An elderly woman was beaten black and blue by a gang of thieves who attacked her for her handbag.
Sabina Harrison, 78, suffered shocking injuries as she was mobbed by four men in broad daylight as she walked to catch a bus.
The attack has left the grandmother of four shaken and scared to leave her home.
“They went for my bag but it was over my shoulder and I had it wrapped around my hand so the more they pulled it, the more it tightened around me,” said Mrs Harrison.
“They kept on until they got me on the ground and then they dragged me along the floor.”
Mrs Harrison suffered bruising across the entire left side of her body as a result of the attack in the Harehills area of Leeds, west Yorkshire.
She said: “I have two artificial hips so I was very worried about them. It happened so quickly and I didn’t get a look at them. It was just the last thing I expected.
“I didn’t have anything valuable in my bag so I don’t know why they targeted me. I want to just forget about it all and not let this beat me.”
Police have arrested four youths over the attack so far, and released a shocking photograph of Mrs Harrison’s injuries to encourage the public to come forward with any information.
Her daughter, Sabina Halliday, is backing the appeal.
She said: “We want to prevent this from happening to someone else.
“As a community in a city, we need to make sure that our vulnerable people are safeguarded so that they aren’t afraid of going out in daylight.
“We can’t turn the clock back – but those who were involved need to learn that this is not acceptable.”
The gang-of-four then ran off while a passer-by called emergency services and Mrs Harrison was taken to hospital.
Mrs Halliday added: “I was the first person from our family to see her and I was very shocked.
“I knew that she had been mugged and had a fall but I was quite alarmed when I saw the extent of her injuries.”
She said her mother had not been out of the house alone since the incident and still required regular hospital check-ups.
“This isn’t just about an old person losing her bag – that’s the least of it,” she said.
“It’s the impact on her confidence, plus the amount of time it’s taking to deal with the injuries.”
Four youths, aged 14 to 17, from Manchester, were arrested and released on police bail pending further 1nquiries.
Police are especially keen to talk to the driver of a Mark IV Volkswagen Golf, which was seen on CCTV at the time who may have witnessed the incident.
