Police have dismissed rumours on social media that a group of men had abducted two girls from Preston.

A Facebook post was shared more than 1,000 times about an incident between North Road and Kent Street on Sunday evening.

A spokesman for Preston Police has confirmed in a statement no such incident took place either in Preston or anywhere else in Lancashire.

A statement from police said: “We’re aware of rumours circulating on social media that two girls were abducted by a group of men in Preston over the weekend.

“We want to confirm we’ve had no reports of any such incident anywhere in the county during this time and, as far as police are concerned, these rumours are completely false.

“As is sometimes the case when people start to talk about such rumours or share things they may have seen on social media, stories are confused and added to as they are passed on, often without any malicious intent, and after the story’s been retold a few times misinformation can be interpreted as something that has actually happened.

“We always aim to keep our social media channels up to date with facts and we’d recommend you follow us for the latest information and news that you can trust is accurate. Thanks for your support.”

Read more: See latest news and headlines for Preston that have actually happened