Fraudsters dressed as police have conned an elderly couple into handing over money from their bank account.

The couple from Ditton, near Aylesford, were tricked after receiving a phone call on Tuesday, August 12, from a man asking for help in investigating money laundering.

He requested they withdraw cash from their account to use as evidence, and a courier visited their house to collect the money.

Since then a 63-year-old man and a 82-year-old woman from Maidstone have come forward saying they were also targeted by the scam on Tuesday, August 26.

Police could not reveal exactly how much was taken but on all three occasions quantities of cash were stolen and in at least one case the amount handed over ran into the thousands.

On some occasions after the telephone conversation has ended, the fraudsters stay on the line while their victim calls what they believe to be their bank – only to provide their security details to the caller.

One of the recent Maidstone victims has helped officers produce a computer-generated image of the courier who turned up at his home to collect the cash.

Detective Constable Claire Davey said: “We are now linking these offences and would like to hear from anyone with any information about whom they think may be responsible.

“While this type of fraud has been committed in numerous locations across the UK in recent months, we now believe the same people may be responsible for targeting several different victims in Kent.

“We are reminding everyone to be on their guard against those who may attempt to deceive you, and to call us for verification if you are not confident somebody claiming to be a Kent Police officer is genuine.

“If you receive one of these calls, end it immediately and wait at least five minutes before using your telephone in order to clear your line from the scammer. You should also never hand over any money or items to a courier as a result of this type of call.”

Anyone with information should call PC Chris Waterfall on 01622 604492 quoting reference number SI/YY/3619/14. Alternatively call Kent Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.