$10K in Jewelry Taken During Scam at Downers Home: Police Blotter

A Downers Grove family is missing $10,000 in jewelry after a group of men used a ruse to enter their southwest side home, police said.

The list of missing valuables includes a $5,000 white diamond pendant, two diamond rings worth $2,000 each, and a $1,000 gold wedding band. The incident occurred at 3:20 p.m. June 17 on the 1200 block of Hawkins Avenue, according to a police report.

At least four men in all were thought to be part of the incident, with one of them remaining outside in a dark-colored crossover SUV parked in the driveway of the home. The driver was described as dark-skinned, between 5'7" and 5'9", slightly chubby with a round face, dark hair and brown eyes.

The ruse started when one of the men rang the doorbell and an elderly family member answered. The man immediately entered the home without being asked, police said.

"He advised her that her neighbor had some flooding and that they needed to take a look at her backyard to determine if that was the cause of the flooding," the report said. "He then brought her to the rear of the house and into the backyard. (The resident) did notice that two more males were behind the one that entered the house initially."

The resident was in the backyard with the first man for less than five minutes when he was alerted to something and immediately left. At this time she saw the two other men in the house, but could not describe what they were doing or what they were wearing.

At about 3:30 p.m., another resident of the home pulled up to find the crossover SUV in her driveway and the slightly chubby man in the vehicle. He told her that they were on the property with permission of the owner for landscaping purposes.

"Knowing that they did not have permission, she asked the male to move the vehicle so that she could pull into the driveway," the report said. "As she returned to her vehicle and began to pull into the driveway, she saw 4-5 people, all dressed in jeans and various colored t-shirts, exit the backyard of her home and get into the vehicle."

When the younger resident found out what had happened, she immediately called police. An officer recognized the incident as a common "gypsy scam" and asked them to check their jewelry, according to the report.

The residents noticed that a significant amount of their jewelry was missing and their top dresser drawers were ajar. An entire checkbook valued at $5 was also missing as well as roughly $300 cash from a dresser, the report said.

One of the residents will compile a complete list of stolen items for police.

Looking for more Downers Grove police news?

• Man Shot During Attempted Robbery at Oak Brook Mall Sunday
• Porta Potty, Dumpster Torched Outside Middle School: Police Blotter
• Downers Grove Police Announce Seat Belt, DUI Crackdown
  
• Male Stranger Arrested After Entering Woman's Apartment: Police Blotter
• Man Arrested Twice in 5 Hours During Underage Drinking,Burglary Incidents

There are plenty of ways to keep up on Downers Grove news:

• Sign up for our daily email newsletter

• Like us on Facebook for a slightly different take

Police Blotter information is provided by local law enforcement agencies. Charges are not evidence of guilt. They are a record of police actions taken on a given day, and persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. If you or a family member are charged or cited and the case is subsequently adjudicated, we encourage you to notify the editor. We will verify and report the outcome.