Police officers cooked a lonely elderly couple pasta and kept them company after they were heard crying.

Officers in Rome were called to reports of crying and shouting at a flat in the Appio area of the city last Tuesday.

They found Jole, 84, and her 94-year-old husband Michele.

The couple, who have been married for nearly 70 years, had not committed a crime or been the victims of one - they were simply lonely.

They told officers that it had been an age since someone had visited them and watching sad stories on the news had triggered an outpouring of emotion.

The officers sought to reassure the lonely couple. Credit: Facebook/Police in Rome

They cried so loud that a neighbour called the police.

While they waited for an ambulance to arrive to check the couple over, the kind-hearted officers prepared a meal of spaghetti with butter and parmesan before sitting down for a chat.

"There is not a crime. Jole and Michele are not victims of scams and no thief entered the house - there is no one to save," the police force said on its Facebook page.

"This time, for the boys, there is a more daunting task - two lonely souls who need reassuring.

"They understand that just a little human warmth will restore tranquility to Jole and Michele."