A campaign by the East Anglian Daily Times in Ipswich has helped slash the number of elderly people suffering ‘bogus caller’ burglaries.

The Safe in Your Home campaign was launched to raise awareness of the crime across Suffolk after a steep rise in the number of people becoming victims.

The newspaper highlighted the often devastating effects the thefts have on the mainly elderly people who are targeted by the criminals, who struck almost 300 times last year.

The campaign also focused on a new unit set up by Suffolk Police to deal with the problem, and in conjunction with the police the EADT produced a laminated card for people to put up inside their homes reminding them to check every caller’s identity. Hundreds of the cards have been distributed across the area.

Between April 1 and July 11 there were 51 distraction burglaries in Suffolk, around half the 98 in the same period last year.

Chief Inspector Mark Cordell praised the newspaper’s efforts in raising the issue and said that it had been a ‘tremendous help’ in the battle against bogus callers.

Deputy editor Dominic Castle said: “It is a relatively low-profile campaign, but if it helps the more vulnerable members of our community feel a little more secure in their homes then it is well worth doing.”

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