They say that red winged blackbirds are a better indication of spring’s arrival in Michigan than our state bird, the robin. I have not seen a red winged blackbird yet.
In the criminal arena, the arrival of traveling criminals and their scams, schemes and diversions correspond with the warmer spring weather. There are at least two such cases that have occurred in western Washtenaw County.
In those particular cases the thieves dress up like city water department workers and inform the victim, who is usually elderly or a person of limited mobility, that there is a problem in the area. The thief then asks to come into the victim’s home to inspect the pipes and especially the sewer lines and water pipes in the basement. The homeowner victim is now worried about a flooded basement and allows the crook or crooks inside.
Unfortunately, the thief is way quicker than the victim, swiping what he can.
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When only one thief is at work alone that crook will take the victim downstairs to inspect the pipes. That criminal will open a faucet or start the washer to “check water flow and pressure.” While doing this, the thief is sizing up the victim’s mobility. The thief will then ask to check the upstairs plumbing.

In one of the most recent cases the thief told the victim that since he had come at an inconvenient time his boss had authorized him to pay the homeowner for their time. Unfortunately the scammer in the hardhat and orange safety vest only has a large bill to pay the homeowner. The charming phony water department guy flashes a smile and asks if the victim might have change. The victim then unwittingly walks to their stash of cash to check to see if change can be found.
If the homeowner does not have the proper change the bogus utility man will “help” the homeowner look for cash in the bank envelope that they know is somewhere in the house. It’s at this point the scammer will regale the victim with a lovely story about how his grandma back home likes to hide her cash from thieves because there sure are a lot of them around. If change can be made, the con man will then say he has to go get a receipt from his truck.

Regardless of whether change can be made or not, the victim is probably flustered and uncomfortable and really just wants this person out of their home. The scammer will then remind the homeowner that they forgot to shut off the water or they should check the downstairs faucet again while the bogus workman retrieves the receipt book from the truck.
Unfortunately the thief is way quicker than the victim. The thief gets back to the area where the cash or valuables were seen swipes what he can and is out the door before the victim can get back upstairs.
Many of these crimes go unreported out of embarrassment. In the case of seniors who are victimized, they may not report the crime for fear that their family will think they can no longer take care of themselves.
The best defense against these crooks is to call 911 if utility workers show up unexpectedly in some vehicle other than a recognizable utility truck. These guys may even have some sort of bogus identification and say they are an “independent contractor.”
A homeowner can always call the police to either have the worker checked out or to have police communications ascertain if there is legitimate work being done in the area by real utility workers. In any event the burden of identification is on the worker trying to get in the home.
If homeowners feel the least bit nervous they should send the worker away and call the police. Legitimate city workers will wait outside for the police. Traveling scammers will be quickly off to the next town if challenged.
Alert neighbors are a good second line of defense. Educating those who might be at risk of becoming victims and keeping a sharp eye out for them is a very neighborly thing to do. The current thieves were driving a white van or larger white SUV and were dressed in hard hats and high visibility construction vests.
Lock it up, don’t leave it unattended, be aware and watch out for your neighbors.
Rich Kinsey is a retired Ann Arbor police detective sergeant who now blogs about crime and safety for AnnArbor.com.
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