Woman conned

A WOMAN from Quedgeley was conned out of £165 when she tried to buy husky puppies over the internet.

After responding to an online advert she received an email telling her the owner had inherited the dogs from her mother and that she could not care for them.

The victim agreed to pay the money for shipping the animals to her and transferred the money.

Later that day she received another email asking for more money for insurance purposes, but she became suspicious and called the police.

A Stroud resident fell victim to a similar scam in 2008, sending £120 via Moneygram to Cameroon to purchase a puppy in Scotland before hearing nothing from the seller.

PC Emma Chandler, of Quedgeley police, said scammers tried to sell anything from puppies to exotic animals like capuchin monkeys.

"It is unlikely that this animal exists in the first place and very likely you are being defrauded. There is also often no way the money can be refunded if you do pay up.

"We would advise people to wary of adverts involving the sale of pets and remember that, in the case of some of the more exotic animals, a license is needed before they can be purchased," she said.