DETROIT – I’m sure like me you were horrified to hear about the murder of an Oakland County man last week -- he was killed in his own home after letting in what he thought were DTE employees warning of a gas leak.
The investigation is ongoing but I feel like this is a good time to remind people about the importance of security at home. These men preyed on emotion warning of a potential danger that really did not exist.
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It was enough to be able to gain access to the home. Today, I spent some time talking with our Local 4 security expert, Darnell Backburn. Darnell knows how criminals work and getting his insight and safety tips is critical.
The single most important thing we like to remind people is you don’t need to answer the door. We often feel like we need to but we don’t.
In 2016 we took the fake worker scenario and worked with police to put people to the test. In fact, I posed as a fake utility worker and I was stunned by the results which is why we wanted to share this video once again.
People felt compelled to let me into their homes even though I didn’t have ID or a concrete reason to enter, but I was wearing a hard hat and yellow vest so for some that was enough. It’s important to remember the safety tips in this piece and the information shared by Darnell in order to stay safe at home.
I will see you live today at 4 and 6 p.m.