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A Teesside woman wired £4,600 to Facebook scammers who promised £450k would be sent to her by a specialist delivery firm.

The victim was contacted by someone she knew, who told her she's received a received a £200k payment for "marriage tax" - posting a screen shot of a bank account showing the payment.

This woman told the victim she should send a friend request to a man on Facebook , who would explain how she too could receive a payment - and was told she would be entitled to receive £450k.

The victim was then told not to talk about her claim until she'd received the payment - but was then informed that due to the large sum of money involved, it would need to be delivered in a secure package via a specialist delivery firm.

Scammers provided a Barclays Bank account number and sort code, which convinced the victim to send the £4,600.

(Image: PA)

She then received a 'tracking number' from a so-called shipping company - but, unsurprisingly, the victim never received a package of money.

A Cleveland Police statement read: "Our colleagues at Barclays Bank logged this incident with us on Friday afternoon and Action Fraud is also aware.

"Cleveland Police officers visited the victim in person that evening and gave her information about scams taking place over social media and the wider internet.

"We would repeat our advice that you should be very careful if you come across 'offers' like this and if it seems too good to be true then it usually is.

"Anyone with concerns should visit Action Fraud's website and, if they believe they have fallen victim to a scam, also speak with their bank."