By Vinnie Rotondaro
Brooklyn Daily Eagle

SOUTHWEST BROOKLYN — A unique pattern of "deceptive" burglary has sprung up in this part of the borough, the Eagle learned Wednesday.

Since the start of 2009, there have been at least four incidents in which men costuming themselves as Con Edison and Water Department workers have entered and burglarized the homes of residents in various parts of Bensonhurst, Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights and Coney Island.

"We're classifying it as `deception burglary,’" said Inspector John J. Sprague, commander of the 62nd Precinct, at a Community Board 11 meeting Tuesday night. "We've had two occurrences in this command within the last two months, and there are other occurrences in the 66th, the 68th, the 61st and the 60th precincts."

The thieves typically consist of mixed pairs of white, black and Latino men.

"It's very hard to guess the consistency of who's actually doing it, but it's obviously the same network," Sprague said.

The men usually hit during times when there's construction in the neighborhood, hoping that residents are more susceptible to being duped into believing, say, that a pipe burst occurred and that the "workers" need access to the house.

"Don't buy it," Sprague said.

A sergeant in the 62nd Precinct’s Crime Analysis Department said that the robbers usually take whatever they can get their hands on — cell phones, wallets and the like. However, on one occasion, a thief went so far as to don a police uniform and to force a resident to drive to a bank at gunpoint, making off with $3,800.

It is not known whether the faux-cop was in league with the other impersonators.

To the more commonplace impostors, Sprague stressed that Con Ed and the Water Department rarely, if ever, show up without an appointment. Water Department employees, in particular, "do not come inside your house," he said.

"If you have a water problem inside your house then you get a plumber," he said. "The Water Department only reads the meters, outside. So if someone unexpectedly comes to your door, don't open it."

If they're really insistent, a quick call to Con Ed's local department can clarify any confusion, he said, adding: "look for a truck. They'll have trucks."

Impostor Burglaries: Nothing New

Fran Vella-Marone, president of the Dyker Heights Civic Association, said that impostor burglaries are nothing new.

"These types of crimes, they occur from time to time," she said. "It's a terrible situation. In general they prey on elderly folks living alone, and there are a number of those people living in Dyker Heights.

"It's hard to prevent. They just pick on a community out of the blue, and the only thing you can do is educate,� she said.

A little over a year ago, there was a similar rash of impostor burglaries in Southern Brooklyn. That time, cops were able to squash them with beefed up patrol units and by implementing neighborhood-based information campaigns.

But the burglaries are resurgent, and the 62nd and neighboring precinct forces, which are currently experiencing cutbacks, are now forced to find new ways of nipping the spree in the bud.

"We thought we stymied it last year," said Sprague. "We made some very significant arrests. But now it's coming back. It's an old gag, but they keep coming, especially in these economic times."

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