Fake repair man robs local senior

by Matt Hampton

An 85-year-old Elmont senior citizen was victimized by someone claiming to be a repair man in a brazen robbery last week. The incident, which detectives said took place last Tuesday afternoon, is being aggressively pursued by police, who are on the lookout for a suspect they believe may try to victimize other elderly residents.

At roughly 3:30 p.m. last Tuesday, an 85-year-old Elmont citizen was sitting alone on his porch on Norfolk Drive.

The victim is a familiar site to neighbors in the community, and last Tuesday, as he was sitting, he was approached by a 30-year-old man with medium complexion who claimed to be a repair man. The younger man allegedly struck up a conversation with the victim, and apparently asked him several times if he would accompany him to his backyard to "check something out."

The victim, maintaining that he could not walk very well, told his visitor that he would not be going anywhere outside of his own porch. The "repair man" carried on a conversation with the man for a while longer, ultimately not convincing him to go anywhere, but deflecting any suspicion on his part.

The "repair man" allegedly proceeded to walk around the back of the victim's house, and the victim, believing the conversation closed, did not give it another thought.

About two hours later, the victim was visited by his daughter, who went inside, only to discover that a side door had been left wide open.

The daughter, who lives with her father, went upstairs to her bedroom to discover that the upper floors of the house had been completely ransacked, and that much of the jewelry she kept in her bedroom was missing.

She investigated the upstairs further, and found that her father had been robbed of a number of his valuables, including jewelry, as well.

Police are advising residents of Elmont to be wary of any unknown persons in their neighborhoods claiming to be repair men, or trying to gain unwarranted access to homes or property for any reason. Seniors — in particular those who live alone, or spend much of the day alone — should be wary. The person of interest is a man of medium complexion, 30 to 35-years old, with a thin build and dark hair. At the time of the incident he was wearing a light collared shirt and light pants.

No arrests have been made in connection with the crime.

If anyone has any information, they are advised to call Nassau County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-244-TIPS (8477). All calls will be kept confidential.