Police are appealing for witnesses after a 90-year-old pensioner had her bag stolen in Wirral.

The woman was walking through an alleyway at the rear of Poplar Road in Prenton, after leaving the nearby Edward's newsagents, at around 1pm on Friday when the robber pushed her and ran off with her handbag.

The pensioner was not hurt but was left badly shaken by her ordeal.

The wanted man is of medium build with short brown hair. He was wearing a dark coloured trench court with a hood, dark coloured trousers and black shoes.

It is believed he made off in the direction of Borough Road.

The bag was black with a zip on the top and fur on the side. It contained a quantity of cash and bank cards.

An investigation is ongoing, inquiries are being carried out in the local area and CCTV opportunities are being explored.

Detective Inspector Paul Parry said: “I want to assure people that this type of behaviour will not be tolerated and we will do everything in our power to find the person responsible.

“The lady was not badly hurt but has been left shaken by her ordeal. Thankfully incidents like this are rare but I would appeal to anyone who witnessed the incident or saw a male fitting the description running away from the scene to contact us.

“There were a number of people in the immediate area who may have seen something which could help our inquiries.

“Similarly I would urge anyone who finds the lady’s handbag or has any information about the incident to get in touch.”

Anyone with any information should call Merseyside Police on 0151 777 2265 or the confidential Crimestoppers line on 0800 555 111.