Shareholders in copper and gold exploration business EMED Mining (EMED:AIM) have been put on boiler room alert. EMED has warned investors to be wary of unsolicited calls from a company called Chesterfield Financial Associates.

Investors are being contacted ‘in relation to various purported investment schemes’ by Chesterfield which claims to be acting on behalf of EMED. But the company says these are schemes are fraudulent.

‘Any investors contacted by Chesterfield should therefore not seek to participate in such schemes,’ reads a statement made by the company last week.

Last year investors in Herts-based Eleco (ELCO:AIM) received unsolicited calls with offers to buy their shares. In that instance investors were told by fake brokers they are buying shares on behalf a client looking to take over the company.

Shareholders in FTSE 350 companies Diageo (DGE), Imperial Tobacco (IMT) and Balfour Beatty (BBY) have all recently been harassed by boiler room operators.

These sort of scams usually involve advance fees being sent to get in on the proposed scheme before the fraudsters disappear with the payment. If a broker is genuine they will appear on the FSA’s register at www.fsa.gov.uk/register.

EMED is advising any investors contacted by the fraudsters to contact it at info@emed-mining.com.