THE daughter of an elderly couple is warning residents in Eldene to be wary after her parents were conned by a doorstep scammer.

Peter and Eve Fry, who are both in their 80s, were woken at around 11pm on Monday night by a woman shouting that she needed to go to hospital after cutting her hand. The couple also had their grandson staying overnight at their Blackstone Avenue home.

A frightened Peter, 83, handed over £20 as he was scared about what might happen if he didn’t.

Daughter Julie Child is now warning people not to fall victim to similar incidents.

“My mum suffers with dementia and the whole thing woke her up,” Julie said.

“She started shouting for dad so he felt like he had to hand over the money to get rid of her.

“It may only have been £20 and so it isn’t about the money. It is about knocking on the doors of older residents who could fall for something much worse and hand over more money.”

Police have been given a description of the woman, who was white, of skinny build and had her hair in a ponytail.

The couple say nothing like this has ever happened before and they have lived in Eldene for 46 years. But several people on social media have reported seeing the woman around and Julie is urging them to get in touch with police.

“The woman knew my dad’s name, which was strange, and he didn’t know who she was,” said Julie.

“Since it happened, I’ve asked people in the area to see if any of their neighbours have heard anything and I’ve put it on Facebook. A lot of people here are elderly and vulnerable so I want to get the word out there.

“There are a lot of things going online and on Facebook about people knocking doors in Eldene or smashing windows or causing trouble and a lot of people have said there’s too much of it going on.

"There are older people in this area and it is hateful that they are being targeted.”

A spokesman for Wiltshire Police confirmed they are looking into the matter.

“We received a report that a woman had knocked on the door of a home in Blackstone Avenue and asked for money for a taxi to the hospital," he said.

"The resident handed her cash and she left the scene. The woman believed to be between 30 and 40.”

Anyone with information should call police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.

Age UK advises people to:

1. Lock, stop, chain and check when answering the door

2. Put up a deterrent sign such as ‘no cold callers’

3. Set up a password with your utility companies so you know that they are genuine

4. Check credentials

6. Call the police if you’re suspicious