Four men barged their way into a home in an attempted burglary after one of them posed as a police officer.

The man pretending to be an officer by wearing a high visibility police jacket used an intercom and claimed there had been a disturbance before requesting to be allowed entry to the property in Wildernesse Avenue, Sevenoaks, on Bank Holiday Monday.

He had alongside a driver in a Skoda Octavia, which had a roof light bar, a police sign on the bonnet, and green and yellow markings associated with an ambulance car on the side.

Once he had made his way inside the house, four masked suspects in dark clothing who had been hiding nearby rushed in too, pushing the victim who had opened the door onto the stairs in the process.

The men who entered the house and the driver of the Skoda all fled the scene when an alarm was triggered and police were called at 9.41pm.

Nobody was injured during the incident but officers are appealing to members of the public to remain vigilant.

Detective Inspector James Derham said: "Given the nature of this incident it is possible the offenders may have intended on using violence if necessary.

"This was clearly a very frightening experience for the victims, who were thankfully able to quickly raise the alarm, forcing them to leave empty handed.

"We are continuing to carry out a number of enquiries to locate those responsible and whilst it is important to remember incidents such as these are extremely rare anywhere in Kent, I would like remind members of the public to report anything suspicious.

"If someone turns up at your home claiming to be a police officer, who you are not expecting, don’t be afraid to ask for identification. If you are in any doubt, or are unable to view identification call 999 or 101."

If you have information which can help the police investigation call 01622 604100, quoting reference 01-1427.

Alternatively contact Kent Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.