Visit to Check Out a Backyard Patio May Have Been Part of a Scam

An 84-year-old woman on the 17100 block of Kamp Court might have been the victim of a scam after a man claiming to be the son of a new neighbor burst into her home to see the patio, police said.

At about 9:30 a.m. May 16, a white man between 20 and 30 years old, about 5-foot-8-inches tall, 160 pounds, and with short dark hair, knocked on the door of the home, the woman told police.

When the woman opened the door, the man walked in, went to the patio doors and said, “I am John, the son of the person that is buying your neighbor’s house. I want to look at your patio to see if I can put up a fence around the yard so I don’t have to look at the garbage cans.”

While the two were still outside, the telephone rang and the woman told the man to leave and talk to the association president, police said. The man then left.

The woman thought nothing of the incident until May 19, when her son came over to take her to the bank and noticed the money kept in his father’s wallet was missing, police said. About $170 was taken. No other items, including the nearby jewelry and watches, were reported missing, police said.

If the man was connected with the missing money, this is similar to a type of scam known as a diversion scam. In Tinley Park earlier this year, there were .