BY BRYAN SABELLA
Staff Writer
METUCHEN — Borough officials are encouraging senior citizens to be vigilant when it comes to strangers knocking on their doors.
At last week’s Borough Council meeting, Mayor Ed O’Brien said, "There are flim-flam artists going around the county," targeting its older residents.
Two recent incidents illustrate how the ruse works, officials said.
In an attempted burglary on Essex Avenue Feb. 3, a person knocked on the door of an elderly resident allegedly claiming to be delivering laundry for a neighbor who wasn’t home. While the resident was distracted, a second suspect slipped through a window and rifled through a bedroom. Nothing was reported stolen.
A Main Street resident wasn’t so lucky, however.
At 7:17 p.m. Feb. 25, the theft of $35,000 in cash and rare coins was reported from a borough residence.
In that incident, a female came to the door asking an elderly resident for a glass of water. A second suspect then slipped in behind her and stole the currency from safe deposit boxes on the second floor.
Metuchen police officer David Liantonio said those are the only incidents reported in the borough, but that several others have been reported in surrounding communities.
Councilwoman Catherine Totin urged senior citizens to be wary of people coming to their doors claiming, for example, to be experiencing car trouble and needing to use the phone. She urged residents to contact the police.
O’Brien reinforced the idea.
"Don’t feel as if you’re troubling the police department," he said.