Widow's Warning: Thieves Wait To Break In During Funeral Service

GARDEN GROVE (CBSLA.com) — At 87, Beverly Singer is packing up memories, moving from her lifelong home after a series of unfortunate events.

Her husband of nearly 66 years, Melville singer, recently passed away.

But when she and her family came home from his funeral service, they found that their home had been broken into.

Heirloom jewelry and her late husband's possessions were gone.

"I couldn't believe, stuff all over the floor," said Singer. "I mean, clothes that were out of the cupboards and so forth."

She admits that with all the chaos, her family may have left a door open. But police say it's likely the suspects were obituary thieves, who scan the obituaries to see when homeowners will be gone.

"How could anybody be so cruel to walk into a person's home that is suffering from a death?" Singer wondered.

And that's not the only time the Singers were victimized.

Melville Singer died while police were investigating Robert Thanh Trinh, a contractor police say conned them into home repairs they didn't need and forged their names while the Singers were in the hospital, stealing nearly $50,000.

"He was very convincing, and we thought we had somebody that we could trust," Singer said.

Trinh has been arrested, but the burglars are still on the loose.

To avoid becoming a victim, police recommend not listing the date or time of the service. But Singer says that wasn't an option for them. So, instead they have their own advice: "Somebody's got to be here," Singer said. "You cannot have an empty house, because that's a wonderful invitation for somebody to break in."