Buying a laptop cheaper than its market price is something most people only dream of, but it only happens to the lucky ones that are in the right place in the right time. You have to weigh you options very carefully and then know when to step in to make the kill, any bidding done too early might jeopardize the entire situation that was this far clearly in your favor. Those must have been the thoughts of the Portsmouth 27-year old student that was presented with the opportunity to buy a Sony laptop from two guys in a car. After quickly deciding what to do, he took the 600 quid deal and probably laughed on the inside.

Unfortunately, the joke was on him, as when he opened the recently purchased laptop's bag he found only potatoes inside. The student, who wanted to remain unnamed, according to Portsmouth press, said that he did not see when the switcheroo was pulled. I really can't blame him for wanting to remain anonymous, there's hardly anyone willing to show his face in public and be pointed fingers at after being the victim of one of the oldest tricks in the book.

Those in the vicinity of Portsmouth might want to be on the lookout for the two men running the scam, as the police believe them to have attempted to pull off as far as London, Wolverhampton and Wiltshire. The salesman is somewhere between 40 and 50 years old, and 5ft 6 inches to 5ft 8 inches tall, with grey hair. Clothing is probably of little importance (unless they have a scamming uniform, that is), but he was wearing a dark-green jacket and, apparently, no pants, as none have been described. The driver had an Asian appearance, younger (20-30 years old), 5ft 6 inches tall, short black hair and was wearing a green top and jeans.

Not that somebody doubts your decision making capacities, but even the police warned about this type of scams, in the voice of Allison Fraser: "I would advise members of the public to refrain from buying high-value goods from people out of the back of cars or vans. If you do choose to make a purchase, ensure that you have the goods before you hand over any money."