Three men and women in their 80s and a woman in her 60s were targeted by thieves on Tuesday, Kent Police said.

In each case, the burglars used a different story to gain access to the victim's house and steal hundreds of pounds.

The first incident was at about 1300 BST, when two men took a 66-year-old woman's purse after asking to look at scaffolding at her home in Acacia Walk, Swanley.

At about 1445 BST a woman and a man entered the home of an 82-year-old woman in West Hill Drive, Dartford, on the pretext of writing a note for a neighbour.

Crimes 'very rare'

Two men called on a man aged 85 in Durant Road, Swanley, at about the same time and asked him for �120 after reading the meter.

A woman also entered the home of an 86-year-old woman in MacKenzie Way, Gravesend, at about 2100 BST after claiming she was a carer and stole a wallet.

Kent Police spokesman Martin Pearce said: "Although crimes against elderly people are very rare, we would urge people to think very carefully about security and how to protect themselves from such crime as bogus callers."

He urged anyone with information to contact Kent Police.