A Sherborne resident has been the victim of a bogus police officer telephone scam.

The resident was contacted via telephone by a female claiming to be a police officer. The bogus caller told the resident that the police had identified a member of their bank staff who had removed £400 from their account.

The bogus caller stated that the police needed the Sherborne resident’s help to expose bank staff who were involved in this crime.

This ‘help’ involved the resident transferring £8,000 into a bank account which was supposedly held by the police. The resident was told not to mention anything to the bank staff while transferring the money, so as not to alert them to the investigation.

Unfortunately the resident transferred the money and the Dorset Police investigation is ongoing.

A spokesman for Dorset Police said: "The police will never ask you to transfer money from your bank account, nor will they ever ask you for your bank details."

For more information visit actionfraud.police.uk/