QUICK-THINKING supermarket staff have foiled fraudsters who targeted an elderly man.

Members of staff at Morrisons in Barton-on-Sea approached a 75-year-old man who was attempting to buy £375-worth of gift vouchers on Friday, January 6.

They soon realised he was the victim of a scam, stopped him buying the vouchers and called the police.

Fraudsters had told the man to pay a fee, in the form of gift vouchers, in order to access a refund in payment protection insurance (PPI) money.

Police say it is a new twist on an older scam, which saw offenders calling victims and telling them they had an outstanding tax bill and needed to pay it off by buying gift vouchers in order to avoid being arrested.

Hampshire police crime prevention advisor Sarah Cohen said: “We are extremely grateful to the staff at Morrisons who realised something was wrong.

"Thanks to their quick actions, this man was spared from spending hundreds of pounds on a scam."

She added: "If you receive a call from a person claiming that you need to purchase gift vouchers - usually iTunes vouchers - in order to make a payment, then please hang up.

"It is a scam."