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Toronto police have issued a public safety alert after officers say a scammer convinced an elderly couple to leave valuables outside their home, which were subsequently stolen.

In a news release Sunday, police said an unknown woman called an elderly couple in the Roncesvalles area on Thursday and spoke to them in Polish.

Investigators said the woman told the couple, who is from Poland, that she was a police officer.

The woman allegedly told the couple to leave a bag of money and jewelry outside their home, which would assist police in capturing criminals who were about to engage in a criminal act.

The couple followed the woman’s instructions, but later discovered that the bag had been stolen, police said.

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“The Toronto Police Service wish to remind the public that police officers would never telephone anyone and direct them to part with their valuables to assist in an investigation or for any other purported reason,” police said in the release.

Anyone with information is asked to contact investigators at 416-808-1104 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-8477.

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