Surrey Police have issued a warning to internet daters to beware of a “cruel and heartless” romance scam ahead of Valentine's Day.

The Force are warning people looking for romance on the worldwide web that others in Surrey, including in Horley, have fallen victim to fraudsters posing online as US soldiers serving in Afghanistan.

The fraudsters often take the name and rank of real US soldiers and use photos taken from genuine profiles on social networking sites.

They then build up online relationships with unsuspecting women before eventually asking them for money.

The Horley victim exchanged emails with a man claiming to be a serving US soldier.

He asked her to top-up his mobile phone so they could text one another.

He then told her he wanted to visit her for Christmas, and said the US Army would email her release forms which she would need to complete in order to secure him three months' leave.

The woman filled in the online form but was then told she needed to pay £300 before he could be released.

When she said she couldn't afford that amount, the release fee was lowered to £100.

A Surrey Police spokesman said the Horley woman did not pay the money, but in other instances, a woman from Woking was persuaded to part with £150,000 by a man she met online who claimed he needed the money to buy his way out of the army and relocate to the UK, and another victim from Caterham handed over £1,400 after she was contacted via a dating website by a man claiming to be a lieutenant serving in the US Army in Afghanistan.

He claimed he could come and visit her providing she paid for his travel.

She received forms that appeared to be official US Army paperwork requesting her personal details, but was then asked for a further £8,000.

When she contacted the US Embassy, officials confirmed it was a scam and that the officer she thought she was communicating with was in fact dead.

Detective Inspector Richard Hamlin of Surrey Police's Economic Crime Unit, said: "More and more people are using the internet to look for potential partners and the majority of those who use such websites are genuine.

"But online daters do need to be aware that there are some who lurk on these sites with the sole intention of trying to con money from them.”

Det Insp Hamlin said: "These fraudsters usually seem plausible and often go to great lengths to create a façade that is believable.

“They use real pictures of US soldiers and the victims are sometimes sent official looking paperwork to add credibility to their stories.

"They are skilled in building up relationships over a period of time and prey on often vulnerable victims, spending weeks grooming them to make them think that they are involved in a genuine romance.”

But he stressed: "It is a sophisticated scam and those behind it are very difficult to trace, meaning there is little chance of getting back any money once it has been handed over.

“These are cruel and heartless crimes that can have a devastating effect on victims.

"With Valentine's Day approaching, it is a good time to remind people to take sensible precautions when seeking to meet people on dating and social networking sites.

"Never be persuaded or pressured to part with any money by someone you've never met, no matter how convincing they sound.

“Always keep your personal information a secret and do not divulge your details to anyone online."

Surrey Police has issued advice to people to protect them from similar scams, including to be suspicious if they are not able to speak to them over the phone or write to them, to look out for any spelling, grammatical or language errors which would suggest the person sending any message is not a native English speaker, and to be extremely suspicious if asked for money, and to never give out personal financial information or be pressured into parting with any funds.