Police said bogus roof repairers who fleeced an elderly Canberra woman of thousands of dollars showed signs they belonged to a group of travelling con men known to move up and down Australia's east coast in summer.
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The woman reportedly went to the O'Connor shops and got out some money before the men told her the whole roof needed to be repaired, at a cost of $3500.
The men then drove the woman to the Commonwealth Bank on London Circuit, Civic, where she withdrew more cash, police said.
When the trio returned to the home, the men said they were going to get lunch. The woman never saw them again.
ACT Policing crime reduction unit officer-in-charge Daryl Neit said the incident had all the hallmarks of an international gang of door-to-door scammers who often travelled from Britain and Ireland.
Sergeant Neit said there were reports in recent months that the criminals had preyed on NSW and Victorian residents with empty promises to lay bitumen and carry out home repairs or paint jobs.
"They're very much the English or Irish lad - they're very persuasive and very charming," Sergeant Neit said.
"They're very practised at what they do, they've been doing this for a long time.
"They'll often target older people because they're a bit more vulnerable."
Sergeant Neit said the men often homed in on owners of older homes in inner-city suburbs such as Turner, O'Connor and Ainslie.
"They'll look for the older home, they'll look for an unkempt garden or an unmown lawn because they're signs there's someone elderly there who can't handle the upkeep."
"If you have elderly parents or relatives, sometimes you do have to mow the lawn, paint the fence, or put a security door on for them, and you do need to talk to them about these kinds of scams."
Sergeant Neit said many elderly people who got swindled by scammers didn't report it to police, or even tell their families, because they were often distraught and embarrassed.
"We need to get those reports so we can track them down and get them before the courts.
"They're very savvy as to how long they can stay in a place before it gets too hot with police."
He was saddened, but not surprised, that such groups would take advantage of elderly people.
"I don't know how they do it and I don't know how they sleep at night."
On Monday police released a face-fit of one of the men involved in the Turner incident.
They described him as Caucasian, in his 30s, about 179cm tall and of medium build. He was fair, with light brown hair and an Irish accent.
Police believe the incident might be linked to the warnings about a travelling con man named "John" who claimed to work for "J&J Roofing" and offered roof painting and restoration work to Canberrans.
Last week Attorney-General Simon Corbell issued a warning about the man and said residents continued to be ripped off by "itinerant traders" who knocked on doors and offered house maintenance and repairs.
ACT Victims of Crime Commissioner John Hinchey said the organisation had noted a small jump in the number of elderly people it supported through financial, online and door-to-door scams in recent years.
"I believe that this is because some are very isolated from the community and missing social contact; or they are less experienced with the details of such things as safe internet use."
The ACT Office of Regulatory Services has advised residents to be cautious when they were approached by door-to-door salespeople, avoid up-front cash payments, ask for a written contract, and write down the person's name and car licence plate.
Any information can be reported anonymously to Crime Stoppers, 1800 333 000, or act.crimestoppers.com.au.
