AN ELDERLY couple have been left in shock after they were conned out of their £40,000 life savings during a distraction burglary.

Three men attended the couple’s address on Pinehurst Road, West Moors, at around 1pm on Monday, February 5, claiming to be from a company called Kennedy Water.

They convinced the couple that they needed to access the property, claiming there had been issues with the water supply and they needed to perform some checks.

The men roamed the property supposedly checking taps and the boiler, before leaving.

The victims then discovered 98 sovereign coins and around 5kg bars of silver - with a total value of around £40,000 - had been taken from their safes.

While the couple were being distracted, the thieves filled a pillow case with their precious collectables.

The couple aged 63 and 85, who wished to remain anonymous, said they felt the burglary was planned and the conmen knew what they were looking for.

“You could do what you like now, there’s nothing left here. That’s our funeral plans down the drain.

“We’ve been collecting for more than five years. As we got a little bit of money at one time we would decide to buy a coin. We collected them as an investment and it was something we enjoyed. We will never get them back again.

“Some of the coins were so beautiful. The only blessing is we weren’t hurt.”

Police say the three men are described as white and spoke with Irish accents.

One of the men was around six feet four inches tall and well-built with short brown hair. The second man was described as five feet ten inches tall and of slight build. The third man was around five feet eight inches tall and was carrying a blue jiffy bag.

On the morning of the incident the couple received a delivery of rare coins. The keys to the safes had been left on a bedside cupboard.

The couple, who have been married for 30 years and previously ran a newsagents, added: “We can close our eyes and see the men, and the way they were going about it. Really in hindsight it was suspicious.

“When you sit back and think about it now, we definitely should have been sceptical.

“Afterwards I felt there was something strange about them, something wasn’t right, but they were in before we could do anything. It was mob-handed. They didn’t care as long as we were away from the safes.”

DC Ben Swain, of Bournemouth CID, said: “This crime has understandably left the victims devastated and we are doing everything we can to find those responsible. I would urge any witnesses or anyone with information to please contact me.

“I would also like to remind residents that if they are in any way worried about the intentions of a visitor to their property to ask for identification as they should have no concerns about showing it if they are genuine.

“Never let anyone you do not know into your property if you have any worries about their legitimacy and contact a family member or neighbour and inform the police.”

Anyone with information about the offence is asked to contact Dorset Police quoting occurrence number 55180018792.