• Howick and Pakuranga Times

ART lovers are advised to be on the lookout for men trying to sell overpriced paintings door-to-door.

Sergeant Sonny Iosefo, of Howick police, says the pair has been trying to sell prints of oil paintings for between $350 and $400, despite them actually being worth about $12 each.

The men, who are believed to be of Middle Eastern descent, have been spotted in Golflands and other parts of East Auckland, as well as in Albany on the North Shore.

Mr Iosefo says they are aged in their 20s and try to convince unsuspecting victims the paintings are genuine.

“Both these men are from overseas and are in New Zealand on student visas,” he told the Times.

“They’re apparently residing in Albany.

“They use their charm and persuasiveness to mislead potential victims into buying their paintings and will only accept cash or bank transfers.”

Mr Iosefo says people should also never give their credit or debit card details to someone over the phone, or place cash in envelopes to be sent through the mail.

“These guys are getting briefed and then dropped off in certain areas,” he says. “We want people to go with their gut instinct [if visited by them].

“They use the typical sales approach in that they try to butter up people and get them to go with their emotions rather than their head.

“We want people to use wisdom and common sense.”

People with information on the alleged art scammers, or who have been visited by them, can phone Howick police on 538-0300, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800-555-111.