An 86-year-old Newham man was robbed after two men pretended to be police to get into his home.

The victim opened his front door to two men who said they were from the police and needed to gain access to his back garden.

He invited both inside, before opening his back door and allowing one of the suspects into his garden while the second man remained in the living room.

After the men left the victim realised his Toshiba television and home telephone equipment were missing.

The incident was on Sunday, May 20 at 9am,

The suspects were white and aged 40 to 45.

Crime Prevention Officer Pc Andy Whitfield said: “Most callers to your home are genuine, but there are those who are not and precautions need to be taken to prevent these bogus callers getting into your home.”

He added: “Don’t be afraid to say ‘no’ and report anything suspicious to police.”

Genuine callers will not mind waiting while their identities are being verified.

Utility companies or councils now offer a password identification system.

Any callers from one of these organisations should be able to give a pre-arranged password as additional proof of identity.

Further information about password schemes can be obtained by contacting individual companies.