Sarah Hubbard
Several weeks ago there was a posting on the message board about a con man,
"Larry," roaming the neighborhood late in the evening and early in the
morning asking for money to pay off a loan, etc. Well, he has expanded his
"services" to STEALING MAIL.
"Larry" came to my door not so long ago with two checks in hand, checks that
my husband had written and left on the porch the day before for the postal
woman to pick up with other outgoing mail. Larry asked profusely that I not
call the police, that he was trying to do the right thing, and showed me
several forms of ID (as well as family photos) to prove he had good
intentions.
Then he launched into a frantic story about "a friend" who he had caught
trying to tamper with the checks, and how he was doing me a favor by
preventing his friend from cashing them. He loaned his friend some money,
was returning the checks to me, and asked me for money (which he needed to
pay back yet another friend) in exchange for the "favor" he had done. He said
he would pay us back, or do yard work in exchange.
I agreed to let him do yard work, and have regretted it ever since. He left
his tools at the house, then later came back and asked to "borrow"
them...indicating that they may have been "borrowed" from somebody else. (If
you are missing a long-handled pruning saw, get in touch with me.) He
returned another day, early in the morning asking for a ride to work or
money for the bus. And I find random tools on my porch, and branches ripped
of trees and haphazardly strewn about the yard. It is hard to tell if he is
doing this to get back at us for "calling his bluff," or if he is trying to
make good and pay us back a favor.
My advice, after struggling with this
morally and practically for about a month, is STEER CLEAR of him. I just
wish I had seen the web site's con-man posting earlier. Please tell your
neighbors so that others don't fall for his ploys, and read through the
other (archived) description 