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Brighton man, 93, robbed of thousands after dog mess thrown at him

1:20pm Thursday 8th May 2008

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A 93-year-old man was pelted with dog mess then robbed of thousands of pounds as he left a bank.

A man and two women who offered to help clean him up are believed to have stolen an envelope containing £2,500 from his jacket pocket.

The disgusting distraction tactic mirrors a string of thefts in Brighton city centre last year.

Peanut butter, paint, water and dog exrcrement were among the substances used to pelt victims.

People would then rush up with a tissue to help them, and leave with their money.

Police want bank staff, customers and shoppers to be on their guard if people of claiming to be Good Samaritans if they have just removed large amounts of cash.

The latest attack happened at about 2pm on Wednesday.

The 93-year-old had been to Natwest in North Street, Brighton, and was walking towards Castle Square with his money stashed in an envelope.

A man came up to him saying there was a "substance" on his jacket.

Police believe it was a mixture of dog mess and water.

One of the offenders helped him take the coat off and clean it up, then handed it back.

He left with two women before the man realised his cash had gone.

The thief is described as dark-skinned, Asian-looking, aged in his mid-40s and wearing dark clothes.

One of the women was described as Asian, the other as more Oriental-looking.

On September 20 last year a woman had £3,000 stolen in Jubilee Street, Brighton.

A woman described as Spanish-looking bumped into her and apologised, before a second woman stranger told her she had something on her coat.

As they helped her off with her jacket a third woman held her bag.

After they left the victim realised her money had been stolen.

On March 8 last year a man was robbed of £1500 after leaving Barclays Bank in North Street.

He was squirted with liquid on his back and head in Castle Square. A couple, described as Eastern European, are suspected of stealing the money after offering to clean him up.

On Valentine's day last year an Italian-looking woman stole £6,000 from a woman who had asked for help from a shop in North Street after having excrement thrown at her.

A police spokeswoman said: "It is too early to say whether the people who were involved in the latest theft are linked to the incidents last year but there are certainly similarities.

"I would urge people who are withdrawing large amounts of cash from banks or building societies to be alert and wary of who may be around."

Anyone with information is asked to call Brighton and Hove police on 0845 6070999 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.

Your Say YourArgus

The Chuckle Brother, Langneyshire says...
1:45pm Thu 8 May 08

At least you knew where you were with skinheads wearing DM's.

S.T. Rewth, Brighton says...
1:53pm Thu 8 May 08

All the CCTV cameras must really help!

Charlie Victor, Charlie Bravo says...
2:03pm Thu 8 May 08

WAS WENDY ASLEEP, WHY DO WE PAY FOR CCTV WHEN THEY ONLY HAVE 1 OPERATOR ON DOING AN AREA, THIS COULD HAVE BEEN DETECTED EARLIER. GIVE THE POLICE MORE RESOURSES

CHARLIE OSCAR OVER

melfromhove, hove says...
2:41pm Thu 8 May 08

Celebrating diversity......hmmmm

Colin, Brighton says...
3:11pm Thu 8 May 08

If it happens to us are we allowed to rub their noses in the dogs poo before beating them to pulp, or will a vet give them an injection to put them down like other rabid animals.. 93 years old ooh you brave hero`s.

Doh!, Not this planet says...
3:25pm Thu 8 May 08

Why in this day and age of credit/debit cards,phone and internet banking are people carrying thousands of pounds of Cash. Have they not heard of a cheque book?

charlie, Brighton says...
3:51pm Thu 8 May 08

How did the scum know their victims were carrying loads of cash? Surely they must have been in th ebank at the time the money was handed over. Are the Police checking the bank cctv as well?

lu, woodingdean says...
4:41pm Thu 8 May 08

Charlie Victor wrote:
WAS WENDY ASLEEP, WHY DO WE PAY FOR CCTV WHEN THEY ONLY HAVE 1 OPERATOR ON DOING AN AREA, THIS COULD HAVE BEEN DETECTED EARLIER. GIVE THE POLICE MORE RESOURSES CHARLIE OSCAR OVER
He wants the police to have more resources but i bet he wont be saying that if the government put the taxes up to pay for it.

The whole truth, Brighton says...
5:04pm Thu 8 May 08

An almost certain deletion, but its worth a try

There is one thing that seems strangley common to all these incidents . . .

jo, haywards heath says...
5:23pm Thu 8 May 08

Yep, The Whole Truth, you have it in one. It was the first thing that came into my mind too but I'll say it for you. Oh, the joys of multi-cultural society!

william of orange, Brighton says...
5:44pm Thu 8 May 08

The whole truth wrote:
An almost certain deletion, but its worth a try There is one thing that seems strangley common to all these incidents . . .
Well its lasted 30 minutes...lets see if it can last 30 more until The Argus Thought Police parachute into action. Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, delete comments with a click and hoodwink the indigenous population into believing all is well!

Now putting my Inspector Morse hat on what indeed do all these cases have in common...??? Lewis what do you think????

Flat Foot Soozie, Brunswick Square says...
5:47pm Thu 8 May 08

The disgusting people who did this do not deserve to look upon the joy of the world around them. May they lose their eyesight, and totter through a world of darkness, dependent upon others instead of doing these awful things to fellow-beings.

matt, says...
7:00pm Thu 8 May 08

100% agree with Sid. Theiving bar-stewards. An old man? God that's cheap, like stealing sweets from a baby. Well said

Dave, Wivelsfield says...
7:07pm Thu 8 May 08

matt wrote:
100% agree with Sid. Theiving bar-stewards. An old man? God that's cheap, like stealing sweets from a baby. Well said
Almost. The old man needed his money a baby doesn't need sweets.

Hang the bar stewards

What do these people bring to the country???, says...
7:57pm Thu 8 May 08

More than likely some of our new arrivals from Europe using there these methods.

What do these people bring to the country???????

Roy Hills, Heathfield says...
9:58pm Thu 8 May 08

We've had this in Eastbourne. A typical Eastern European crime we're told. Ah me, the benefits of immigration!

grumpy, hove says...
9:45am Fri 9 May 08

And meanwhile, the bank will continue openly to hand over thousands of pounds' worth of cash to elderly customers (who no doubt are very valuable to them), whilst paying no attention at all to the swarthy couple who've been loitering for hours.

S, says...
10:11am Fri 9 May 08

So you think that these kind of crimes wouldn't happen if everyone was white and British?

Idiots.

tobi, brighton says...
10:50am Fri 9 May 08

Flat Foot Soozie wrote:
The disgusting people who did this do not deserve to look upon the joy of the world around them. May they lose their eyesight, and totter through a world of darkness, dependent upon others instead of doing these awful things to fellow-beings.
another stupid pointless comment,wow you realy are a total bore i hope the save ffs argus does not delete my post as it is a honest comment

Debs, B/ton says...
1:39pm Fri 9 May 08

The whole truth wrote:
An almost certain deletion, but its worth a try There is one thing that seems strangley common to all these incidents . . .
Yes, they all got robbed.

Robbie, Brighton says...
2:38pm Fri 9 May 08

S wrote:
So you think that these kind of crimes wouldn't happen if everyone was white and British? Idiots.
No, but it would be a rare occurence

Pull your head out of the sand for gods sake

Moron

stuart newton, says...
3:41pm Fri 9 May 08

I moved to Australia to escape the scum.I realised the only option was to let the dregs have our country.It will never change, its too late.

william of orange, Brighton says...
7:40am Sat 10 May 08

The whole truth wrote:
An almost certain deletion, but its worth a try There is one thing that seems strangley common to all these incidents . . .
strange - the Argus thought police didnt delete this one but they wiped ALL the posts on the story of the illegal immigrant trainee doctor being sent home. (And from what I recall of them, before they were deleted, not one was supportive of him.)
A case of not getting the response they wanted perhaps???

S, says...
9:36am Sat 10 May 08

Robbie wrote:
S wrote: So you think that these kind of crimes wouldn't happen if everyone was white and British? Idiots.
No, but it would be a rare occurence Pull your head out of the sand for gods sake Moron
Oh yeah, I forgot that white British people are incapable of commiting crimes.

I imagine you're a big fan of Mosley?

Sally, Brighton says...
4:24pm Sat 10 May 08

S wrote:
Robbie wrote:
S wrote: So you think that these kind of crimes wouldn\\\'t happen if everyone was white and British? Idiots.
No, but it would be a rare occurence Pull your head out of the sand for gods sake Moron
Oh yeah, I forgot that white British people are incapable of commiting crimes. I imagine you\\\'re a big fan of Mosley?
Head in the sand? S you are buried in it so deep, only your feet are showing.

Its is very worrying when people make daft statements relating to ethnic groups. Im the last person to dam people without good reason, but when it is a well documented fact that the majority of muggings, street robberys, knife and gun crime is carried out by certain ethnic groups (just ask any Policeman if you dont read the papers) its very odd that you instantly come to their defence.

Of course not all are bad - no one is saying that is the case, but sadly criminal activity is part of the lifestyle of many within these groups. Are you aware that most of the illegal sex industry in London has been taken over by east european gangs? There was a recent article in the Argus concerning this starting in Brighton - did you read it?

And yes, I am only too well aware that crime is committed by members of the indigenous population as well. Its just that there is an inproportionate number of offences committed by other groups.

Unless you live an extremely sheltered lifestyle, and never look at TV or read the papers, you MUST be aware of at least some of the facts about the huge amount of crime committed by certain sections of the population.

I have friends in many ethnic groups in Brighton, and even THEY have warned me about the problems that exist amongst their own nationals.

You are either an extreme left wing nutter, or a very very very nieve person that simply doesnt live in the real world. I hope you are the latter, because at least you might learn the facts.

I hope its not for the wrong reason.

S, says...
9:32am Sun 11 May 08

Sally wrote:
S wrote:
Robbie wrote:
S wrote: So you think that these kind of crimes wouldn\\\'t happen if everyone was white and British? Idiots.
No, but it would be a rare occurence Pull your head out of the sand for gods sake Moron
Oh yeah, I forgot that white British people are incapable of commiting crimes. I imagine you\\\'re a big fan of Mosley?
Head in the sand? S you are buried in it so deep, only your feet are showing.

Its is very worrying when people make daft statements relating to ethnic groups. Im the last person to dam people without good reason, but when it is a well documented fact that the majority of muggings, street robberys, knife and gun crime is carried out by certain ethnic groups (just ask any Policeman if you dont read the papers) its very odd that you instantly come to their defence.

Of course not all are bad - no one is saying that is the case, but sadly criminal activity is part of the lifestyle of many within these groups. Are you aware that most of the illegal sex industry in London has been taken over by east european gangs? There was a recent article in the Argus concerning this starting in Brighton - did you read it?

And yes, I am only too well aware that crime is committed by members of the indigenous population as well. Its just that there is an inproportionate number of offences committed by other groups.

Unless you live an extremely sheltered lifestyle, and never look at TV or read the papers, you MUST be aware of at least some of the facts about the huge amount of crime committed by certain sections of the population.

I have friends in many ethnic groups in Brighton, and even THEY have warned me about the problems that exist amongst their own nationals.

You are either an extreme left wing nutter, or a very very very nieve person that simply doesnt live in the real world. I hope you are the latter, because at least you might learn the facts.

I hope its not for the wrong reason.
I'm not saying that I think people from ethnic groups do not commit crimes like this, i'm saying I think that it's racist to say that someone is more likely to commit a crime just because of the colour of their skin. You're 'evidence' to back up your argument consists of 'speak to a policeman' and what you've read in newspapers. If you're simple enough to believe everything you read in the papers then you're almost certainly not worth debating with.

Sally, Brighton says...
4:44pm Sun 11 May 08

You really are having problems understanding this arent you.

I, more so than most people KNOW the FACTS on this, because I work within the Justice system, and I certainly dont judge people on the colour of their skin. But, (simply as an example you might understand) if most car accidents were caused by cars that were one particular colour, all cars of that colour will be treated as being dangerous, even though they are not - are you able to understand that? - no I didnt think you would either.

Sadly it is people like you, that essentially choose to be blind to what is happening in our society, that allow the situtation to escalate. Would you believe there are still people like you making statements about 'deprived upbringing, not given a chance, victims of society etc etc' when talking about knife and gun wielding drug gangs in London?

Its really beyond belief. And please dont keep using the emotive 'racist' word, I doubt if you really understand when it should and should not be used.

Anyway, you are in my view a complete idiot, but despite that I hope you dont become the next victim of the 'bird poo' gang. Wipe it (and the sand) out of your eyes and you may avoid being in the paper yourself.

End of conversation.

Robert, B&H says...
9:15pm Sun 11 May 08

S wrote:
So you think that these kind of crimes wouldn\'t happen if everyone was white and British? Idiots.
I do not understand why Sally even bothered to discuss this matter with you, as it is obvious you are completely cut off from the outside world. Sally never once offered conversation with a Policeman or comment in the press as evidence of what she said, she suggested that as it was obvious you had no knowledge of the real world, you could learn something of the issue by asking a Police officer or refering to news reports. People like you are dangerous, because some of you get into positions of power and get to apply your tunnel vision do-gooding stupidity to other peoples lives. Im sorry 'S' or whatever your name is, but until you accept the fact that taken across the UK, the majority of everyday street crime as well as knife and gun crime is committed by members of ethnic groups, you will continue to be a member of a very very small minority yourself. I would have thought it obvious a serious problem is staring us in the face - not yours of course.

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