Residents have been told to be on the lookout for a scammer after an elderly man had £5,000 stolen.

The 79-year-old man fell victim to a courier scam on Tuesday, May 21, where £5,000 was stolen from him.

The victim received a phone call from somebody claiming to be a police officer, saying his card was being used fraudulently.

He was then told to put the phone down and redial 101 to verify it was a genuine police call, but the line remained open and the suspect stayed on the line.

The victim later withdrew £5,000 cash from his bank and placed it in an envelope having been told that somebody would attend his address to collect the money for forensic examination.

A man later attended posing as a courier and drove off with the victim’s money.

The suspect collected the money from the victim at about 3pm on Tuesday, May 21, at his home in Shirley Road.

The suspect was described as a white man, 5ft 8in, with short brown hair.

He was said to be wearing white trainers, blue jeans and a grey top and drove off in a dark Audi vehicle.

Detective Sergeant Kenny Windsor, and Detective Constable Lylie Edwards from Croydon police are investigating the case and have urged witnesses to come forward.

Det Supt Windsor said: “The victim in this case has handed over the best part of his life savings to fraudsters.

“It is an elaborate scam so it is important that people are aware so they can prevent themselves becoming a victim.

“If you have any elderly or vulnerable friends or relatives, please make them aware they should never give out their bank card, PIN or attend a cash machine and withdraw money like this - police will never ask people to do this.”

Anyone with information should call police on 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.