A 12-year-old boy has been arrested after posing as a charity collector for the Salvation Army.
Trusting home owners handed over donations after the child knocked on their doors in the Lidget Green area of Bradford, West Yorkshire, saying he was collecting money for the charity and his school.
But suspicious members of the public raised the alarm and he was arrested on suspicion of fraud before being released on bail pending further inquiries.
A police spokesman said: "Remember, don't give money to anybody unless you are absolutely sure who they are and what they are collecting for."
According to figures released last month, police arrested 8,511 children aged between 10 and 12 in the last two years.
In West Yorkshire, where the boy is from police arrested 68 children for alleged violence against the person, 13 young people accused of committing sexual offences, 11 who were suspected robbers and three on suspicion of drugs offences.