# A scam, or just really weird people?



## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

Someone help me make sense of this...

I'm at home, sitting at my desk typing, when I hear a key in my front door. Nobody else has the key to my house. There is no hidden spare under the mat. So I'm pretty sure whoever it is isn't actually going to be able to open the door. I tiptoe to the door, and listen to them fumble with keys and try to unlock both the regular and deadbolt lock for well over two minutes while talking loudly, a man and a woman. If I were a six-foot, 200-pound guy I might have opened the door and yelled at them, but as it is I'm not about to open the door... I just yelled through the door what the heck they thought they were doing. The keys are removed, and then the woman says brightly _oh, maybe we have the wrong house_ and the man says _we're with the cleaning company, we're supposed to do a job here today_.

Now, I could believe that one of my neighbors around the cul-de-sac had hired a cleaning company, and maybe provided them with keys. And the house numbers aren't all easily visible from the street, though mine is right over my front door in six-inch letters (but you can't see the door from the street).

So I tell them through the door that this is house number 7625 (in case they didn't look two feet up) and that I did _not_ call a cleaning company. (Whether I _should_ or not shall not be discussed here.) And they mumble among themselves and leave.

Being curious, I go to the side window from which I can see my driveway, partly to be sure they leave and partly to see which cleaning company it is that hires clueless people who can try a key for so long without thinking that maybe they should check on the house number.

Turns out the car is a plain white car with no company name on it. Nor does the departing couple have any kind of cleaning paraphernalia in hand, though I guess it's possible that they wanted to check out the house first to see what would be needed before getting it all out of the car.

I watch them back out of my driveway, expecting them to park at the curb and go to one of the other houses in the little circle, but instead they speed up the street and leave.

Did they just give up? Neither one has a cell phone so they have to drive back to HQ to ask for the right house number?

Or some kind of nefarious scheme? But why target me -- I'm not predictably out all day, unlike many of my neighbors, and I don't have much high-tech equipment or other valuables around the house. And in a cul-de-sac like this, every house is in direct and close view of five others, so it's not a good place to conduct illegal business.

It struck me as unusual that both of them were blond, and sounded born-and-raised American. I'm not intending any slurs, but in the DC area, for at least 15 years every single person I've ever seen working for a cleaning company, whether residential or commercial, has been Hispanic. So this makes me less inclined to believe these two were legit.

And his words "with *the* cleaning company" seemed weird. Wouldn't you name the company that had sent you?

I don't know what to make of this. A really stupid burglary attempt? A really clueless cleaning company? An attempted scam of some sort?

So I thought I'd vent about it here, and see whether anyone has any thoughts on what might have been going on.


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## Tip10 (Apr 16, 2009)

Call the non-emergency number for the local constabulary and report it, along with whatever observations you can remember.  
If there's something strange occurring they a) might know if it, b) might appreciate the info you provide, c) might provide a bit better drive through coverage for the near term looking for suspicious folks or d) blow you off completely.  At any rate you'll have done your part to help try and protect your neighborhood. 

If it turns out that the folks are indeed legitimate then they'll a) likely not be too concerned about providing the local constables with whatever it takes to prove that fact and b) perhaps learn some better business practices....


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## Jen (Oct 28, 2008)

Wow, that would totally freak me out.  Did you happen to catch the plates?  I'd have the police look into that!  My first impression is wondering this - if they actually had keys to the house, that would mean that they had been there before - presumably several times - right?  I wouldn't give my keys to a cleaning service unless I totally trusted them.  Therefore, they should have known what house to go to!  
Sounds fishy to me!


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

Tip 10, good idea, I'll do that  --  in fact maybe I should just print out my post and hand it to them, since it contains all my observations.   

Jen, unfortunately I can't see license plates from the side window...  but I did wonder about the key thing.  I've never hired a cleaning company for my home, so I don't know how it works, but I was thinking that if I called a company and asked for their services, how exactly would they get the key?  They'd have to wait for the first visit to get it from me, right?  Or I guess I could mail it to them, but wouldn't you want to be there the first time to explain what you wanted done?  And if the company sent different people each time, that would mean your keys would just be sitting in that office most of the time.    Don't know about you, but I couldn't sleep at night if I thought that any of a dozen different people unknown to me had access to my keys.    (I guess a similar scenario could happen if a cleaning company were hired by a real estate agency to clean an empty house in between owners.  It would be a one-time visit, and the real estate agency would have provided the keys.  But my house is noticeably occupied, and there are none currently for sale in this street.)


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## Chad Winters (Oct 28, 2008)

You're nicer than I am....I probably would have said "You have the wrong house and I have a shotgun!!"  
or maybe "Down Cujo!!"

ooh especially if I lived in DC. I'm not brave enough to live in DC


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## RavenclawPrefect (May 4, 2009)

I would totally call and report it as suspicious.  There are too many things not quite right about the situation.  "The cleaning company"  Really?  I can tell you in the DC area (as you know) there are a load of them.  I have seen at least 4 different companies that are employed in my neighborhood, based on either uniform or magnet on the door of the car.  Even the smaller houses, there are usually 3 people in each team.  I guess that could vary depending on the size of the home being cleaned. 

My next door neighbors employ a cleaning service so I can tell you what I see when they arrive.

3 ladies, all Hispanic and all in uniform.  They each have a handful of cleaning supplies in buckets and carry cases and a key to the house.  There is nothing on the car that identifies it as a cleaning service but the name of the company is on their uniform.   I have seen similar things with the dog walkers.  They usually have a sign on their car and a key...as well as bags, leash and treats.  

It is just a fishy situation.  I am glad your doors were locked and you didn't open the door.


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## The Hooded Claw (Oct 12, 2009)

Susan in VA said:


> Or some kind of nefarious scheme? But why target me -- I'm not predictably out all day, unlike many of my neighbors, and I don't have much high-tech equipment or other valuables around the house. And in a cul-de-sac like this, every house is in direct and close view of five others, so it's not a good place to conduct illegal business.


My hunch is that they were burglars hoping to get into an empty house and rob it, but there's no way to know. Certainly some thieves target a house because they have information about valuable stuff inside, but others just break into a house on the assumption there's something good in there. If you see the car and people in your neighborhood again, I'd call 911 and explain the situation.


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## rla1996 (Oct 28, 2008)

Also if you live in a neighborhood that has an asscoation or a watch those people should also be alerted to the suspicious behavior that you just witnessed so that they can be on the lookout for the same.


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## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

Call the authorities immediately!  Very suspicious.  
deb


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## telracs (Jul 12, 2009)

Neither a scam or weird people, it was an attempted break in.  Call the cops ASAP.  And be glad that they didn't manage to break your lock like the low-life who broke into my house a few years ago.


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## intinst (Dec 23, 2008)

Look up "Bump Keys"  or "Lock Bumping" on Wikipedia or Google. Those people were trying to break into your house. If you had not been home, they probably would have. You need to contact your local police immediately. 

Experienced thieves can open a door in seconds, it sounds like you were lucky to have two newcomers to the burglary profession. Those keys work on Deadbolts as well.


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## mlewis78 (Apr 19, 2009)

Sounds like an attempted burglary.  They didn't expect you to be home.  My apartment was burglarized twice (1983-4) while I was at work.  They expect people to be gone during the day.


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## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

I think you should ask for an officer to come and talk to you face to face.  It will put a police car in your neighborhood, and the policeman will understand that it was a scary situation.  
deb


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

I'm with the "call the police" people.  Ask them to please come out and check for fingerprints. . . . .mind you, it's a pain to clean that powder off, but then they'll have 'em in case it happens to someone else.  Also give as good a description as you can of the car, and them.  And ask the officers who respond if there have been similar cases.


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## Silver (Dec 30, 2008)

100% agree with everyone here who said break-in attempt. Also, the fact that they pulled into your driveway, walked right up to your door, and stood there talking while trying to open the lock is so "burglar". They didn't expect you to be home, but in case anyone should be watching they were acting completely normally. Skulking says _suspicious_, walking right up says _I belong here_. Thank goodness they simply left when they heard your voice. And I would still be shaking. The fact that you sat down and wrote to the KB folks tells me you are way, way braver than I am.


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## The Hooded Claw (Oct 12, 2009)

The Hooded Claw said:


> My hunch is that they were burglars hoping to get into an empty house and rob it, but there's no way to know. Certainly some thieves target a house because they have information about valuable stuff inside, but others just break into a house on the assumption there's something good in there. If you see the car and people in your neighborhood again, I'd call 911 and explain the situation.


After thinking further about this, since you do have a description of people and at least some info on car, I think I would contact the police and give them the description, even if you don't see them again as I mentioned above. The description you can give may or may not be useful to the police, but I'd suggest letting THEM decide that rather than you or I trying to figure it out. If the police have a non-emergency number you can call, you could use that by preference. But if you can't find that with a little searching, you may still want to call 911, they can refer you to the right place.


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## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

Silver said:


> The fact that you sat down and wrote to the KB folks tells me you are *way, way braver than I am*.



Absolutely agree on this point. I'd still be shaking in my shoes.
deb


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## Brenda Carroll (May 21, 2009)

Wow, guess I'm a little late getting in on this, but according your OP you said one of them said "we're with the cleaning company, we're supposed to do a job here today" that's a dead giveaway that they knew you would be listening that should have been your cue to open the door and say something like "Oh, you've got the wrong house."  Whereupon, they would have perpetrated whatever crime that they had come to commit.  You were right not to open the door, Missy.  I have found that racking a round in a pump shotgun usually sends would-be crooks scurrying for cover.  Everyone recognizes that sound for some reason.  Maybe, if you don't like guns, you could just record that sound and play it for unwanted visitors?   Really, Miss Susan, do be careful.  You never know what is afoot.


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## Sporadic (May 1, 2009)

If I had to guess, I would go with attempted burglary via lock bumping

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lock_bumping






They would come in, take the valuables and relock the door on the way out. No damage and nobody the wiser (until you wanted to use whatever it is they would have stolen)


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## Anju  (Nov 8, 2008)

I agree with all of the above!  Please keep us posted!


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## rho (Feb 12, 2009)

I would call the cops and have them come out to do a police report and give them what you wrote here along with any notes you think to add - there are a LOT more burglaries and cars being stolen along with wayyy more shoplifting here in my small little town - so I would imagine it is the same in your area. Sometimes the police will also be sure to do a few more drive  through in your area for awhile after something like this which can't be a bad thing


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

A quick post to say thank you all for being so supportive and giving me lots of good advice and suggestions.  I will post in the morning with news on what the police said and all, but I have a midnight deadline for an online class and I'm only taking a five-minute KB break....  have to rush...  thanks everyone!


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## Meredith Sinclair (May 21, 2009)

Ann in Arlington said:


> I'm with the "call the police" people. Ask them to please come out and check for fingerprints. . . . .mind you, it's a pain to clean that powder off, but then they'll have 'em in case it happens to someone else. Also give as good a description as you can of the car, and them. And ask the officers who respond if there have been similar cases.


Your police department is better than ours... A few years back my place was broken into and two


Spoiler



handguns


 were stolen with extra


Spoiler



clips


 etc. and the police did not show up for thirteen hours... and then simply wrote out a report and said to "kiss my stuff good-bye" no fingerprinting or anything... said they would never find the stuff _or _ the people who took it. I was so freaked knowing that my


Spoiler



weapons


 could be responsible for any number of... well you know... The loss of my camcorder with my daughter's first snow pictures on it is what bothered me most after the


Spoiler



guns


 being in some idiots hands!


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## Pushka (Oct 30, 2009)

Definately an attempted break in. And make sure the Police *take you seriously*.

On that note about police fobbing people off, a couple of years ago my son, as I collected him from school, said my front number plate was missing. I thought, hm, perhaps I should tell the Police. I contacted them and the guy said, 'it fell off, dont worry about it but you will have to get a new one". The next morning I heard of a daring car robbery in the city - two guys made off with a brand new car on a 'test drive'. It was later involved in a high speed car chase, the car was written off and one of the guys killed. I thought that wasnt a nice story and sort of dismissed it. Then I received a phone call from the same guy who tried to fob me off with the fallen off number plate. It seems these guys had stolen the number plate off my car at work, and after making off with the demo car, put MY number plate on the front. MY number plate was shown as the stolen car on the news that night! The cop was very apologetic he didnt take me seriously, as was his boss!


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## sjc (Oct 29, 2008)

OMG!! to all of the above! Burglar attempt for sure. I would have called 911 and whispered get here immediately someone is breaking into my home. The cops would have handled it. If they were criminals they would have gotten caught and if they were truly cleaning people; after being questioned a bit, they would have been released.

Susan, I'm scared for you. I would still call the police. At least they can patrol the area more frequently if they know there was an attempted robbery.

Christmas time is big robbery time...lots of gifts under the tree to steal.

*THIS* IS WHY I HATE: When my kids just YANK the door wide open at the first sound...without even asking who it is or peeking out the window first. I yell at them all the time for it. You think they listen? 19 and 21 going on TWO.

*I once heard of this scam:* Guy robbed car...returned it next day with note: So sorry to have taken your car it was a true emergency. To thank you for your kindness please accept these tickets... 
Tickets were for a play/concert on a certain night. Robber went back that night; (knowing they would be out) parked a bit away and waited for them to leave: wiped them clean.


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## cheerio (May 16, 2009)

IF anything is suspicious, always call the police, you might prevent someone else in your area from experiencing the same thing


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

I agree with all the folks who've commented. It'll be interesting to see what Susan reports. BTW, I sent the link to Susan's post to a friend who, with her husband, is the owner of a Molly Maid franchise in this area. This is what she said:



> I think they were trying out keys to see if they could gain entry. I'll base this part on Molly Maid...they always call to confirm, always knock first or ring the door bell, they always have an insignia on their cars and wear some kind of identifying shirt. Our teams would have immediately identified themselves as being with Molly Maid. I would be very suspicious and if you see them again, write down a license plate number and call the police.


(For what it's worth, I had a coworker whose daughter ran an independent cleaning service; if the daughter was anything like her mother, she would have been blond and blue eyed. Also, my friend's employees are not all Hispanic. She says there are a lot of people looking for any job they can get these days. But all the cleaning staff I see in our neighborhood ARE Hispanic. As well as the gardeners, the day laborers and the handy men.... )

Betsy


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## marianneg (Nov 4, 2008)

I'd never heard of key bumping before, but after a quick search I'm sure that's what was happening to Susan.  Creepy.  I hope you get a good response from the police.


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

I filed a police report...  they are not going to open an investigation at this time since there's nothing to go on, no damage to the door or the locks, and no clear evidence of a crime.  

Because there's no clear evidence that it was even an attempted crime,  they're not going to take fingerprints either.  Not that that would yield much, I'm sure, since both DD and I had been touching the door handle later  --  and if these were pros, they wouldn't leave much anyway.

However, they do keep reports like this in the event that it may help with a future investigation.  Even a small detail, such as the color of the car, could help if someone else reports a crime later.

I've been contacting my immediate neighbors, partly on the off chance that one of them really was expecting a cleaning service, but mostly to let them know of the incident so that we can all watch out for one another if something else happens.  (There's no neighborhood association here, though.)

I didn't want to upset DD with this, but after a little thought I did tell her all about it and reminded her NEVER to open the door (for instance if I'm in the shower or something) even if someone appears to have a key, and no matter what they say to her, unless I'm right there and tell her it's ok to open.  Of course she's mostly worried that someone might want to steal her favorite teddy bear.   

So...  I really don't know what to think.  I didn't know what lock bumping was either until I read all your responses.  If that was indeed what was happening, I should have been scared at the time  --  but in fact I wasn't because I just thought they couldn't get in.  (Had someone been able to open the door within a few seconds, I would have bolted out the back door...   I don't own a gun, and there were two of them.)  I still think that I'm an unlikely target  --  irregular hours, house visibly occupied, doesn't look particularly affluent or anything, dead-end street  --  but really, who tries a key for that long without looking to be sure that they have the right house, or at least knocking as well....  Probably I'll never know.

I really, really appreciate everyone's helpful suggestions (and info on lock bumping ) and concern.  Thank you.  What a great "neighborhood" KB is!


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

Brendan Carroll said:


> I have found that racking a round in a pump shotgun usually sends would-be crooks scurrying for cover. Everyone recognizes that sound for some reason. Maybe, if you don't like guns, you could just record that sound and play it for unwanted visitors?


I kinda like this idea.  Either that or the sound of a Really Big Scary Dog barking and growling.


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## Pushka (Oct 30, 2009)

You should do a google on "chk chk boom girl".

Actually, this is it here:
http://www.google.com.au/#hl=en&source=hp&q=chk+chk+boom&meta=&aq=1&oq=chk&fp=612d84aabfa6a492

A few months ago this lady was interviewed on late Tv as she said she had witnessed a shooting. A young girl in her twenties. And she did the 'perfect' chk chk boom sound. Made her a legend and lots of You Tube hits.


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## sjc (Oct 29, 2008)

Susan:  I thought of you all freaking day.  If my kids open the door to anyone again; I'm going to chk boom them where it counts.!!


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## Angela (Nov 2, 2008)

Sounds like possibly break in/robbery to me. There has been a rash of home break-ins in our area lately, but none in my neighborhood. Too bad you couldn't have gotten a plate number on them!


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## Ephany (Mar 9, 2009)

Oh my, so glad that you're safe! Crime has really risen in my area in the last year, especially break-ins during daylight hours. I keep my dogs (2 large lab mixes) inside whenever I'm gone, but I'm not sure that'll do much good if someone was really determined. Last week two men came to my front door (which is weird in itself b/c it's much easier and convienent to use the carport entrance) and stood there for a good couple of minutes. There was no vehicle, they weren't in uniforms and they didn't try to identify themselves, the whole thing was very strange. I let the dogs bark but there was no way I was going to open the door being all by myself. It didn't occur to me to call the police, maybe I should have? It's not unusual here to have people knock on the door and try to sell you things out of their truck but these guys just didn't have the same demeaner.


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

Pushka said:


> You should do a google on "chk chk boom girl".
> 
> Actually, this is it here:
> http://www.google.com.au/#hl=en&source=hp&q=chk+chk+boom&meta=&aq=1&oq=chk&fp=612d84aabfa6a492
> ...


I had never heard of this.... and with those links I've just spent twenty minutes listening to Aussie-news on all sorts of topics... love the accents, brings back memories of friends. 

(Though I don't suppose playing _her_ chk chk boom through the door would deter anyone. )

In other news... DD's dad's theory is that they were legit and had the right house number but were in the wrong street. I guess it's possible. Then again, he's from Minnesota, where people are Nice. _Always._ (Do they have crime there??)


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## Neekeebee (Jan 10, 2009)

How scary to think they might have gotten in!  I can imagine how it must have felt to hear them trying the door, because I've been there.

A few year ago, our upstairs neighbor in our apartment building mistakenly tried to open our door a few times.  I don't know how confused he had to be, as he was not new to the building, and the second and third floors looked totally different from the elevator (different layout, paintings on the wall, etc.), and each door had the unit's # hanging clear as day at eye level.  Anyway, he would stand there fiddling with the keys, jiggling the doorknob and swearing the whole time.  I was really scared the first couple of times--I'd stand silently at the other end of the hallway clutching the phone--until one night Hubby was home and yelled at him through the door.  That's how we knew it was the guy upstairs.

N


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Susan in VA said:


> I had never heard of this.... and with those links I've just spent twenty minutes listening to Aussie-news on all sorts of topics... love the accents, brings back memories of friends.
> 
> (Though I don't suppose playing _her_ chk chk boom through the door would deter anyone. )
> 
> In other news... DD's dad's theory is that they were legit and had the right house number but were in the wrong street. I guess it's possible. Then again, he's from Minnesota, where people are Nice. _Always._ (Do they have crime there??)


Occasionally. 

Anything is possible. But it seems to me, if they had been legit, they would have asked you something to doublecheck, like "aren't you the Joneses?" Or "do you know where the Joneses live?" or "Isn't this Madison St?" That's what's happened to me with wrong numbers and people who stop me on the street looking for someone.

Betsy


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

That's true, if they were legit they could have asked which house the Joneses are in....  Come to think of it, instead of just saying that I didn't call a cleaning service, I should have asked which house number they were looking for.  The reply might have given me more insight into what was happening...

Oh well.  As I said, I'll probably never know.


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## Shizu (Oct 27, 2008)

This is scary. We all have to be careful as much as possible. I used to open the door when the door bell ring but I don't any more. With this economy we never know what might happen... Glad to hear nothing happen Susan.


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## Anju  (Nov 8, 2008)

Our yard is fenced, and I can see through the gate, I open the front door but don't go any further, it's about 20 feet away, and ask what they want.  We get a lot of religious people, beggars, street vendors, etc., and being very obviously a gringa I always say i don't speak Spanish so they will go away, but no way will I go to the fence unless I know who they are.

This time of the year is really really bad for burglaries and beggars.  So everyone be very careful.  I'm just glad you were on top of it Susan!


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## BTackitt (Dec 15, 2008)

if you have an itouch/iphone, you might want to download that free shotgun app. makes very realistic schnick-shnick sound..


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## LSbookend (Dec 22, 2008)

sjc said:


> *I once heard of this scam:* Guy robbed car...returned it next day with note: So sorry to have taken your car it was a true emergency. To thank you for your kindness please accept these tickets...
> Tickets were for a play/concert on a certain night. Robber went back that night; (knowing they would be out) parked a bit away and waited for them to leave: wiped them clean.


Reminds me of something my husband told me about how people would break into cars at local sports games and take the GPS which people program in home and go rob them because you know they are out.


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

BTackitt said:


> if you have an itouch/iphone, you might want to download that free shotgun app. makes very realistic schnick-shnick sound..


 
I don't have an i-anything. But it's good to know that such useful apps exist...


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## Carol Hanrahan (Mar 31, 2009)

Ok, my dogs are staying in ALOT more.  They bark, and I don't care if it annoys the neighbors.  I used to tell myself, well, the dogs are scaring away varmints.  Now I'll tell myself they're trying to protect us.
Susan, eeessshhhhh.  Just glad you are safe.  And a good heads up to all of us!


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## Geoffrey (Jun 20, 2009)

Susan in VA said:


> I kinda like this idea.  Either that or the sound of a Really Big Scary Dog barking and growling.


My dog is an aging Lab with arthritis but he sure sounds mean when he barks at outside noises ....


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## F1Wild (Jun 15, 2009)

I just read this and I have to say I am so glad to hear you are okay.  It seems there are so many scams lately.

Although my housekeepers arrive in an unmarked white car.


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

Thanks again, everyone, for the concern and the helpful suggestions.


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## Thumper (Feb 26, 2009)

Just to be different... our neighbor has cleaners that come every other week; they come in their own car, they don't wear uniforms, and they do have the keys. Their "company" is their family, but a company all the same.

So...ya never know. But it never hurts to call the cops, just in case.

We have a security door in place, another just in case thing )really...it's for the cats...) But we also live in a small town where the major crime of the week is a dine & dash at Denny's, and the average police report in the paper reads more like "Someone found a bike in the park, come get it if it's yours."


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

Thumper said:


> the average police report in the paper reads more like "Someone found a bike in the park, come get it if it's yours."


LOL!


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## intinst (Dec 23, 2008)

By the way, if you did Google bump keys, did you notice how many places want to sell you them?


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

At the time I just read the Wikipedia and Snopes entries...  but checking now....  yikes!


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## kevindorsey (Mar 4, 2009)

Susan in VA said:


> LOL!


LOL yea, police are not much of help in most cases.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Well, the Arlington County police are very responsive.  We had a break in that we really didn't discover for a day or two. . . only a small amount of cash stolen, but a screen was cut.  Nevertheless they came out and collected prints and gave us a case number.  A week or so later when we were woken by someone trying to get in, we called 911 and the officers arrived while I was still on the phone.  So not all police departments are useless.


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

Ann in Arlington said:


> A week or so later when we were woken by someone trying to get in,


EEEK!! Now THAT would be scary. No possibility of "misunderstandings" there...


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Well, but the guy was dumb.  We have lights on the deck that go on when something moved.  That's what alerted us. . .that and the squeaking as he tried to get the windows up.  But they were locked.  My husband wanted to take a cricket bat to him, but he could see out the window that he had something in his hand and wasn't sure it was not a knife.

He'd apparently tried at our neighbors too because as I was on the phone they asked me my address and asked how close I was to another address, which it turned out was next door.  They had another call from that address! So the neighbors had heard something too, investigated, and found tampering and called right away. . . while the guy was still at our house.  See, we'd warned the neighborhood when we found the slit screen the week before.

Actually, the worst part, is that it was like 2 in the morning, so it was 3:30 before the police were done with fingerprints and such. . . . .the next day I was dragging!


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## F1Wild (Jun 15, 2009)

Wow- how scary!

The only scam that's happened to me is a call attempt, multiple times per a=day from a company called Maritz Research (or so caller ID says).  After a week of multiple calls (ignored) a day I finally answered.  A girl said they were doing research for Bank of America.  She said the call would be recorded for security, then asked if I was over 18. I said yes.  Then she said they were conducting a survey on ATM transactions and would like to ask me questions about my last ATM experience.  Right! Like BOA has a company asking about their ATM transactions!  I told her I didn't discuss any banking over the phone with anyone.  She assured me they were doing this for BOA.  I hung up.  

Then I called BOA who had me transferred up several times until I was in touch with the top security.  I gave them the information,including the name of the person I spoke to, the phone number they were calling from, etc.  They asked me to reply to an email with the exact details.  

Come to find out I stopped a nationwide scam from continuing.


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## earthlydelites (Dec 12, 2009)

Susan in VA said:


> I had never heard of this.... and with those links I've just spent twenty minutes listening to Aussie-news on all sorts of topics... love the accents, brings back memories of friends.
> 
> (Though I don't suppose playing _her_ chk chk boom through the door would deter anyone. )
> 
> In other news... DD's dad's theory is that they were legit and had the right house number but were in the wrong street. I guess it's possible. Then again, he's from Minnesota, where people are Nice. _Always._ (Do they have crime there??)


Ohhhh I had forgotten all about the chk chk boom girl!!

WOW I am really shocked at what went down.... and you are very brave! I never answer the door (unless I am expecting a visitor) and assume that whatever they have come for they can leave a message about or ring me about it.

A few years ago we had neighbours on both sides who were robbed, and we missed out for whatever reason, maybe because someone was home, maybe not. But I just don't take chances with people at the door anymore. We were going to have a security screen put in so that we could see out without them seeing in, but we haven't got around to that yet.


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## vikingwarrior22 (May 25, 2009)

I had to calm down ....we had a break in and the people took all my wood working tools...so I armed my house like I was gunning for Zombies for a week or so .45 on me, shotgun on the hearth...so I did the responsible thing I upped the insurance on my stuff and put the guns up


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## Anju  (Nov 8, 2008)

Whew - glad you calmed down Viking!  But it is still upsetting.  We were burglarized 15 years ago, and I still get mad about it.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

vikingwarrior22 said:


> I had to calm down ....we had a break in and the people took all my wood working tools...so I armed my house like I was gunning for Zombies for a week or so .45 on me, shotgun on the hearth...so I did the responsible thing I upped the insurance on my stuff and put the guns up


O.K. That would seriously annoy my husband.

Which reminds me: if you lock your house, but don't lock your car, and your car has a garage door opener button. . . .well, you haven't locked your house.


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## sjc (Oct 29, 2008)

Well, so much for my dog.  She would go up to the robbers:  Lick them, jump on them to play, circle their feet, fetch a twig and bring it to them, then lick them some more.


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## Guest (Jan 3, 2010)

I'd say you startled some would be robbers. Years ago when I was still living with my parents, I awoke to find man coming into my bedroom window with a knife in his hand. This was about 10am!
(I worked the night shift) I screamed and he said "Oops sorry!" and went back out the window. The cops caught him sometime later. There are scary, scary people out there! Glad you're okay!


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

Thanks.  It's been three weeks, and I've heard nothing more from anyone in the neighborhood  --  and around New Year's, there were a couple of big parties with many, many people from this neighborhood attending, so if there had been something going on, I'm sure it would have been discussed. 

If I awoke to find someone coming in my window, I'd be screaming my head off.  I'd also have a hard time feeling comfortable in my house again after that kind of intrusion.  People whose houses have been burglarized tell me that there's a sense of having been violated, and that the house doesn't feel like a "safe refuge" after that. 

I want a moat.


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## The Hooded Claw (Oct 12, 2009)

Susan in VA said:


> People whose houses have been burglarized tell me that there's a sense of having been violated, and that the house doesn't feel like a "safe refuge" after that.


That's exactly right, at least for me.....My apartment was burglarized about fifteen years ago, and I had to move afterwards. Always felt weird knowing that "They" had been in there.....And did they pee in the orange juice in my fridge, etc. I moved just to get rid of thoughts like that.


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

I think I would do the same thing, if I were renting an apartment. But now... I dunno... I've moved so many times, and I wasn't planning to move out of this house until the day when I couldn't take care of it anymore... but at the very least I'd be scrubbing _everything_ in the house. And throwing out the opened orange juice, too.


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## earthlydelites (Dec 12, 2009)

sjc said:


> Well, so much for my dog. She would go up to the robbers: Lick them, jump on them to play, circle their feet, fetch a twig and bring it to them, then lick them some more.


hey at least your dog would do something. I have a corgi who is 14 and she is kinda deaf, so she would probably snooze through a break in


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## drenee (Nov 11, 2008)

The Hooded Claw said:


> And did they pee in the orange juice in my fridge, etc.


There's something I had never thought about. 
deb


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## geoffthomas (Feb 27, 2009)

F1Wild said:


> Wow- how scary!
> 
> The only scam that's happened to me is a call attempt, multiple times per a=day from a company called Maritz Research (or so caller ID says). After a week of multiple calls (ignored) a day I finally answered. A girl said they were doing research for Bank of America. She said the call would be recorded for security, then asked if I was over 18. I said yes. Then she said they were conducting a survey on ATM transactions and would like to ask me questions about my last ATM experience. Right! Like BOA has a company asking about their ATM transactions! I told her I didn't discuss any banking over the phone with anyone. She assured me they were doing this for BOA. I hung up.
> 
> ...


Good for you!
More action like this will put some of these scum away (at least for a while).
Too often honest citizens just ignore the problem and so the scum get to keep doing it to others.

Just sayin......


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## F1Wild (Jun 15, 2009)

geoffthomas said:


> Good for you!
> More action like this will put some of these scum away (at least for a while).
> Too often honest citizens just ignore the problem and so the scum get to keep doing it to others.
> 
> Just sayin......


My "new to the USA" husband got taken by a few scams after we moved here - from "everything done with a shake of the hand" (including selling houses) N. Ireland and I refuse to allow these "scum" (as you say, my word would be much harsher) to get away with anything. Never heard from them again...hmmm, maybe I should ask the bank what happened?


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