Elderly woman foils intruder

Press, 4 September 1989, Page 9

Elderly woman foils intruder

By

NIGEL MALTHUS

An elderly Christchurch woman sent a young intruder packing when he tried to rob her in her home on Saturday evening. The woman, aged 78, grabbed the young man’s wrists when he threatened her with what looked life a knife or a file. After a short struggle, in which she gave “an unholy scream,” the intruder ran off.

The incident happened about 5.30 p.m. at the woman’s home in Wilsons Road, St Martins. The woman, who asked not to be identified, said the incident had given her “a wee bit of a fright. I’ve got over it now.”

The man first arrived at the door asking to use a telephone because he said he needed a doctor.

She was suspicious because of the way he was shaking and keeping his hands in his pockets, so directed him to a nearby dairy. A few minutes later, she saw him returning, and met him at the still open door. This time, he walked right up to her, holding a blade of some kind, and demanded money. “I said I didn’t have any. He was a slight fellow, not much taller than me, so I just grabbed his wrists quickly, and gave one hell of a yell.”

He then ran off, and she followed him to the gate but could not see which way he went. The woman said it seemed from his description that it was the same young man who approached her sister, next door, about a month ago. On that occasion, he was with a young woman, and they claimed they needed to telephone a doctor because the woman was pregnant.

The police described the man as European, aged about 20, 160 cm tall and of medium build. He had short black hair and wore an earring in one ear. He was wearing a grey jacket and grey or blue jeans.