Police are urging Mid Wales residents to bin a scam letter telling recipients they have supposedly won hundreds of thousands of pounds in a Spanish lottery draw, which is flooding the area.

The warning comes after a spate of Welshpool residents received the letter by post over the past two weeks.

Dyfed Powys officers say the letter even comes with a genuine Spanish stamp, but warn residents should not be fooled as the scam is a way of accessing personal details.

A spokeswoman said: “The letter states the householder had won a significant amount of cash on the Spanish lottery.

“It says that in order for the money to be transferred the person needed to send a variety of personal details, including bank details, to a designated company.

“We believe this letter is a scam and we would urge residents to take no action and to throw the letter away.”

One Welshpool resident, who did not wish to be named, received a letter on Wednesday saying she had won 985,950 euros.

“I received it and thought I had better pop down to the police station because it just didn’t seem right,” the resident said.

“When I got there they told me I had done the right thing and that a number had been handed in over recent weeks. I am appalled to be honest because an elderly, vulnerable person could easily be tricked.”

The police spokesman added: “If you receive one of these letters, bin it or bring it to us, where we can start building a file of them.”

For more information call the police on 0845 3302000.