***Caution Mumbaikars, Conmen operating on Mumbai Streets*** While we may have come across such posts in the past on our FB page this happened to me on 5th Sept 2013, at around 1830 hrs while I was driving on my way back from Lower Parel towards Bandra on Tulsi pipe road near Ruby Mills. I was waiting at the signal for it to turn green and suddenly a guy passed by the front of the car. The guy knocked on my window and informed me that there were some sparks happening in the bonnet maybe because of the engine heat. He very casually crossed the road without even waiting to see what I was going to do next. I crossed the signal and stationed my vehicle to check what was happening. It struck me that this was a plan. The person was Conmen 1 (Thanks to some people who had shared about such instances in the past on their FB page and similar cases that happened to family which were shared) and very clearly while I was at the signal he saw my laptop bag and my mobile on the front seat. Curious to know what is going to happen next, I played along and got out of the car (Locking the doors, securing my handphone) keeping a watch on the same guy who by now was standing on the other side of the road waiting for his partner to strike. As expected entered conmen No. 2. The speech was verbatim. “Aapke Bonnet main sparks ho raha hai, Shaayad engine garam ho gaya hai. Aapke paas coolant hai to help karta hoon”. I couldn’t resist but have a conversation with this guy about who he was and thereafter multiple questions which baffled him, he was confused as to what to do next since the car doors were locked and there were no signs of me helping them to con myself. The guy bought some peanuts from the roadside vendor and disappeared in the crowd. I tried to locate conmen 1 who was on the other side but could not find him either. While I knew exactly what their plan was I could not have accused them because there was no proof that they were conmen trying to prey on innocent people who were driving back from work on the busy Tulsi Pipe Road. The modus operandi was very clear. They wanted me to open the bonnet of the car which would block my vision standing in front of the car of what was happening behind the bonnet (I suspect they had conmen 3 and 4 waiting to open the car doors and smoothly snatch away whatever they could) while the conmen 1 and 2 kept me busy. I couldn’t have accused them directly, as there was no proof or theft but I did manage to drive 100 meters and find a Police van stationed at a garage. I narrated the entire story to them and gave them the description about 1 of them. Hopefully I am assuming they have done their job. While we cannot be with our friends and family all the time, we can definitely share this with more and more people to make them aware about such instances and such conmen at play. A few Points to myself and others – 1. The conmen will never be short of ideas. It can be sparks in the bonnet, a flat tyre, a motorcycle banging your car from behind or some leakage. All they would want you to do it get out of your car without locking it. 2 – 3 people will get you busy in the conversation and few other conmen will do the job they are there for. 2. Always secure your handphone and other belongings first as most of the time they are interested in your expensive smartphone and have seen the same on your dashboard while you are at a signal. 3. Even in case it’s a genuine reason (a flat tyre), always lock your car once you step out. 4. 99% of the times they will try these tactics on people who are driving alone. Be smart and safe and do not fall prey to such tricks. Do share this with everyone you know…Let’s be safe and keep our friends and family safe. (Can’t remember who, but thanks to the person who has shared this earlier) Shailendra
Posted on: Thu, 05 Sep 2013 15:16:31 +0000