Dave Van de Walle wrote to "Going Public" about a possible scam on the Red Line. Van de Walle said he witnessed this incident on Monday morning.
Though "GP" typically redacts personal information about passengers and drivers such as race, we're making an exception so these alleged scammers can be found. Van de Walle's letter continues after the jump.
"Was coming back from a meeting downtown and got on the CTA at the State/Lake Red Line stop. Door opened, headed toward the back of the car to stand. Then all heck broke loose.
A short African-American gentleman, maybe all of 5'3", was halfway into the train car and a hubbub ensued.
Two women and a man began trying to help him, as his foot was 'stuck' between the platform and the train car. ...
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Alleged scam on the Red Line
Another African-American gentleman came to the aid from outside the car
-- and, after probably fifteen seconds, the two women (one in her 50s,
one in her 20s) and the Caucasian guy who was in the car (probably 25) were
able to help the man free his foot from the train car.
He got on the train -- then got right back off.
So there I was, feeling like a bit of a fool because I had come to help, but was late to the party and the other three did all the work. I thanked them for coming to the guy's aid.
Then, our 25 year-old friend inside the car uttered the words I'll never forget:
'They took my wallet.'
Yes, he had been hoodwinked. As had the rest of us.
Thankfully for the young man, he only had one credit card in his wallet -- from Chase, whose number was one I saved on my Blackberry.
I tweeted immediately, and offered to help the guy any way I could."
He got on the train -- then got right back off.
So there I was, feeling like a bit of a fool because I had come to help, but was late to the party and the other three did all the work. I thanked them for coming to the guy's aid.
Then, our 25 year-old friend inside the car uttered the words I'll never forget:
'They took my wallet.'
Yes, he had been hoodwinked. As had the rest of us.
Thankfully for the young man, he only had one credit card in his wallet -- from Chase, whose number was one I saved on my Blackberry.
I tweeted immediately, and offered to help the guy any way I could."
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6 Comments
GeekToMe said:
I was once pick-pocketed this exact same way when I was in high school years ago. Funny how the scams never change. Funny = sad.
Message from Montie said:
Besides him being African-American and short, what other characteristics did he have? I can point out way too many people who look like that. (Terrible that they took his wallet though.)
Message from Montie said:
Just a quick question. When you start noting race, it makes sense to do so to identify someone for something like pickpocketing, but why didn't you also identify the race of the women or the age of the pickpocketer? If you're going to do it, do it all around for all parties involved. A short black man could be 17 or 74.
Tracy Swartz said:
Hi Montie,
I get a handful of e-mails each week from riders who complain about bad customer service on buses and in rail stations.
Often, riders don't know to get the employees' badge numbers, which is very helpful when telling the CTA the complaint or the compliment.
Instead, riders often provide a physical description of the employee including race, weight and height. I redact all that information when posting rider letters to this blog. I do allow gender.
In this case, I made an exception because I want riders to be aware of who to look out for on the train. I posted the information the reader gave me and have asked him for more information.
If he send more description, I will add to the post.
Thanks,
Tracy
Dave Van de Walle said:
Hi, Dave here.
Thing one: I would estimate the man to be of medium build, salt-and-pepper hair, in his mid-50s. Was wearing a blue sweater and light blue-jeans. Black sneakers.
I believe that my original email did indeed give the race of at least the pickpocket victim -- he and the two other women who helped come to the guy's aide were white. As am I.
But I understand where Montie is coming from as well as the position Tracy is in: when and whether to share information about race, gender, age, etc.
Mary G said:
Take this as a lesson to be aware of everyone around you on the CTA since anyone can be a pickpocket, regardless of race. And even if these guys are caught, there could be separate pickpocketers out there.
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