THE TALL SWEDE JOURNAL FRIDAY, AUGUST 1, 1997 A3
		Street Perils: If it seems too good to be true…run!
		NAPLES, Italy–Pssssst.. Come ’ere. A brand new Sony video with flip-out color screen. In the box. $250. Here, have a look, try it out. Look, here’s the box, and all the accessories. Battery, a/c adapter, microphone. Only $225? Mama mia! Okay, it’s yours! Here, we’ll put it in the box for you, see? And a bag so you can carry it easily. Okay, thank you very much. Here’s your bag.  You saw him put the camera in the box. You saw him put the box in the bag. So how did you end up with a sack of salt?  A better question: What were you doing trying to buy a thousand dollar video camera on a street corner in Naples? What were you thinking?  Yes, the seller looked like a decent man, he seemed okay. But that wasn’t his son with him, it was his partner; and their performance together is as precise as a tango. Not only that, there are four or five teams per corner in the hottest areas, competing with such subtlety you’d never suspect they’re running a scam. After all, if they let on, you’re not likely to buy from any of them.  As usual, observation tells the story. The swindler approaches you with the camera and, once you take it in your hands, he summons his partner, who brings a plastic shopping bag through which you can see the box. The box is opened before you and you see that it contains the accessories. How can you go wrong? You’ll take it! You place the camera yourself in the box, tuck in the flap. You dig for your cash, which you cleverly placed in a			A con man on a Naples street corner offers a deal some can’t refuse–but later wish they had. pouch beneath your shirt, or in a money belt, or in your sock. You offer the money and take the bag. You even shake hands.  What you never noticed was the critical switch. You were intentionally distracted for an eyeblink, while the “son” passed by with an identical box in an identical bag. The bags were swopped It’s the classic “bait and switch.”  You might think it difficult to fall for a scam like this one, but we saw four men fall victim in half a day on a single corner. Ship crewmen are primary targets as the con men know their ships depart shortly after the purchase and it’t unlikely they’ll return. However, ordinary tourists are at risk also.
			The Tall Swede Journal.  An informative newspaper about Bob Arno, comedy pickpocket entertainer extraordinaire. Written and edited by Bambi Vincent.