Tom Tom had just checked out and was heading out of the hotel lobby. He hadn’t intended to stop, but he wasn’t the kind of guy to shun a happy, loved-up couple. After all, who’s too busy to take a photo for a couple of strangers? Well, he would have been back in the day, but he had since learned that life is better when you stop to smell the roses and help people. Achieving great success and accumulating enough wealth never to have to work another day unless he wanted to had certainly helped. He assumed that was why they had asked him; because he looked like a nice guy with enough time to stop and help. That and the fact he was standing nearby. ‘Excuse me, sir,’ the young woman had said, glowing. She was just the right amount of bubbly. Enough to be charismatic, but not enough to be irritating. ‘Would you mind?’ She held out the camera the couple had been using to take selfies. ‘Could you take our picture?’ the young man clarified. He was also glowing, and he looked the friendly type. Tom immediately liked them both. ‘Yes, of course,’ he responded, his voice automatically becoming as chirpy as theirs. He rested his suitcase on the ground beside him and placed his phone and coat on top of it to free up his hands. Then he took hold of the camera and waited for them to pose. He took a couple of photos, then showed the couple, who fawned over each other. They twisted and turned in pursuit of better backdrops for the photos that would forever remind them of the morning after their first night as a married couple. Tom inched himself this way and that, attempting to capture the excited couple’s ever-changing poses. Feeling happy to have been able to share in and contribute to this lovely couple’s special experience, Tom turned back to collect his belongings from the ground where he had laid them. But they were gone! There was an initial moment of confusion, then sheer panic set in. A few more glances around confirmed his fears. His bags had disappeared, along with his clothes, shoes, toiletries, laptop, tablet and wallet. Even his phone was gone. The other guests and staff milling around became aware of Tom’s panic, including the young newly-weds, who gasped as they realised what had happened. The moved in awkwardly, as if to help, but there was nothing they could do. ‘My bags!’ Tom exclaimed. Then, louder, ‘My bags!’ He could feel his pulse raising, his skin tingling. His body felt tight, as if it were somehow in his way. More people moved towards him to offer help or to sympathise. ‘Has anyone seen my bags?’ he frantically asked the room. ‘Here!’ said a smartly dressed man, hurriedly handing Tom a phone. ‘My sister’s a detective. She’ll sort you out . . . track your cards and so on. This is a direct line to her office.’ Tom pressed the man’s phone to his ear, realising how hot his face had become. After two or three rings, a woman answered the phone. ‘Hello?’ she said, not recognising Tom’s voice when he returned her greeting. ‘Detective Inspector Bennet speaking.’ ‘Hello, Detective. My name’s Tom. Your brother put me on to you because all my belongings have been stolen. My phone, my bank cards, everything!’ He couldn’t force his voice to stop shaking. He suddenly realised that panic was giving way to anger. Someone had taken his things. Someone had stolen them! ‘OK, sir,’ she said calmly. ‘When did this happen?’ ‘Just now. It literally just happened, I . . . my stuff . . . ’ he stammered. He looked down at the floor again, as if hoping his belongings would suddenly reappear and he could end the call. ‘OK, that’s good. We can track your phone and cards. We might even be lucky enough to get an image of the thief at a till or a cashpoint. I’m just going to need a few details from you.’ The calmness and authority in her voice made Tom feel calmer, and something suddenly switched inside him. He felt his muscles relax, even though he hadn’t noticed them tensing up. His breathing slowed and he regained control of his voice. He breathed a deep sigh of relief, taking in the sounds of Detective Inspector Barratt’s office in the background, feeling reassured that someone else was taking control. Tom shared his details with the officer, giving her his address, date of birth, account details and everything else she needed to know. Then he hung up and thanked the helpful gentleman as he handed back the phone. He looked around for the young couple but they had gone. He hadn’t noticed them leave amid all the drama. He didn’t blame them; it had hardly been a celebration-friendly incident. What Tom didn’t know was that the young couple, the man with the phone and the woman at the other end of the phone were all working together to not only steal his property, but to obtain the personal details they needed to access his accounts electronically. The couple – who weren’t really a couple at all – had faked being newly-weds by highlighting their wedding ring fingers and fawning all over each other, pretending to care about backdrops so they could subtly coax Tom into turning his back on his luggage. They hadn’t been able to believe their luck when he put his phone and pricey coat down on top of his case. With his back turned, an inconspicuous woman had casually swooped in behind Tom, picking up everything he had been carrying and calmly walking out of the hotel lobby. The same lady had loaded Tom’s things into her van, then jumped into the passenger seat and turned on the sound system, which had been preset to play office sounds. Within seconds, her phone had rung. She had taken the call, pretending to be Detective Inspector Barratt, and noted down all of Tom’s details, reassuring him that he could relax and trust her to prioritise his case. Then she had hung up with a smile on her face. Moments later, another member of the team – the ‘brother’ – had opened the driver’s door and got in. Having waited nearby for a while, the young ‘couple’ had joined them and they had calmly driven away. Worst of all, Tom was under the impression that his phone was being tracked by the police, so he didn’t report or try to track it himself. He also believed his accounts were being tracked and would be blocked, giving the con artists time to take all his money and sell his property long before he was able to check his accounts. What a mess!
