Wiltshire Police are warning the county's singles after a woman was conned out of £3,000 by a fraudster who wooed her on an online dating site.

In October 2010 the woman began an online romance with someone she believed was an American serviceman based in Iraq.

The man persuaded her to transfer money into his account to help him with his planned home leave. The cash was transferred through legitimate money transfer services such as Moneygram and Western Union.

But the soldier was a conman who had stolen the identity of a genuine US soldier and the woman, from Swindon, had lost her cash, which was transferred into the account of someone based in West Africa, thoght to be in Nigeria.

Detective Constable Andrew Cook of the Wiltshire Police Economic Crime Unit said: “Online dating scams such as this one can seem very real to people wishing to start a new relationship.

"The fraudsters often spend many months cultivating and grooming victims, in an attempt to finally persuade them to send money abroad.

"Unfortunately there have been many cases where people have lost thousands of pounds through these deliberate and cruel scams."

But he said there are some warning signs to look out for. The e-mails and messages sent by such fraudsters are often poorly constructed, and the spelling and grammar can be very poor.

Would-be suitors should also be cautious of any request for cash from e-mail contacts abroad, particularly in a new internet relationship.

Anyone who wants to report a similar incident can contact Wiltshire Police on 0845 408 7000 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 where information may be left anonymously if preferred.