Beware of door-to-door scam
We’ve all probably seen at least once of these door-to-door scams. Last time it was about security systems, this time it seems its about BBC internships?
From a reader:
I just wanted to let you guys know that I am a resident in the Rosedale neighborhood who was just solicited by a clean cut young man claiming that he was selling children’s books to help fund an internship at the BBC in London. He said that even if I didn’t need the books myself, they could be donated to the Children’s Hospital. I turned him down (since I’m extremely broke, but that’s another story), and out of curiosity, I googled “door-to-door children’s book scam” and lo-and-behold this is a well known scam. I read posts online that describe the exact same story: Young person, who lives “right around the corner,” won an internship to the BBC in London, will donate the books to a children’s hospital.
Crazy. I could be wrong, but I doubt it.
As with all of these things, be careful!
This guy came to my house the other day too. I also turned him down, he told me he was living with his grandparents around the corner, and I had not seen him all summer and knew of no grandparents in the area he was talking about. Seemed sketchy.
Hi there-
My name is Katelyn Sherwood, I work for Channel 8 News. I just came across this posting and I was wondering if either of you who came in contact with this person would be interested in doing an interview. It can be anonymous if you’d like. You can email me at ksherwood@wric.com or call me at 804-356-0129.
Thanks!
Katelyn
This guy came up to me too on Newport with the same story.
Turned him down.You could tell something wasn’t right.
He started the conversation with “Hello Neighbor”
This kid came to my house on Fauquier Ave. Also, a different guy came the week before asking for money. He was an older, out of breath gentlemen asking for gas money to go visit his grandma in the hospital who he had just found on the floor of her home which was apparently around the corner… Plus, there were signs on my car of an attempted robbery this morning. And my neighbor said that his front mat had been flipped over as if someone was looking for a key… All within 2 weeks! This is a bit scary…
They come through our neighborhood every 2-3 years. I live near Mary Munford. It is always the same….they say they are the son of a “neighbor” a few streets down. Mine said that I probably had seen his mom walking their lab down Grove ave (rare day you don’t see someone walking down Grove with a lab). He was pushy. Said he was raising money for his baseball team at UVA to go to Japan. When I told him I really didn’t have the extra funds at that time, he said that couldn’t be true given where I lived. At the time I was folding my own laundry on the front step while the kids played. I pointed that out…”see? No maid…no money” He finally went on. I think he was selling books…same story. One neighbor did buy….but cancelled her check when we warned her. We called the police on the previous guy and all they could do was as for his ID. He technically wasn’t doing anything illegal (lying must be okay). He was, however, from another state. Very interesting. It is a scam that moves from area to area in Richmond in cycles. Please warn your neighbors.
Hello All,
It is wonderful to see a neighborhood watching out for each other. Please remember that it is ok to call our non-emergency number at 646-5100 to have a unit come to your area if this type of suspicious activity is occurring. It’s good to keep each other informed but it is even more important to call the police department while the person is still in the area so that we can make contact with him/her. Before you call please get a good description of the person. REMEMBER: What do they look like? What are they wearing? Are they with other people? Are they driving a vehicle? What did the vehicle look like? What is their direction of travel? This will assist us in locating the person to question their activities and obtain their information. If you are unsure of the person then don’t answer the door and call us. If you do answer the door don’t allow the person to see inside your house. This gives them a chance to see what kind of “goods” you have inside which is bad if this person has other criminal intentions. Ask for identification. If you do decide to donate, cash is safer than check or credit card. If it is a scam then at least they do not have your banking or credit card information. If you have any other questions that I may not have covered here then you are welcome to call 4th Precinct at 646-4105.
Thank you,
Ofc Burlingham
Well, they got us. My kind husband was conned into “donating money for books” to the Children’s Hospital. We stopped payment on the check so we managed to avoid losing the money, but I wanted to get the word out to neighbors that there are a few additional things to watch out for. A couple of run-ins with this sort of thing and bit of research into this company (Enterprise Sales) reveals a few standard tactics:
* asking to come in for a second to get out of the heat, rain, etc.
* asking for water. Among the less honest of the sales people, this gives an opportunity to grab mail, a wallet, etc while the victim goes to the kitchen. Having encountered this sort of sales crew several times, after saying no to the pitch, if I feel that the person is genuinely thirsty (and many look on the verge of collapse), I’ll take them water after they have moved away from the house, locking the door behind me.
*asking if you have kids to prolong the pitch
*claiming to be a neighbor, saying they have the recommendation of a neighbor (they always ask your name first so they can use it at the next house), or saying they are the visiting grandchild of a neighbor
Consider taking these steps if you encounter this sort of pitch:
First, give the sales people the phone number at this website http://www.parentwatch.org/about.html While some of these kids are con artists, many are stuck far from home in hotels making little to no money from their sales. They get “trained” and dropped off in strange neighborhoods for hours often with no food or water. They are encouraged to live on “credit” to the company, where meals, alcohol, etc is taken out of future earnings, leaving many perpetually in debt and desperate. It’s a situation in which many young people are abused and scared. Some just want a way out.
Second, call the neighborhood police office on Chamberlayne immediately ((804)646-4105) so they can question the sales people and determine if they are legit.