Two robbers who disguised themselves as undercover police officers are targeting men in east London, Scotland Yard said.

The two men are said to have posed as plain clothes officers and showed a fake police badge to victims.

Officers said a man in his 50s was targeted on Bethnal Green Road, in Tower Hamlets, on April 5, at about 11.30pm.

The victim said two men approached him, said they were undercover Met officers and “flashed badges”. They then stole money before running away.

Two days later, on April 7, a man in his 60s said two men had accosted him in London Fields at about 12.45am and claimed they were officers again.

The suspects then showed him ID before carrying out a search on the victim, police said.

They then told him they needed to see ID, and as he didn’t have any in his possession, would need to take him back to his home to collect it.

Once they reached his address, they then stole number of items from the man, before running away again.

Detective Constable Alex Heaton, said: “While we don’t want to cause unnecessary alarm, we are reminding the public to remain vigilant and asking anyone who believes they may have been victim of a similar theft to come forward.

“If you are approached by someone claiming to be a police officer and you are not sure if they are genuine or not, you can ring 101 and ask them to confirm their details.

“No undercover officer will ask you for bank details, nor should you ever give your PIN to anyone you don’t know.”

The first suspect is described as a black man with a slight beard. He was wearing a T-shirt with a red and blue motif on the front. The second suspect was a white man wearing a cap and glasses with a rucksack on his back.

Anyone with information is asked to call 101 with reference 7910/05APR.