Conmen pose as Age Concern staff to try and steal from homes

Police issue warning to elderly to be on their guard after thieves target man, 93, and two women in their 80s

‘Cowardly’ conmen posed as Age Concern staff to try to steal from the homes of pensioners in Coventry.

They struck three times in a few hours targeting a 93-year-old man and two women in their eighties.

Police have issued a warning to OAPs to be on their guard – in each incident the offenders posed as members of Age Concern.

The distraction burglaries happened last Saturday in the Stoke and Wyken areas of the city. Detectives described the culprits as “cruel and cowardly”.

The first incident saw a man and woman visit the home of a 93-year-old man in Burns Road at about 5.45pm and said they were delivering a gift from the charity.

The man let them in by shouting out a key code to the door and one of burglars went upstairs and searched a bedroom. They both then left and nothing is believed to have been stolen.

The duo then targeted an 82-year-old woman in Raleigh Road between 6.20pm and 6.40pm, again claiming to be from Age Concern, but they left when they realised the homeowner wasn’t alone.

Finally at 7.15pm a man and woman went to the home of an 86-year-old woman in Harold Road, Wyken. The woman opened the door to the pair stayed for a few minutes and then left.

The victim later found that her purse containing around £100 had been stolen.

The woman is described as having blonde hair and of stocky build and spoke with an Irish accent. The man was tall, slim and had short dark hair.

Detective Sergeant Gareth Mitchell said: “Anyone who targets vulnerable members of our communities, particularly at this time of year, can only be described as cruel and cowardly. We really need the help of members of the public to help us identify these individuals and bring them to justice.

“If you have any information about the pair involved and think you can help our investigation, please call us as soon as possible. I would remind all of our residents to be vigilant and never give strangers who do not have ID access to their homes.”

A spokesman for Age Concern UK Coventry added: “We are very concerned that people have been claiming to be from our charity to access people’s houses.

“We would never refer to ourselves as Age Concern and although we have been delivering hampers recently to some of our clients we carry ID and we do not need to enter the house. ”

Callous thief conned pensioners by claiming to be from Age Concern



A callous thief has been jailed for tricking her way into the homes of three pensioners by claiming to be from Age Concern.

Elizabeth Nolan wept uncontrollably as she was given a 40-month sentence for the break-ins in Coventry just four days before Christmas.

She struck at the homes of a 93-year-old man and two women in their eighties.

Nolan, who struck after dark and just a few days before Christmas, was caught because one of her victims had a CCTV camera.

The 31-year-old, of Woodside Park caravan site in Oxford Road, Ryton, had earlier pleaded guilty to three charges of burglary.

At the crown court in Leamington prosecutor Shane Crawford said that Nolan and a male accomplice went to the home of a 93-year-old man in Burns Road, Stoke, Coventry. Arriving at 6pm, when it was dark, they tricked their way in by claiming to be from Age Concern and to check that everything was OK.

Then, while Nolan distracted their victim downstairs, her accomplice went upstairs looking for money, without success. Having left empty-handed, they moved on to nearby Raleigh Road where they used the same ploy to trick their way into the home of an 82-year-old woman.

But before they had found anything to steal, their victim’s daughter arrived, and Judge Sylvia de Bertodano observed that they ‘beat a hasty retreat.’

The man gave up at that point, but Nolan simply moved on and switched her attention to Harold Road, a few streets and a ten-minute walk away in Wyken.

There she targeted the home of an 87-year-old woman, attracting her attention by banging on her living room window and gesturing to her to open the door.

The pensioner later said she had been frightened by the sudden banging, but had relaxed when Nolan said she was from Age Concern, and opened the door to her.

But as soon as she did Nolan walked into the lounge, followed by the elderly householder who saw her standing by the chair her handbag was on.

Nolan left after speaking briefly to the pensioner who then discovered that her purse, which contained £105 in cash, had been taken from her bag, and called the police.

Fortunately she had a security camera at her home, as a result of which Nolan was recognised and was arrested at Woodside Park.

Mr Crawford added that Nolan had ‘a fairly lengthy record,’ with 25 previous court appearances for 63 offences, mainly for shoplifting but also for having counterfeit currency.

Jailing Nolan, who began crying uncontrollably over her fate, Judge de Bertodano told her: “These are really unpleasant offences. These were vulnerable victims being targeted in their own homes just before Christmas.’’