Elderly woman attacked in early morning burglary

The woman was confronted by a burglar on Thursday morning

A woman aged in her 80s was taken to hospital and left "extremely distressed" after being attacked by a burglar in her home.

The victim suffered injuries to her arms, elbow and nose during the break-in in the Stockbridge Village area of Knowsley, Merseyside, at about 07:00 GMT on Thursday.

The burglar, described as a white man of about 5ft 8in (1.76m) and dressed all in black reportedly stole cash before fleeing.

Merseyside Police said officers were carrying out house-to-house enquiries and detectives were appealing for witnesses or anyone with information to come forward.

'Utter revulsion'

Det Insp Jimmy Rotheram described the attack as "appalling" and said the woman and her family were being supported.

"I'm sure the local community will share our utter revulsion that such an incident has happened," he said.

"We also understand that such a crime will cause concern for those living in the area and I'd like to assure those people that our investigation is a high priority, which is why this appeal is so important."

Det Insp Rotheram asked anyone who may have seen anything suspicious in the Spruce Grove area to get in touch.