Sri Lanka - Street Based Scams - Con-Men / Women - Confidence Tricksters

It is all to easy to become the target of unscrupulous people anywhere in the world and you won't be the first to be conned in a Colombo street scam!

Street scams are usually carried out by smart clean looking mature males or even females.

You will be approached at popular tourist siteseeing spots anywhere in Sri Lanka.

The con artist will probably be carrying an attache case or plastic carrier bag in which he carries his props for the scam(s).

Scam #1 - I am a ...... (some official - off duty today) but come to my office for tea or something, I will show you what I do for a living / help you understand the life here in Sri Lanka / show you some places that tourists don't normally go - He will take you to an (expensive) hotel or restaurant - as his office is too far away to walk - and order drinks. After some convivial conversation and you (obviously) want to move on, you offer to pay for the drinks out of gratitude for the pleasant company and 'information'. When the bill is presented it is extraordinaraly expensive, as the con-man has asked for some european cigarettes to be added to the order, in sinhalese and said he will pick them up as we leave (so they aren't brought to the table). You don't want to make a fuss, so you let it ride after all it's only a packet of cigarettes (and he's such a nice chap!), he will probably get the money back for them, sell or use the cigarettes later to hook a tourist smoker with the offer of a cigarette etc....

Scam #2 - My family own a tea plantation in / near Kandy (because you have heard of Kandy - everyone has) you must come and stay at our tea plantation as a guest for free. I will get my (member of the family) to send you some Ceylon tea..... chatter chatter about tea, Kandy etc......... give me your UK *address and he will send it for sure, as a gift, but we have to pay export tax on tea - to make it worth while we will send five kilos but you will pay the tax please ... it is 115 rupees per kilo (about 50p) - he makes about £2.50 and gets your address to sell on.

Scam #3 - Usually comes after a while in conversation. "See this photo" (shows you group of Sri Lankans - could be any group or team, even a band or orchestra). "See this man here, he was playing cricket and a ball hit him in the knee a couple of years ago, his knee didn't heal, he was diagnosed with bone cancer, they took his leg off here" (showing you where the leg was removed). "The guys at the ...(place or office where the con man claims to work) are sponsoring the charity that is helping him to get a false limb, would you care to help him .... (the con man produces a sponsorship form with a list of names and invites you to 'sponsor' - of course you will have to give him the money; as you do!).

Lines to put you at your ease:

"I am a Buddhist and our religion teaches you to be a good person", "what goes around comes around", etc....

"I have many foreign friends" (presents a little pile of business cards many with home addresses on the back - see above. / shows you an address book full of names from around the world.

Getting information out of you through 'harmless' chat:

"Is your hotel good, where are you staying"?

"Is your family here with you"?

"How long are you here"?

"When do you go home"?

Be as vague as possible here, you are being spied upon! Are you rich pickings?

Never give any personal details, bank details, credit card numbers etc to anyone you don't know on first meeting.

We apologise for the repetition of some place or proper names with different spellings, but there is no definitive spelling translation of these words.

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The conflict between the Government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE, commonly known as “the Tamil Tigers”) ended in May 2009. Although the conflict is over, the LTTE are believed to retain some capability to mount terrorist attacks such as grenade or explosive device attacks and shootings. The Government has relaxed the State of Emergency, under which it has extensive anti-terrorism powers but there are still heightened levels of security (e.g. checkpoints, road blocks) throughout the country. You should exercise a high level of vigilance. The risk for the most part is one of being caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. In order to minimise this, you should avoid military, government and paramilitary locations. Always carry formal photographic identification with you. Stop and show your ID when asked to do so. If you are detained, you should ask the authorities to contact the British High Commission.

Fatal attacks linked to the LTTE occurred throughout the country into 2009. Most attacks have been directed against Government and military targets though a number have been focussed on civilian targets such as crowded public places, public transport and market areas. Some of the most significant attacks included a suicide bomb at a political gathering in March 2009 and an air raid on military targets in Colombo in February 2009.

JeGraNet.com statement - 15 October 2008 - Quote from the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office website: "There is a high threat from terrorism in Sri Lanka. Fatal attacks have become more frequent. They have occurred in Colombo and throughout Sri Lanka, including places frequented by expatriate and foreign travellers. Further attacks may occur at any time. There is an increasing risk of British nationals being caught up in an attack". As independent travellers we left Colombo after just 9 days into our planned 6 month stay as a result of a feeling of insecurity, however we are sure that 'package tour' travellers to tourist resorts will probably enjoy a worry free holiday.