Police Scotland is urging residents in Tayside to be alert to bogus workmen or any persons cold-calling and offering carry out home repairs after an incident in the Oakbank area of Perth last Thursday.
Three men have targeted an address at Oakbank where a four figure sum of money was stolen. At around 2pm two men visited an address claiming to carry out roof repairs and told the victim these works should be carried out.
The men left with the money without any work being done Police Scotland said in statement.
A spokesperson from Police Scotland said: “One of the suspects is described as being 25-35-years-old, about 5 feet 8 inches tall, with ginger/brown facial hair and was wearing a brown-coloured beanie hat, brown jacket and dark jeans.
The second man is described as being between 30 and 35-years-old, about five feet 10 inches tall, wearing a black wool jersey, black trousers and trainers.
The third suspect is described as wearing black clothing and a grey baseball cap.
Bogus workmen take advantage of the trust and goodwill of householders and invariably target older or more vulnerable members of our communities. Criminals of this type often operate in small teams of two or three. Be suspicious of anyone cold calling at your door offering to do work, or to fix a problem you have no prior knowledge of. Do not hand over cash to uninvited cold callers who offer to carry out work. If you are told repairs are needed, seek a second opinion from a reputable company.
Keep doors closed to prevent people from simply walking in. If the door has a chain, use it. If someone calls claiming to be a workman of any description, demand to see their identification – genuine workmen will not object and should have appropriate ID. You can make them wait outside and contact the company or organisation they claim to be with for verification. If, for whatever reason, your suspicions are not satisfied, do not let that caller in. Shut the door and call the police.
Residents should always be on their guard against this type of crime, especially if they have older or vulnerable neighbours. Look out for one another.
Police Scotland urge residents to report any and every incident. The people responsible for this type of crime are very well practised in their approach. The more information the police receive about suspicious activity, the more this will assist officers in identifying and arresting those responsible.
If you have any information that could help officers with their enquiries, particularly if anyone has recently attended at your address and offered to carry out work, please contact Police Scotland please contact 101 quoting reference number CR/030997/16.”
