Pair disguised as police robbing houses

They knock or ring the doorbell. Then they flash their badges, show off their gun, and announce that they are searching for drugs or illegal immigrants or collecting donations for a police charity.

But they are not police officers; they are robbers. And at least a dozen times in the last four months, the man with the chipped tooth and his partner with the mustache have used their bogus status as authority figures to gain entry into a home, push everyone into a room, and go from room to room pocketing jewelry, cash, and ATM cards.

Police say the robbers are targeting illegal immigrants who they assume are too afraid to report the crimes and are likely to keep most of their savings at home.

The string of burglaries has sent fear coursing through immigrant neighborhoods in East Boston, Chelsea, and Everett, where residents said the crimes have shattered their sense of safety. On Sunday, the robbers struck again, at a second-floor apartment on Broadway in Chelsea. They knocked, flashed their badges, said they were searching for drugs, and stole $1,000.

"Everybody is scared," said Jorge Camey, a 42-year-old Honduran immigrant who lives near the latest victim. "This neighborhood is supposed to be safe. But right now they're all scared, and they just don't want to open their doors."

In addition to carrying a gun and badges, the robbers look like plainclothes detectives by wearing Bluetooth earpieces and carrying papers tucked in a folder.

Jose Lima, a 26-year-old Salvadoran immigrant who lives in East Boston and said he is here legally, said he was at home on Dec. 9 when the robbers knocked on his door. His son answered, and the men flashed the badges around their necks, showed off a piece of paper, and said they were looking for a man named Jose.

Once inside, one of the men ushered Lima, his two sons, and his wife into the living room, told them to sit down and not to move, while the other man stood sentry at the door. Lima noticed that the first man had a gun on his hip. He started barking questions at the Limas: Did they have immigration papers? Did they have a car? A driver's license? Were they here legally?

While he interrogated the family, he repeatedly darted into a back bedroom and returned with more questions. Turning to Lima's teenage son, the man demanded: Did you sell marijuana? Did you smoke marijuana? They boy said no, but the robber grabbed a broom and started sweeping the boy's bedroom, saying he was going to find marijuana leaves.

After 30 minutes, the robbers left, shut the door lightly, and told the family not to move because they would be back. After five minutes, the Limas called police and searched their house. The robbers had stolen $385 from a purse belonging to Lima's wife, three pairs of her gold earrings, $200 from a box of cash, and a $150 camera, Jose Lima said.

A few weeks later, the robbers were back in East Boston. On Dec. 31, they rang a doorbell on Bremen Street, said they were from Immigration Services, and showed a photo of a man printed with the words Dominican Republic. After the victim opened the door, they pushed their way in, scoured the house, and made off with $1,600.

Chelsea police Captain Keith Houghton said the robbers are targeting illegal immigrants, almost as if they are working off a list. He said investigators believe there may have been many more robberies by the duo that were never reported because the victims were afraid of being deported.

The two are being investigated in connection with five robberies in Boston, five in Chelsea, and two in Everett. The latest robberies are similar to robberies last summer by a man in Chelsea who accosted immigrants on the street, flashing a badge and ordering victims to hand over wallets. That man was arrested in Alabama in August.

Houghton said the Chelsea police are working with police in Boston and Everett to solve the latest robberies and reassure residents that the police will not ask about immigration status if they come forward to report a crime.

"All we want to do is catch these guys," Houghton said yesterday. "We're not going to ask them about their status."

Yesterday, at the Chelsea Collaborative, an organization that helps immigrants find housing and employment, people were on edge. Staff passed out composite sketches of the robbers to anyone who walked in the door, and counseled residents not to let anyone claiming to be police into their homes without a search warrant.

Executive Director Gladys Vega said she told her 12-year-old son not to let anyone professing to be an officer into their house and showed him a place to hide if the robbers gained entry.

"Whoever is doing this is not stupid," Vega said. "He knows who he is targeting, and he knows what message to use so he can get people to open the door."