MORE than 20 online scams across Hampshire have been reported to police in the last two weeks.

Hampshire Police are urging residents to be cautious when selling high value electrical items online, particularly on Facebook Marketplace, following a number of reports where people pretending to be ‘buyers’ have walked away with the goods after convincing the seller they have paid via bank transfer.

There have been a total of 21 incidents since August 14 across Hampshire.

Laptops, mobile phones, tablets, games consoles, a drone and a watch are amongst the items stolen, ranging in price from £370 to £3,400.

Those pretending to be ‘buyers’ have answered a seller’s advert quickly and when they have turned up to collect the items, they have then convinced the buyer they have transferred the money by showing them the transfer on a banking app.

When the sellers have said they can’t see the money in their account, the ‘buyers’ have convinced them it will appear soon and have left with the goods.

On some occasions, the ‘buyers’ have taken a photo of the seller on their doorstep and asked them to produce ID.