Pickpockets strike again

The latest warning comes after a woman had her debit card stolen and £300 taken from her bank account after she visited Leamington.

An attempt to withdraw a larger sum was unsuccessful.

The incident happened on Monday afternoon.

Having returned to her car in Covent Garden car park in Russell Street, the woman was approached by three women with foreign accents who were carrying a map.

They opened the map in front of her and asked her for directions to Coventry while she sat in the car with the door open and her handbag in the footwell.

The victim believes she may have been watched as she used her card in shops and the card was then stolen enabling the thieves to use her PIN number.

Officers are reminding shoppers to be extra vigilant when using their debit cards while shopping, and always to make sure they cover the number pad when buying items in shops, or when withdrawing money from a cash point.

Be aware if someone is standing close by and make sure they cannot see the number pad by obscuring it with your body.

In addition your debit and credit cards should always be placed well down inside your closed handbag, or in an inside zipped pocket in your jacket.

In particular be extra aware if you are approached by someone asking for your help, whether that be asking for directions or wanting help of some other kind.

Similar incidents, involving a group of women with foreign accents who carry a map and ask for directions, have happened in Warwick and Kenilworth in recent weeks.