Officers have arrested two people after an elderly woman from Bath was conned out of thousands of pounds.

The 78-year-old victim received a call last Thursday from a man posing as a police officer.

He convinced her to attend her bank and withdraw a large quantity of money and a courier called at her house to pick the money up.

The police were alerted to the incident and have made two arrests – a sixteen-year-old boy on suspicion of fraud by

false representation and a 28-year-old man on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud.

Acting Det Insp Dave Lewis said: “The two people have been questioned and released under investigation while we progress with our enquiries.

“We would like to use this incident as a reminder to people to be wary of fraudsters posing as police, or in some cases, utility company officials or banks, in order to con vulnerable people out of money.

“It is also important people ensure their elderly friends and neighbours know what to look out for to avoid falling victim to a scam and have the confidence to challenge cold callers and check their authenticity.”