A con artist pretending to be a police officer defrauded an elderly woman out of £53,000 by asking her to buy two premium watches from Bluewater.

She was contacted this month and after making the purchases was told to hand the Rolex models to a waiting courier.

Police say this is one of a number of similar incidents in Kent in recent months, with elderly victims handing over cash after being tricked into thinking they were helping with an investigation.

Courier frauds usually start with a criminal calling your home and pretending to be a police officer and claiming your account is being used to pay for goods you did not order.

They also normally tell you that your bank is in on the scam and is harbouring counterfeit money, and they need your help to investigate.

You will then be asked to withdraw the cash from your account so it can be used as evidence, with arrangements made for a courier to come and collect it from you.

Variations on the scam involve people claiming to be from Trading Standards, your local bank or other organisations in a position of trust.

Detective Inspector Annie Clayton said: "Offenders who engage in courier fraud prey on the most vulnerable members of society.

"We are currently conducting enquiries into this incident and others but would like to remind people how to spot a fraudulent phone call.

"Police officers will never request your bank details or ask you to withdraw money for any reason. We will also never ask you to transfer money, purchase goods on our behalf or send someone to your home to collect your cash, PIN, payment card or cheque book.

"If you are given any of these instructions, it is a fraudulent approach. Hang up, wait five minutes to clear the line or use a different phone and then call your bank or card issuer on their advertised numbers to report the fraud."