Police: Water Department Impostors Steal Cash

Following several parcel package thefts in Sleepy Hollow, there have been several other incidents that have police on alert and urging residents to do the same.

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First, a few guys, reportedly posing as Water Department employees, were allowed into a village home and allegedly made off with cash.

On Dec. 11 at 1:11 p.m., a 263 North Washington street caller reported to police that two men posing as water department employees came to his house to check on the water meter. The two men were let in the house and allowed to go into the basement. After the men left, the caller’s sister reported money was taken from the house.

Police Chief Gregory Camp said this case is under open investigation and he didn’t want to disclose how much money was reportedly stolen. However, he again urge citizens, to be vigilant and observant in their neighborhoods and to call police if you see anything suspicious.

In the advent of someone coming to your door, he advised citizens to demand to see an ID badge. The badge, said Camp, should be “official with a photo and a company.”

But even if presented an ID, certainly do not let anyone into your home if you have any doubt. The police, Camp said, are happy to send an officer to check out the credentials of someone at your door.

Also, Camp said, lock your doors.

He said such scammers will often operate by coming into your home and getting you distracted, at which point a second or third person can go unnoticed and steal something.

“The water department was not there,” Camp said, though he doesn’t know who was. He asked neighbors or anyone nearby that day to call police if they saw something early afternoon in the vicinity of 263 North Washington – two men walking away that address, or if driving, in what kind of car?

He asked people to also try to get good descriptions on folks they deem suspicious. Call police (914) 631-0800.

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On Dec. 11 at 11:41 a.m., a 170 Cortlandt Street building owner reported that some one had entered his property and removed copper pipes.

Police Chief Gregory Camp noted that this was a vacant building, mixed use with residential above and business on the ground floor, and that whoever entered “took the plumbing right out.”

Copper, of course, is very valuable these days, and there have been numerous incidents of theft of this metal in the county, including a recent incident in Tarrytown when wiring was taken from a van parked behind the DoubleTree Hotel.

This Sleepy Hollow incident has been labelled grand larceny since the items were valued over $1,000 and a burglary in the third degree, a b-felony, since “the person was not authorized to be there," Camp said.

The case is under investigation, and again, Camp is grateful to receive any leads.

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