A 21-year-old-man who pretended he had been robbed of his mobile phone for insurance purposes, has been cautioned for wasting police time.

The man told police he had been robbed by two men while walking from Charlie Brown’s roundabout, Woodford Green on Thursday (7).

When he reported the robbery to the police he said the men had stolen his phone after searching his pockets.

The man, from Woodford Green, was given a caution on Saturday for wasting police time and a fined £80.

Det Sgt Dave Bonnyhood from Redbridge police said: “We take each allegation of crime very seriously and deal with victims compassionately. However, we will robustly deal with any person who makes false crime claims in order to make false insurance claims”.