A MAN from Marlborough is counting the cost after falling for a scam in which a woman conned him out of £82,000, after convincing him that she needed the money to return to Ghana so she could get hold of her inheritance and gold bars.

The man, from London Road, reported the scam to police and it is now being investigated by Action Fraud in London.

The victim of the scammer did not want to reveal details of how he was conned out of the large amount of cash - often scams involve women contacting men romantically.

A spokesman for Wiltshire Police said: “A female has convinced the reporting person to transfer money to her account so she could return to Ghana to release her inheritance of money and gold bars.

“Cash to the value of £82,000 was involved.”

Action Fraud is the UK’s national fraud reporting service, which passes information on to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau run by the City of London’s police service.

It says it is important for everyone to stay vigilant about anyone contacting them with sob stories about needing money.

Often people are contacted by email and are sucked into to believing they can help someone.

The organisation said: “A fraudster, previously involved in deceiving people online, revealed that they would create fake accounts with social media platforms so that their details matched and could be searched.

“By appearing to be a real person, their fake persona could be corroborated by prospective partners searching their background and believe them to be genuine.”

The US embassy in Ghana has also issued warnings about the way people can be fooled into handing over their cash.

It says: “Citizens should be alert to attempts at fraud by persons who profess friendship or romantic interest over the internet. If they are after your money, eventually they will ask for it.”