Lottery scams which conned two elderly women out of £6,000 today spurred warnings by West Sussex Trading Standards.

The public was urged to think carefully before sending money to organisations claiming cash prizes have been won in an overseas lottery or prize draw.

The two women, one from Mid-Sussex and the other from Littlehampton, were invited to enter a Canadian lottery and after sending off forms, several were contacted by a Canadian man called Jacob.

A West Sussex County Council spokesman said Jacob told the woman from Mid-Sussex she had won a £500,000 prize but must send £5,000 to cover "commission and taxes" to claim it.

She spoke to Jacob several times on the phone and he apparently gave the impression the call was coming from an official government source.

The woman sent the £5,000 by banker's draft to Montreal and never heard from Jacob or received the prize.

The Littlehampton woman agreed to give her bank debit card details to a telephone caller from the "European Lottery Guild" and £1,000 was withdrawn from her bank account without her agreement.

Lionel Barnard, county council cabinet member designate for public safety, said: "These lottery scams are consistently catching people out.

"I am particularly concerned as it tends to be vulnerable people, who can least afford to lose their money, who get involved."