An elderly woman was robbed of £115 as she walked up a dark alley.

The victim, in her 70s, was walking between Pear Tree Close and St Edmund's Close, Southend, at 8.50pm on Tuesday when a man approached her on a bicycle.

He pushed her to the ground as he passed her and grabbed her handbag before riding off towards Cluny Square.

The large black handbag contained a brown wallet containing £100, a pension book and a dark mauve wallet containing £15, as well as cheque books and bank cards.

A police spokeswoman said: "The woman was not injured but she was left very shaken by this crime."

A 26-year-old local man was arrested on suspicion of robbery.

Published Thursday, January 16, 2003

Brought to you by the Evening Echo