A 93-year-old woman from Stratford fell victim to a callous conman who snatched her purse after tricking her into believing he was a store detective.

The woman was approached by the man while on her way home from a Christmas shopping trip last weekend.

He asked her to stop and, saying he was a detective from Marks and Spencer, asked her to open her bag for him to take a look.

They stepped under a street light in Welcombe Road and he grabbed her purse, which contained £50 and credit cards, before running off.

PC Carl Beaumont, of Stratford police, is looking for anyone who may have seen the man, who was aged between 45 and 50, wore dark trousers and jacket with a shirt. He was about 5ft 7ins tall and was in the area at around 4.45pm on Saturday.

PC Beaumont can be contacted on 01789 414111.