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Parisian teenagers flash, steal cash
Let's start with the lesson first: if you're going to Paris, take out all the cash you need at home. There's a new scam at work ... using the oldest trick in the book.Think about the last time you went to a gentlemen's club. As breasts went bare, men parted with their money. It's utterly predictable. Now, assume you have two girls who can't dance – and aren't old enough to become strippers. How could they employ this technique for financial gain?
Two 14-year-olds in Paris figured out a way.
In the Sixth Arrondissement, the duo set out to distract ATM users and swipe their cash. After waving a newspaper at one person, according to a Reuters report, one of the criminal masterminds "allegedly opened her shirt and grabbed his [the user's] genital area, while her accomplice took the 300 euros (about $385) that the machine spit out."
And this isn't the first time they used the technique. They did the same thing to lift 500 euros from a female ATM user. Taking the scam to a new low, however, they enlisted the help of an even younger accomplice.
While USA Today offers a handful of tips for avoiding ATM-related theft in Europe, here's a good one: keep your eyes off the jailbait.
[photo by jonklinger via Flickr]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
ouj Aug 22nd 2010 3:39AM
The Parisian teenagers are probably gypsies from East Europe. They are a major nuisance in all big European cities. Political correctness prevents European media from telling what is really meant by "teenagers". Instead, they choose to indicate that the thiefs are French.
Be extra careful at ATMs as these "teenagers" can be really arrogant and downright aggressive, even in broad daylight. Sometimes they come in pairs of groups of three and start a hassle around you, trying to get your money, your card, your wallet, your phone, everything.