A pensioner battling leukaemia was left with horrific bruising to the face and body by thugs who wanted her £1,300 mobility scooter.
The 79-year-old’s face was dragged against a pebble-dashed wall by a pair of young attackers, who warned her they would return to her Gateshead home following the botched robbery.
Brave Ida who recently underwent a heart procedure, told ChronicleLive: “I’ve never been scared before, but now I’ve been told to keep my door locked.
“They wouldn’t dare pick on someone who would fight back. Elderly people are probably all they will pick on.
“I shouldn’t have opened the door, but I did. When I opened it I got a hell of a shock.”
Shocking photos of Ida since the attack show her blackened eyes and right leg as a result of the violence she says
She spent around five hours in the A&E department of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, in Gateshead, following the attack at her home in Dunston, early on Sunday.
Ida, who lives alone, was awake at around 5.30am when her large cat – called Henry VIII – was alerted by a noise outside.
“The cat always runs to the door when someone is there, and I could see movement through the window,” she said.
That’s when the thugs yanked Ida’s arm, before carrying out the sickening attack which left her in a crumpled heap on the ground.
Ida added: “When they ran away, they were shouting ‘we will be back’.
“I got a shock, it was all over before I even realised what had happened.”
Thankfully, the vehicle was secure and the would-be thieves were unable to steal it.
Her ordeal has left experienced police officers sickened, as they do all they can bring the culprits to justice.
“This is an abhorrent attack on a vulnerable pensioner in her own home and we are determined to find those responsible,” said Neighbourhood Inspector Alan Davison, of Northumbria Police.
“The mobility scooter would clearly belong to someone with a vulnerability and I find it appalling that anyone would try to take it away from someone in need.
“To then shove an elderly woman into a wall, and cause the level of injury that they have done, is beyond comprehension and I know the wider community will share our anger.”
“What worries me is that if it happened to someone else. Elderly people are not that strong,” added Ida, who had a heart pacer added less than three months ago.
“If they hit (others) the way that I was, I think they could kill some people.”
In an emotional plea to the community, Inspector Davison has urged anybody who knows who is behind the attack to give them up.
Anyone with information that may help police identify those responsible is asked to contact 101 quoting log 504 28/02/21.
You can also report online at the Northumbria Police website or contact independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.