DON'T trust anyone. Those are the wise words of a 71-year-old Landford woman who was robbed of jewellery worth several thousand pounds while acting as a Good Samaritan.

All Jean Cox's family heirlooms and cheque books were stolen in the distraction theft at Salisbury Road in the picturesque New Forest village on Monday afternoon.

Mrs Cox, was washing her car in the driveway of her home when she was approached by a teenage boy of Mediterranean or eastern European origin.

He asked the unsuspecting and obliging pensioner, if she could help him find his little sister--who he claimed lived in the area.

"He told me he was looking for Mrs somebody or other. It was very difficult to understand him because he had a foreign accent and was acting as though he was retarded. He had a lisp. I repeated everything I said several times for him. He kept me talking for about six minutes.

"I was very concerned about him walking along the road trying to find the person he wanted. When I went back in doors I rang the lady who I thought he wanted and told her to keep an eye-open for him because I was worried about his safety.

"He said he was trying to find his little sister. I though I was helping him. I shall never trust anyone again after this," said Mrs Cox, who has been burgled three times within the last 10 years.

All the time the offender was talking to Mrs Cox, he made sure her back was turned towards her home--preventing her from seeing his accomplice or accomplices nipping into the house.

Police believe that the youth described as 13 to 15-years-old may have had two accomplices.

He kept Mrs Cox talking while the house was being robbed.

A small amount of cash was taken in the raid which happened at about 3.15pm.

Mrs Cox, who is county officer for the Royal British Legion's women's section, added: "When the boy left, I thought to myself, I will go up into the bedroom and look out of the window to see if I can see him. It was then I noticed that the curtain had been moved and the dresser had been disturbed.

"I realised I had been burgled. It was awful. I thought I was helping the boy. I felt rotten having sent him along the road thinking to myself he could be killed. I didn't feel like that after I found out what had happened."

The boy's skin was very dark, but he was definitely not Indian, said Mrs Cox, who added: "One noticeable thing about him was his very pointed hands. He kept shielding his dark eyes with them. I would say he was medium build and about 5ft tall. This really makes me cross that this has happened. I am so mad about it."

The intruders opened some of Mrs Cox's belongings and then pushed them under her bed.