BUSINESS owners are being warned over a spate of attempted cooking oil thefts.

North Wales Police say that, with the rising costs of fuel across the country, thieves are targeting businesses in the area for their cooking oil.

Officers say they have seen an increase in suspicious activity surrounding this type of crime.

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NWP say they dealt with a report of theives attempting to make off with cooking oil from a restaurant in Broughton on Monday, June 13.

They say that two men approached the business pretending to be form the Environmental Agency.

A spokesperson for the force said: "We had an incident where two males approached a restaurant in Broughton claiming to be from the Environmental Agency there to collect their waste cooking oil.

"Luckily, the staff member was aware of fraudsters making these claims, asked for ID which was clearly not genuine and sent them away.

Police say that the cooking oil is sought after to be used in the production of Biodiesel.

The spokesperson added: "Please be mindful should this relate to your business, of where your cooking oil is stored and the security measures around your property due to the increase in thefts.

"Any suspicious incidents like this, report to 101. If you are unsure if they are genuine, contact your regular waste oil collector to confirm."