RESIDENTS are being warned not to fall victim to a conwoman scamming people out of money by claiming her car has broken down or she needs to take her sick child to hospital.

Police in Brighton were alerted to the scam by a good Samaritan who gave the woman money after believing she was in need.

The kind-hearted woman handed over £30 to the con artist in Eastern Road, Brighton, outside the Sussex Eye Hospital, after the scammer claimed to be having issues with her car and asked for money to cover her bus or train fare back home.

The victim made contact with the police as she felt the woman's behaviour was suspicious.

Inspector Brian McCarthy from Brighton and Hove's neighbourhood policing team said: "We would urge all members of the public to be cautious of anyone approaching them on the street and asking for money. This is the only report made to us but we believe that other people may have fallen victim to this scam. Anyone who thinks they may have been a victim of this type of crime should email 101@sussex.pnn.police.uk or call 101."

Police said the were linking this incident on Christmas Eve to similar incidents in September. In the first incident, a woman approached a woman in Bennett Road, Brighton, around 5pm on Saturday September 24 and said that she had locked her keys in her car and needed to borrow £30 to get home to Billingshurst.

Then the following Monday, the same woman was stopping people in George Street around 8.30am asking for money because she needed train fare to take her sick child to hospital. She was reported by a woman who did not give her any money.

The woman is described as white and between 25 and 35 years-old and slim with a long thin nose.