IT looks just like a real speed camera and stands at the beginning of a 30mph limit in a Suffolk village.But a closer inspection proves the device in Brandeston, near Framlingham, to be a hoax - and it remains a mystery who placed it there.

IT looks just like a real speed camera and stands at the beginning of a 30mph limit in a Suffolk village.

But a closer inspection proves the device in Brandeston, near Framlingham, to be a hoax - and it remains a mystery who placed it there.

It has become a talking point in the village with no one claiming responsibility for it - but one thing local residents are certain of is that it is having the desired impact.

It is so realistic - perched on a grey pole - that motorists are slowing down and keeping to the speed limit as they pass through the picturesque village.

However, the materials used to create the bogus device actually include a grey drainpipe, grey tape and a tin can for the lens.

The “camera” has been installed at the beginning of the speed limit as motorists approach Brandeston from the Kettleburgh direction heading towards Earl Soham.

It has been put up next to the road on land belonging to local farmer Maurice Scott but he is as mystified by its sudden appearance as the rest of the community.

He believes it was put up by someone determined to make motorists slow down as they pass through the village.

“I think the village is fed up with people speeding through it. They go through the village very, very fast,” he said.

Mr Scott said he knew the camera was false but it was so well made it is having an impact.

“Put it this way, it would fool me. If you were going past and saw that it would make you put your foot on the brakes,” he said.

Village resident Mary Moore, whose home is nearest to the spoof camera, said many people in the village thought it was a joke at first.

“The so-called camera is the talk of the village and people are wondering who put it there but I must say as I live close by I have seen motorists slow down when they approach it,” she said.

Suffolk SafeCam are responsible for both static and mobile speed cameras in the county and spokesperson Michelle Finnerty said although the organisation did not approve of the spoof speed camera being installed at Brandeston it did reflect the frustration felt by communities.

“This is not a course of action we would recommend but we do recognise the frustration felt by communities who are upset by speeding motorists.

“No one wants to see speeding motorists in their own community and we all have a responsibility to respect other communities as we drive through the county,” she said.

The Suffolk SafeCam team operate in areas where there are known speeding problems or accident blackspots after the necessary data is passed on to them.

More information about the role of Suffolk SafeCam and the location of official speed cameras in the county is available on www.suffolksafecam.co.uk