SICK distraction burglars stole £3,000 from an elderly Newport victim, then led officers from two police forces on a high-speed chase down the M4.

The four men were wanted by Gwent Police in connection with a series of linked distraction burglaries in Newport.

But they are still on the run after evading several traffic police cars and two police force's helicopters in a reckless escape, in which they tore down the M4 corridor at up to 190mph.

Gwent Police are linking a number of attempted distraction burglaries to the wanted men, including one where they stole £3,000 from an elderly resident.

Addresses targetted included sheltered accommodation in the Stow Hill area, Blaen-y-Pant Crescent in Shaftesbury, and Ringwood Hill in Ringland.

Police confirmed they struck at several addresses between 11am and 3pm on Tuesday alone.

On each occasion men knocked on residents' doors claiming they were fitting washing machines at a neighbouring property, but that a water pipe had burst, scalding the occupier.

They asked to come in and check the water temperature for safety, telling the resident to run buckets of water in the kitchen, leaving them to rifle through the house.

They took £3,000 from one victim, and smaller amounts from others.

Police tracked the stolen vehicle the men were using to The Piercefield pub in St Arvans near Tintern on Tuesday afternoon.

Amazingly, the men ordered drinks and meals inside, unaware police had been tracking them for several hours.

Karen Weight, who works at the pub, said: "There were four men, the youngest looked under 20, the oldest over 40.

"They had to have the menu read to them, I don't think all of them could read.

"They ordered food, but left before eating."

Police believe one of the group spotted traffic officers arriving, upon which the men apparently ran down the fire escape, jumped over a fence, climbed into a black Mercedes CLX AMG and sped off.

Traffic police were unable to keep pace with the high performance car and the force helicopter was called in. It followed them as far as the bridge.

From there, Avon and Somerset Police helicopter tried to keep up with the car as it reached terrifying estimated speeds of around 190mph along the M4 corridor.

A Gwent Police spokeswoman said the car was later recovered in the Avon and Somerset police area.