POLICE are appealing for information after two mobile phones were stolen from Pokémon Go players in Newport.

The offence happened near The Riverfront in Newport which has become a popular meeting point for fans of the smartphone app to catch ‘pocket monsters’.

The phone application, developed by Niantic Labs and The Pokémon Company, has been downloaded by millions of users across the globe.

Using their mobile phone's GPS, users take to the streets to scour for the hundreds of 'monsters' scattered across real-life locations.

On Wednesday, August 24, a man on a pushbike approached two young people near The Riverfront Theatre and asked to use one of their phones.

When the man was in possession of the phone, he then snatched another phone, escaping on his bike towards Clarence Place.

South Wales Ambulance Service were called at 4.29pm to the scene and took one person, who was badly shaken up, to the Royal Gwent Hospital.

A witness, who preferred not to be named, said: “(The man) was hanging around people playing, asking questions about the game.

“People at The Riverfront are quite accepting of new people playing and help as much as they can and I think this was just to lower everyone’s guard.”

Another witness, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “It was a scary thing to happen I guess. You don’t think it will happen and then all of a sudden it happens right next to you”.

The theft has also been slammed by members of the 'Pokémon Go Newport' Facebook group, which has 1,777 members.

George Turner, posting on Facebook, said: “I’ve always had good times there, always a nice atmosphere and others have too.

“We may be Pokémon addicts but its still our fun. Hopefully the thief is caught asap and the victims are ok”.

Facebook page admin, Bobby Murphy, 20, of Newport, added: “From my point of view people should remember to keep safe and if people approach them they should always take precautions.

“It’s unlikely that it will affect the community and people are still going to go down to The Riverfront. I just think they’re going to be more cautious now when people come up to them.”

The offender is described as white, around 30 years old with missing or rotten teeth. His hair was shaved and he was wearing grey tracksuit bottoms.

A Gwent Police spokeswoman said: “No force was used although the victims were understandably shaken and one taken to hospital as a precautionary measure.”

If you have any information, call Gwent Police on 101, quoting log 392 24/08/16.