Today Show Conducts Undercover 'Diversionary Burglary' Probes In Nutley: Are You At Risk?

If a recent investigative journalism report is any indication, you may be more at risk of being a victim of a “diversionary burglary” than you think.

On Monday, in conjunction with the Nutley Police Department, Jeffrey Rossen of the Today Show conducted an on-the-ground report to raise awareness about how easy it would be for a burglar to enter local homes.

Watch the full segment online here.

According to the Nutley police, the results of the experiment were concerning.

Accompanied by Nutley police officers and dressed as a utility worker, the clean-cut Rossen visited several homes in town under the guise that there was a gas leak and that he needed to enter their houses to check the basement for contaminants.

In reality, however, Rossen was checking for something else entirely… a chance to commit a diversionary burglary.

“A diversionary burglary is a type of burglary where the actor diverts the attention of the resident and tries to bring the homeowner to another part of the house, such as the basement, allowing an accomplice to enter and ransack the bedroom for valuables,” Nutley Detective Anthony Montanari explained.

He added that the impersonating utility worker generally will create noise or disruption so that the resident is unable to hear the second actor enter.

Using this technique, Rossen was able to gain access into almost every home on his list, Montanari reported.

One of the keys to his success was creating a sense of “urgency,” Montanari said.

“All the residents seemed to agree, that they lived in a safe community and never felt as if ‘this could happen to me,’” he added.

One homeowner told reporters that since he lived close to a gas main, the excuse seemed authentic.

Another female resident looked out her window, observed the utility worker with his overalls, hard hat orange vest and clipboard and readily opened the door. She later admitted that asking for identification crossed her mind several times.

Mayor and Police Director Alphonse Petracco stated in a release that he permitted the show to film in Nutley with the hope that it would create awareness to these types of scam artists.

Petracco said that last year, a Fischer Ave resident was burglarized in a similar way when the suspects told the residents there was a chemical spill in the area.

In addition, there were two incidents on Ravine Avenue in 2013, Petracco stated.

“This is a common scam and I want our residents to be mindful that there are predators out there looking for opportunity,” he stated.

The Today Show segment is expected to air next week, police stated.

PREVENTATIVE MEASURES

According to Montanari, there are several steps a resident can take to reduce their risk of being a victim of a diversionary burglary:

• Ask for two forms of identification
• Look for the utility workers vehicle and obtain a registration number
• Call the company the worker claims to be from, and call the police if something doesn’t seem right

Photo courtesy of the Nutley Police Department