BURGLARS who stole cash from a man in his 80s after convincing him thousands of pounds worth of urgent work was needed at his home are being hunted by police.

The man was targeted near his Poole home by the men, who looked around his property before fleeing with cash.

The incident happened on Tuesday October 30 at 1.30pm when the men approached their victim in the area of Yetminster Road and Sherborn Crescent.

The victim showed the men round his property, before going to a cash machine and withdrawing £60 as this was all the money he had. He then gave the money to the men who both left. A torch belonging to the victim that one of the men had used to look round the property was also stolen.

The first suspect is described as white, aged in his mid-30s with short dark hair and dark clothing.

The second suspect is white, aged around 18, with blond hair and was wearing a grey long-sleeved top.

Police Constable Matt Putt, of Poole police, said: "This was clearly a very distressing incident for the victim to endure. Both the men were very persuasive.

"I am appealing to anyone who may have seen two men in a white van acting suspiciously in the area around the time of the incident to please come forward. It could be that other local residents were approached in a similar manner and I would also like to speak to these people.

"CCTV and house-to-house enquiries have been carried out, but if you live in the area or were driving through and have relevant CCTV or dash cam footage, please get in touch."

He said householders should never accept work from anyone who offers it over the phone or at their door and should never go to a bank with a tradesperson or give them account details.

Anyone with information should call Dorset Police on 101, quoting occurrence number 55180175778 or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.