Capt. Edgar Springer: Police Beat

Each of us will remember Sept. 11, 2001 in different ways, including sympathy, sadness and outrage for those that died and pride in the acts of heroism by emergency service workers and individuals with no training.

What we must be cautious about is the outrage that leads to individual acts of anger towards those around us. Terrorism relies and thrives on fear. It is also born of hatred, ignorance and lack of tolerance toward those with different beliefs and races.

The recent attacks and harassment of those individuals who are different in appearance by the clothing they wear or physical appearance are an outrage. The perpetrators of these acts are no different than those that committed the acts of terrorism on our country.

Ignorance is a very dangerous problem. The SF Police Department and the District Attorney's Office will vigorously investigate and prosecute individuals that commit acts of violence based upon their belief that an individual may be of a particular race or religious order. These are hate crimes and will be addressed as such.

All emergency service workers in San Francisco and throughout the country are on elevated alert status and will continue to focus on the safety of all.

I would like to thank all those who attended the Richmond Police Station's Community Forum on Tuesday, Sept. 18. Our guest speaker, Inspector Robert Totah, gave an excellent presentation on home invasion safety. The focus was on a series of home invasion robberies that have occurred not only in San Francisco but throughout the Bay Area.

The suspect has been targeting older female residents by attempting to con his way into the victim's residence. The suspect's story may change, but his technique is consistent. He uses his powers of persuasion and a hard luck story to take advantage of a person's good-natured willingness to help. The man is patient and persistent.

The best prevention tip: Don't let strangers into your house.

If an individual is persistent, call the police and tell the suspect you are going to call the police.

Other Scams

The following are a sampling of the crimes committed mainly by persons that are strangers to the victim.

Pigeon Drop: The suspect-actor claims that he's found a lot of money, say $5,000 - $10,000, in an envelope or bag on the street and will attempt to find the rightful owner. If the owner isn't located, he'll split the money with the intended victim, but the victim will have to supply "good faith" money amounting to half of what is purported to have been found. The suspect takes the money in case the victim, who thinks he has all of the suspect's money, finds the owner of the lost loot.

The victim withdraws the money, gives it to the suspect and discovers after the suspect disappears that the bag of money contains "switched" shredded paper.

Jamaican Money Switch: The scam has a charity ruse at its base and involves "good faith" money. The suspect claims to have a large amount of money for a charitable cause but cannot make the delivery because of an emergency or similar reason. If the victim gives the suspect half of the money in "good faith," the suspect will trust the person with making the contribution. A second suspect is sometimes involved as part of the scam.

The victim withdraws the necessary amount from a bank, hands it over and discovers after the suspects leave that he or she has been given shredded paper instead of money.

Seniors are often victims in these type of scams, but there are other types of elder financial abuse.

Suspects are usually known to the victim and many are professionals, including accountants, attorneys and real estate lenders or they can be family members.

With family members, the profile is that of a middle-aged sibling, usually male, with a poor employment history and a spotty education. The scenario runs something like this: a son (or daughter) moves in with mom and dad and begins to manage his life with the goal of getting his or her money.

The first step toward that goal is having the mother or father let him start paying the bills, thus getting his name on the bank account. Soon, he is writing checks for cash.

Initially, the son is useful, helping the parent with chores and acting as a handyman, causing the parent to become more and more dependent on the son's help.

Dependency is one of the four elements that characterize the victim in cases of elder abuse where the victim knows the suspect. When combined with the other elements - isolation, emotional manipulation and doing whatever the son or daughter says - the scene is set for some major abuse.

What distinguishes this kind of abuse from the money-switch scams is the length of time the elder abuse financial fraud occurs, sometimes years.

Another difference is that the victims of money switch scams know they have been had. In many cases, victims of financial abuse perpetuated by a professional or relative don't know what's happening to them. They can't see that they're being emotionally manipulated in ways so deceptive it's practically an art. (For example, phone calls to family members are intercepted and callers are told it is a wrong number.)

Inspector Tom Feledy urges the public to report suspected cases of elder abuse.

"We need to get the community involved," Feledy said. "We need to get everybody to get out there and start reporting it."

There are problems enough when growing older; the last thing seniors need is having their finances taken from them and their well being being destroyed.

Community Forum

I am looking forward to seeing you at the next monthly forum, on Tuesday, Oct. 16, at the Richmond Police Station's Community Room, 461 Sixth Ave., at 7 p.m. Free parking is available at the Kaiser Hospital parking lot across the street from the station.

Capt. Edgar Springer is the commanding officer at the Richmond District Police Station.