"It's unbelievable:" Couple scammed twice in less than four months, losing much of their savings

KENOSHA -- An elderly couple was scammed twice in less than four months. The husband and wife say both times, the thieves pretended to offer a service -- and then stole cash out of the couple's home. The Kenosha couple estimates their losses add up to nearly $30,000.

Pat and Harold Addison have been married for 56 years. They say the last two years, they've been sad at Christmas. This year, they've been scammed out of much of their savings. Last year, they lost something even more precious.

Their home adorned with Christmas decorations outside, and cardinals and angels inside, you'd think on Christmas Eve, Pat and Harold Addison would be feeling festive.

Not so much.

"Nothing interests me," Pat Addison said.

Their cheer, and their savings were drained on Monday afternoon, December 21st -- just days before Christmas, by three men who came to their back door.

"They said `where`s Buzz?` I said `oh, you`re from cable` because that`s who we were expecting," Pat Addison said.

The Addisons say one of the men distracted Pat, while another distracted Harold, and the Addisons believe it was the third man who took the safe from their home.

"I just went in there to check and the safe was gone. Nothing you could do about it I guess," Harold Addison said.

The safe contained $19,000 and their social security cards.

The Addisons believe these thieves are connected to the men who came by in early September -- offering to do cement work along the driveway.

"I wanted to get it done and get him out of here is what I wanted to do," Harold Addison said.

Harold says he paid the men $2,000 for the job -- but using a similar distraction technique, the men took about $12,000 from a cash box.

Concrete work at the Addisons' home

The Addisons think that's when they discovered the safe.

"They didn`t have time to take it the first time, you know?" Pat Addison said.

All of this happened a year after the Addisons suffered an even more devastating loss.

"We lost a daughter," Pat Addison said.

Jackie died in September 2014 from an aneurysm.

Jackie Addison

While money doesn't compare to loved ones, the loss of $29,000 has left the Addisons hoping no one else becomes a victim.

"It`s unbelievable people would do that. I always figured you had to work for your money," Harold Addison said.

Kenosha police confirm they are investigating both of these incidents.

As for why the Addisons had so much cash at home -- the couple grew up in the Depression era, and say they don't fully trust banks.

Plus, Harold was setting aside cash to pay off his truck -- and now, he doesn't know how he'll make those payments.