A specialised team of officers in Leicester are hoping to crackdown on 'faith healers' who claim they can cure medical ailments and solve financial problems in return for cash.

According to the Leicester Mercury, conmen have duped a number of unsuspecting victims into giving them significant amounts of money in return for "meaningless prayers" and rituals.

One woman handed over tens of thousands in cash to a man who claimed to be able to mend a rift in her family.

Her husband has condemned the practice: "They are exploiting religion, using peoples' faith to make a lot of money and they have to be stopped," he said.

Many of these 'healers' advertise their services in community newspapers, while some leave their business cards on car windscreens or put them through letterboxes.

Their claims range from being able to cure diseases such as HIV and cancer to breaking off curses and solving relationship problems. The nature of their crime means it's the most vulnerable people who are targeted, and when their claims fall through, it is the victim who gets the blame for not having enough faith.

"People are being exploited and handing over large sums of money to these people," Inspector Ben Gillard of Spinney Hill Park police station said.

"As well as the money people are handing over to these people, another of the concerns is that some people may be going to faith healers to be treated for medical conditions instead of going to the NHS. By the time they go to the NHS their conditions may have worsened or can't be treated."

The police are hoping to work with religious leaders in the local community to track down the tricksters, and faith groups have already offered their support.

"As a community we have not done enough to raise awareness of this problem...It is a crime and it is very well organised," Resham Singh Sandhu, chairman of the Sikh Welfare and Cultural Society and vice president of the Leicestershire Faith Forum, said.

"We hear horror stories, particularly of elderly or vulnerable people giving these 'healers' thousands of pounds," spokesman for the Leicestershire Federation of Muslim Organisations, Suleman Nagdi, added.

"We have to do everything we can to educate people about this problem which is causing a lot of distress."