Bogus caller steals £1,000 from pensioner's home

The incident happened between 11 and 11:30am on Wilson Terrace, in Mirfield, where the male suspect attended a house claiming he was from the water board.　

The elderly female victim answered the door, the suspect told the victim that a water pipe had burst down the road and he needed to turn her water off.　

He entered the property and went into the kitchen, he made numerous excuses to leave the kitchen and then went upstairs and made an untidy search of the bedrooms.　

The suspect left the property with around £1,000 of cash.　

The male suspect has been described as white male, mid to late 20s, 5ft 7”, slim to medium build. He was wearing a black hat with flaps at the sides covering his ears, long black coat and black trousers. He spoke with an English accent.　

DC Simon Thomas of Kirklees CID, said: “The elderly lady who lives at the property has been left extremely distressed by this incident and our enquiries are ongoing to capture this perpetrator.　

“We are asking residents to be vigilant and not allow strangers into their homes. Always ask to see a caller’s identification badge and contact the company they claim to work for if you need any reassurance. If you are not certain that they are genuine once you’ve contacted the company, then do not allow them into your property and call the police.　

“I would also encourage people to check on the elderly or vulnerable residents and warn them about this sort of behaviour.”　

Anyone with any information about this incident, or has had a similar experience, please contact Kirklees CID via 101 quoting reference 13170062798 or alternatively contact independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.