A DORSET resident lost £8,000 in a scam after a fraudster posed as a police officer.

The victim, a Sherborne resident, was called by the woman who said a member of bank staff had removed £400 from the victim’s bank account.

The bogus caller said the police needed the resident’s help to ‘expose’ the bank staff involved in the crime by transferring £8,000 into a bank account which was supposedly held by the police.

The scammer told the resident not to mention anything to the bank staff when transferring the money, so not to alert them to the investigation.

A spokesperson for Sherborne Police said: “Unfortunately the resident transferred the money to the bogus caller's account and the genuine Dorset Police investigation is ongoing.

“The police will never ask you to transfer money from your bank account, nor will they ever ask you for your bank details.”