had £700 stolen from her home during a distraction burglary in Evesham.

The 90-year-old was at home in Bewdley Street when she was visited by a man claiming to be from the water board on Saturday.

He told the woman he had come to check the water.

He told her to go upstairs and turn on all the taps while he stayed in the living room. After about five minutes, the woman returned to the living room, where she was told that everything was fine before the man then left.

Following the man’s visit, it was discovered that an envelope containing cash had been stolen from a cupboard and money had been removed from the victim's purse.

The caller is described as a thin, tall, white man who was wearing some sort of uniform which had a logo on the left of the chest.

Detective Inspector Richard Rees of Worcester CID said: “Distraction burglaries like these – where offenders target the elderly and deceive them in order to get into their homes – are truly despicable crimes.

“We take them extremely seriously and we will do all we can to bring those responsible to justice.”

Police are also reminding people not to keep large amounts of money at home.

Anyone with information should call 03003 333000, quoting incident number 292S 100612.