As per your point on the profiling--I remember reading, about 15 or so years ago, an article in the Philadelphia Inqurier about how waves of gypsies thieves poured into the delaware valley and committed all manner of petty thieveries and crimes within a few blocks of the PA turnpike ramp--there was great detail on how the crimes were set up, what was taken, and, owing to the gypsies parapetetic natures, the helplessness of prosecutors and law enforcement--

I worked one of the areas mentioned, actually within walking distance of the toll booth, and had cause to wonder--we did get all manner of travelling peddler, magazine salesmen, truck sellers, and the like, but I had never remembered any gypsies coming around. I dutifully checked the local police blotter, the crime reports in the local paper, and came up blank. A call to the paper revealed the Montogmery county prosecutor's office as the source, they said that it might have come from one of the local jurisdictions, around and around--never could find anyone who knew anything about it, but it had been all over the paper--