Burglars Impersonating Water Department Workers Steal Jewelry From Elderly Daly City Woman

DALY CITY (CBS SF) – Burglars posing as employees of the Daly City Water Department stole a large amount of jewelry from a 93-year-old woman last week after entering her home under false pretenses, police said.

Around 11 a.m. on Jan. 20, a suspect entered the elderly victim's home through an open garage door while she was outside retrieving a box. The suspect told her that a broken pipe down the road had resulted in urine in the drinking water and that the line needed to be flushed out, police said.

The suspect turned on the water in the garage, went into the back yard and asked the victim to turn on the hose. While they were talking, the victim believes a second suspect entered the home and stole her jewelry.

Later that day, a pouch in her dresser was in the wrong place and some of her valuables had gone missing, police said.

The first suspect is described as a white male between the ages of 18 and 23. He's roughly six-feet tall, weighing 250 lbs with a "husky build." At the time of the burglary, his black hair was slicked back and he was wearing a black letterman jacket with dark pants.

No description was available for the second suspect.

Police said incidents like this have been occurring on the Peninsula lately, as well as in San Francisco. They'd like to remind the public that water department employees wear official uniforms, and do not enter a residence unless asked to do so and accompanied by the resident.