UPDATE: Woman says scammers stole thousands of dollars in precious jewelry while she was home

The Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office is warning about a scam involving individuals who are posing as roofers in an effort to gain entrance to burglarize homes.

In recent months, the Sheriff’s Office has responded to calls where homeowners said they were approached by a man, who identified himself as a roofer, and said he was at the home to make repairs. A second man waits in the vehicle as his partner works to distract the homeowner. While the homeowner is preoccupied, the second man will enter or attempt to enter the residence for the purpose of burglarizing it.

In at least one instance, the man was successful in gaining access to a home in Pueblo West where thousands of dollars in valuables were taken from an elderly woman.

Betty, the victim in the Pueblo West scam, said the men followed her home from Wal-Mart. She was unloading groceries when the man walked up. He said he was her roofer and offered to help her carry in her groceries. Once inside, he helped her unload them.

“He was so polite and everything, I would never have thought anything,” said Betty.

Then, the fake roofer took her outside to look at her roof. That’s when two men went inside her home and stole all her gold jewelry.

After some time, Betty and the fake roofer went back in. He asked her to boil some water so he could mix up glue to patch up her roof. While she was getting the water ready, he walked out, saw the men in the car, and told Betty he’d come back later for repairs.

Now, Betty believes he asked her to boil water so that if Betty saw the other criminals inside, they would throw the boiling water on her so she couldn’t identify them.

Betty wanted to share her story with KRDO NewsChannel 13 to warn her other neighbors, but she did not want her face shown or her last name used. She is scared the criminals will retaliate against her.

“I am kind of leery about going out anymore because I am always looking behind me and seeing if someone is following me,” said Betty.

She said the men stole thousands of dollars in gold jewelry that she’ll never be able to replace.

“It meant a lot to me because it was back from the time I had married my husband all the way back in ’57. It meant a lot to me and they took every bit of it,” said Betty. “It’s stuff that can never be replaced, and I certainly miss it.”

Pueblo County Sheriff’s Patrol Captain Paul Toth reminds homeowners to never allow anyone unsolicited into their homes. “Don’t let anybody talk themselves into your home either. What they’re doing is trying to get into your home to see what you have and to see what they can take.”

Toth said homeowners should be skeptical of anyone who comes to your home seeking to do repairs or other work without you requesting them to do so. “If someone comes to your home who you think is suspicious, ask them for a business card and then call to confirm who they are before letting anyone into your home,” he said. “If you are still skeptical, call us and we can check into whether they are legitimate.”

Toth said if residents are suspicious of people who come unsolicited to their homes, he reminds them to get a name of the business, a description of the individual (s), a description of the vehicle and a license plate number and report it to the Sheriff’s Office at (719) 583-6250.