A homemade piece of equipment is fitted over the card slot

Since October there have been three incidents at Stow, Cirencester and Stroud in which a device known as a "Lebanese Loop" was fitted to cashpoint machines in a bid to steal money.

The scam works by fitting a homemade piece of equipment over the card slot which retains a person's card when they insert it.

The thief will then queue behind the person using the machine and often suggest they try their pin number again to see if the card will be returned.

The offender then memorises the pin number and waits for the customer to walk off when their card is not returned.

Withdraw money

The thief will then pull the device out of the slot and - using the memorised pin number - withdraw money from the account using the card.

Pc Mark Godsland, said: "Invariably these crimes occur when the banks are shut so customers cannot immediately inquire about their cards.

"If anyone has their card retained by a cashpoint we would advise them to first of all look closely at the slot and make sure it is part of the machine.

"We would also caution people against letting anyone see their pin number as they punch it in. If they are aware of someone standing over their shoulder they should conceal the keypad with their hand.