POLICE in Wotton are appealing for witnesses after an elderly lady was tricked into letting a thief into her home.

At approximately 12.45pm yesterday a man called at the home of an 84-year-old woman in Wotton-under-Edge, stating that he was carrying out some building work and needed to check the water.

The woman took the man to the kitchen were he asked her to empty the cupboard under the sink, which she did. He then used the upstairs bathroom before leaving the house.

A short while after he had left the premises the victim noticed that an amount of cash had been stolen from two rooms in her home.

Inspector Alistair Barby, of Dursley Police Station, said: "This goes to show these people will try anything to trick their way into victim’s homes. These kinds of burglaries are always so despicable because the offenders deliberately target the most vulnerable members of society.

"We will, of course, do all we can to locate the offenders and to investigate this matter fully as we continue to crack down on distraction burglaries across Gloucestershire.

"I would urge members of the public to take extra care of their elderly neighbours simply by watching out for anyone suspicious loitering around or perhaps challenging someone you don’t recognise calling at an elderly neighbour’s house."

Anyone with any information about this incident is asked to contact police on 0845 090 1234 quoting incident number 232 of May 19 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.