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Royal Mail has launched a fraud probe into a bizarre fake postage stamp that portrays Diane Abbott as the Queen.

Chiefs say a crime may have been committed after the stamp was spotted by a postie from her seat of Hackney, North London.

The anonymous worker told the Hackney Gazette the stamp had been mistaken for a real one by the postal service.

A photo handed to the newspaper appeared to show it had been franked and gone through the system for delivery.

Sources close to the Shadow Home Secretary have been told the stamp has been in circulation for some time - but are at a loss as to where it came from.

It is not known whether it is a serious attempt at fraud or simply a light-hearted prank.

Nor is it known if the stamp's creator is a fan of Ms Abbott or trying to send a sinister message about the MP, who has spoken of the tide of vile and racist hate mail she receives.

(Image: Daily Mirror)

Royal Mail have now begun a fraud probe.

A spokeswoman said: "It is a crime to create or use counterfeit stamps.

"Royal Mail takes the necessary steps to protect stamp revenues which help fund the Universal Postal Service which serves the UK’s 30 million households and businesses.

"We will seek to prosecute where we find someone has created counterfeit stamps or knowingly sold used stamps for re-use.

"This matter is being investigated by our Security team."

Royal Mail declined to comment on whether multiple copies of the stamp were found, or it was believed to be a one-off.