A man who stole more than £11,000 by conning people to reveal their bank details - in a scam known as “courier fraud” - has been jailed for nearly two years.

Mohammed “Abbas” Ali, 36, of Judd Street, King’s Cross, pretended to be a bank employee to convince two men to give out their credit card details over the phone.

He was sentenced at Blackfriars Crown Court on Friday after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation in April.

Det Con Ian Poole, of the Metropolitan Police Service’s Fraud Squad, said: “Abbas Ali committed a series of calculated and ruthless frauds with no regard for this victims.

“This is a cold-hearted, callous crime often perpetrated on elderly and vulnerable individuals, and we are determined to bring anyone committing this crime to account.

“I urge the public to remember this simple rule: banks and the police will never ask for your PIN or bank card, so do not give it to them.”

Ali telephoned two men in their 50s within days of each other in August 2012 to tell them someone had used their credit cards fraudulently.

He convinced them the scam was genuine by asking them to call him back at the bank using the phone number on the reverse of their cards.

But the victims got straight through to Ali again because he did not hang up the phone and they told him their PIN numbers.

A courier was then sent to pick up their credit cards, which were delivered to Ali.

One man, from Wembley, had £7,000 taken from his bank account while another, from Twickenham, had more than £4,000 stolen.

Elderly and vulnerable people are often targeted in courier fraud scams and the police have advised these groups never to give out their bank account details.

The Metropolitan Police Service is holding a courier fraud awareness day on Wednesday with stalls at high street banks across London raising awareness of these types of scams.