Dover residents are being advised to stay alert to strangers selling high-value electronic equipment on the streets following two misleading incidents.

The police are looking into two scenarios where members of the public have been approached by men offering to sell computer equipment and smart phones for cash.

On both occasions the buyers did not come away with what they thought they had paid for.

On March 10 a man in his 30s was walking along Pencester Road when he was approached by a man asking if he wanted to buy an iPhone and a laptop.

They both proceeded to Charlton Shopping Centre and entered a nearby car park where the goods were shown from a dark coloured van.

After agreeing a price, the items were placed in the man's back pack.

The man, who had unknowingly been conned, then withdrew cash from a machine and went on his way. It wasn’t until he checked the contents, that he found the boxes to contain cardboard and potatoes.

The following day, March 11, the same offer was made to another member of the public in Ashford, where the buyer found several pieces of cardboard and a fizzy drink in its place.

The police would like to hear from anyone who may have been approached in recent weeks in similar circumstances.