The Man at Her Door was NOT who
he Claimed to Be
Doberman was protection
BREA - The man said he was from the gas company, but Susan Luttrell of
Brea and her Doberman pinscher knew better.
"Right off, I thought 'You are giving me a big line of hogwash," said Mrs.
Luttrell as she recalled the recent visit paid her and her dog, Liebshon.
The man who knocked on her condominium at 373 Meadow Court was dressed in
light blue clothing similar to the style worn by Southern California Gas
Co. employees.
But he had no insignia designating his affiliation with the utility, so
she immediately became suspicious when he said he had been sent to the
area to examine faulty furnaces - especially because the condominiums are
all-electric.
Her misgivings about the man proved true.
And, Mrs. Luttrell was thankful Liebshon - who she has only owned eight
weeks - was trained to scare off unsavory characters, because that is
exactly what she had to do.
Even though Mrs. Luttrell denied the man entry, he moved forward to come
in.
The 3-year old Doberman immediately went into the air, bared her teeth and
growled - sending out a frightening warning.
Mrs. Luttrell added to the dog's message by saying, "You make one more
step in here and you'll get more than gas."With that, the supposed gas man
took off and Mrs. Luttrell promptly reported the incident to the police.
Hal Walton, district manager for the Southern California Gas Co., said at
the time the incident occurred it appeared to be isolated to Brea.
However, since then, similar reports have been made in Fullerton.
"We do have rashes of these every once in a while. People trust the
utilities and some people use that to get into your home." warned Walton.
Unless the person knocking on the door has identification, Walton said;
residents should never let them in. Customers also shouldn't be afraid to
call to confirm if an individual is an employee, he said.
Mrs. Luttrell agreed, but she also was darn proud of her dog for
protecting her. "I'm so happy I'm going to buy her a blue ribbon."
