SACRAMENTO, CA - A young man in a yellow hardhat with a story about contaminated water ended up stealing $5,000 in cash and jewelry from an unsuspecting couple.
Vanhkeo Chanthalangsy, 68, said the man bluffed his way through the front door late Tuesday morning and convinced her husband, Nouphay, 72, to turn on all the faucets in the house on Grand Ave.
The phony inspector then got Nouphay to join him in the backyard to check for leaks.
One of their daughters, Manivanh Garcia, heard most of the encounter because she had been talking to her mother on the phone.
"I told my mom this is wrong. You're in danger," Garcia said.
While Nouphay Chanthalangsy was in the backyard with the man in the hardhat, two of the con man's accomplices ransacked the master bedroom.
Garcia called 911, but by the time police got to the home the crooks were long gone.
Garcia said she was grateful her parents weren't harmed, and wanted to caution others who may be too trusting.
"People are so nice and kind and talk to you. You just never know," she said.
by George Warren, GWarren@news10.net
News10/KXTV