POLICE say they are following up new information which could lead to the arrest of teenage girl con-artists who have been targeting elderly people across East Lancashire.

Pensioners in Blackburn, Pendle and Burnley have been duped into letting girls - thought to be as young as 15 - into their homes around the festive period. The thieves stole cash, pension books and bank books.

And it has now emerged that another woman pensioner in Stopes Brow, Darwen, was targeted two days after Christmas by a pair of young girls who conned their way into her home and stole cash before the householder became suspicious.

And two female con-artists aged under 20 have also tricked their way into a pensioner's home in Devonshire Drive, Clayton-le-Moors and stole a handbag containing cash, a pension book, a bus pass, an Accrington to Glasgow rail ticket and other personal items. In several of the incidents, the young girls pretended to be relatives of a friend and police are examining the possibility that all the crimes are linked.

Detective Sergeant Peter Broome of Blackburn CID said: "Certain information has been brought to the attention of the police and we actively investigating these leads."

The culprits in the Darwen case were described as aged about 16, slim with fair hair, about 5ft 8in tall and wearing neutral coloured jackets. They spoke with local accents and it is thought they could be sisters.

One of the girls was described as white, tall, with dark hair tied back. The second was 5ft tall and slim with long blonde hair. Both were wearing dark jackets with trousers or jeans.

In the run-up to Christmas, pensioners in Peel Gardens and Sutherland Street, Colne, and Waddington Avenue, Burnley, were also victims of female teenage thieves.

DS Broome said: "These are terrible crimes in which the culprits take advantage of some of the most vulnerable members of society.

"We would emphasise that if anyone is in any doubt about the identity of a caller at the door they do not have to let them in."

Anyone with any information about the crimes should contact Blackburn Police on 01254 51212.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.